[BCMA] CMA Clip Serv: Ottawa funds Komagata Maru memorial

[Moderated BCMA subscriber listserv.]

This memorial is long overdue.  

 

Kathleen Trayner

Alizarin Consulting

Victoria BC

250-595-4349

 

 

  _____  

From: bcma-bounces at lists.vvv.com [mailto:bcma-bounces at lists.vvv.com] On
Behalf Of Moderated BCMA subscriber listserv.
Sent: December-14-10 10:49 AM
To: bcma at lists.vvv.com
Subject: [BCMA] CMA Clip Serv: Ottawa funds Komagata Maru memorial

 

Ottawa funds Komagata Maru memorial 

CBC News, Sunday, December 12, 2010 

 

The federal government has promised to fund two Vancouver projects,
including a memorial monument, to commemorate the Komagata Maru incident. 

 

Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Minister Jason Kenney made the
announcement in a written statement on Sunday. 

 

"The story of the Komagata Maru is an event in our history that did not do
us proud," he said in the release. 

 

"Prime Minister Harper was the first prime minister in Canadian history to
recognize the tragic nature of the Komagata Maru incident. He is also the
first prime minister to apologize to the Indo-Canadian community for it." 

 

In 1914, the Komagata Maru arrived in Vancouver harbour carrying 376
passengers of Indian descent. The ship was prevented from docking and, after
a two-month standoff, sailed back to India where about 20 passengers died in
an altercation with British soldiers. 

 

On Sunday, Kenney pledged $82,500 to Vancouver's Khalsa Diwan Society to
work with the Vancouver Parks Board for a monument to commemorate the
incident. 

 

The organization will also receive $104,000 to develop the first phase of a
museum dedicated to the Komagata Maru. 

 

"Canadians of South Asian origin have made enormous contributions to
building Canada," Kenney said. 

 

"The government of Canada is committed to recognizing the experiences of the
Indo-Canadian community and other communities affected by immigration
restrictions applied in Canada's past." 

 

The monument to the Komagata Maru will be a replica of the ship and will
include the names of all the passengers, as well as photographs and a
descriptive plaque. Its proposed location is in a public park near where the
ship was anchored in 1914. 

 

The museum, located on the grounds of the Khalsa Diwan Society in Vancouver,
will also be accessible to the public. 

 

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