‘Interconnected sorrow': Manitoba Filipino community in mourning after deadly attack at Vancouver festival
Kat Daaca, vice president of Manitoba Filipino Business Council, reacts to the recent Vancouver festival attack and its impact on the Filipino community.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Winnipeg Free Press
2 days ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Filipino forces and villagers struggle to live in China's shadow in disputed waters
WEST YORK ISLAND, South China Sea (AP) — Overwhelmed after setting foot for the first time on a far-flung but picturesque island in the disputed South China Sea, a Filipino army official knelt to kiss the shore. She held a small Philippine flag that fluttered in the breeze. 'This is just so beautiful,' Philippines military spokesperson Col. Francel Margareth Padilla said of West York Island, one of nine islands, reefs and atolls occupied by Filipino forces in the long-contested waters. 'This solidifies our resolve to fight for this place whatever happens.' The 18.6-hectare (46-acre) droplet-shaped island, called Likas by Filipinos, could easily become an eco-tourism draw in tropical Asia with its powdery white-sand beaches, turquoise waters and giant sea turtle sanctuaries. Padilla expressed hope it could someday be opened to Filipino travelers and tourists from across the world. But that longstanding aspiration by Philippine officials has been stymied by a tangle of territorial conflicts involving a militarily superior China. Beijing claims virtually the entire South China Sea, a vital global trade route with rich undersea deposits of gas and oil. It has increasingly flexed its military might, including its navy — the largest in the world — to strengthen its grip on a strategic waterway it says it has owned since ancient times. The Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan contest China's expansive claims with their own, and the territorial stand-offs have increasingly flared into cat-and-mouse confrontations at sea in recent years. The long-simmering disputes are also a delicate fault line in the regional rivalry between Beijing and Washington. Both former President Joe Biden and his successor, Donald Trump, have condemned China's growing aggression in the contested waters, including its coast guard's use of powerful water cannons, blinding military-grade lasers and dangerous sea maneuvers against the coast guard and navy of the Philippines, Washington's oldest treaty ally in Asia. Under President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who took office in mid-2022, the Philippines has intensified a campaign to expose China's increasingly assertive actions by capturing them in video and photographs. The images have then been made public in the hope that international pressure would prompt Beijing to back down to avoid damage to its reputation. The Philippine military invited a small group of journalists, including two from The Associated Press, in a dayslong naval patrol of the South China Sea territories claimed by Manila and on visits to navy and marine forces deployed to guard them. During the patrol, which ended over the weekend, the BRP Andres Bonifacio navy ship carrying the journalists warned a number of Chinese coast guard ships and suspected Chinese militia vessels by two-way radio to move away from Philippines-claimed waters. The Chinese ships responded by asserting their sovereignty in the offshore region without undertaking any provocative actions. On West York Island, two Filipino marines in camouflage uniforms stood guard with M4 assault rifles under a Philippine flag. One used binoculars to scan the surrounding waters for Chinese or Vietnamese ships passing by from a distance. One of the farthest islands in the disputed waters from the nearest Philippine province of Palawan, West York is a difficult and risky post, where Filipino forces see nothing beyond the small island but sea. Military personnel can occasionally call their loved ones during their two-month deployment, but the internet connection is spotty, especially during the typhoon season that starts in June, according to military personnel on the island. They grow eggplants, okra and chili peppers and raise goats and chickens to augment food provisions delivered by navy ships from Palawan. There is a makeshift basketball court to help while away off-duty time and ease the feeling of isolation. 'It's being away from your family,' Padilla said. 'At the end of the day, you go home to an empty room.' Marine Col. Joel Bonavente, who was among the visiting military officials, told AP that military personnel posted in the remote outpost get additional pay to compensate for the 'hazard and loneliness.' On Thitu, the largest Philippines-claimed island, which lies west of West York, civilians have thrived for decades in a small fishing village alongside the military forces. An AP journalist who visited Thitu several years ago saw an island with only a few low-slung wooden and concrete buildings and a gravel airstrip that was being eroded by the constant pounding of waves. There were a few shanties mainlanders had moved to from Palawan in exchange for a monthly government provision of groceries, rice and cash in a bid to grow a civilian community. Dramatic infrastructure improvements have occurred through the years on the 37.2-hectare (92-acre) island, which now has a concrete runway, a huge aircraft hangar, a wharf, a storm shelter and concrete roads running through the fishing village, military encampments and a three-story coast guard surveillance center. A high school building is nearly finished near a seawater desalination facility. 'I want to stay on this island because my blood pressure remains stable without the wide selection of fatty food you find in the city like hamburgers,' said Nenita Bania, a 59-year-old villager who has lived with her husband on Thitu for 12 years. 'Lonely? Not really. It's not the case if you're with family,' she told the AP aboard an air force C-130 aircraft, as she and other villagers hitched a ride back to Thitu from Palawan province. Living in China's shadow in the disputed waters, however, has been challenging, said Larry Hugo, 47, who leads a group of at least 114 fishermen. More than a decade ago, China transformed seven disputed South China Sea reefs into island bases, where Chinese coast guard and navy ships can now refuel and obtain supplies for longer periods far from the Chinese mainland. One of China's artificial islands, Subi, has a military-grade runway and lies just 26 kilometers (16 miles) from Thitu. 'There were no Chinese ships before but now it's a big problem because they are all around our island,' Hugo said. 'They're guarding the reefs where we used to fish, and they block us so we can't venture far.' 'It's very dangerous,' he said. 'We have small boats and we may be run over and that'll be a big problem because we're far from civilization.'
Toronto Star
2 days ago
- Toronto Star
Filipino forces and villagers struggle to live in China's shadow in disputed waters
WEST YORK ISLAND, South China Sea (AP) — Overwhelmed after setting foot for the first time on a far-flung but picturesque island in the disputed South China Sea, a Filipino army official knelt to kiss the shore. She held a small Philippine flag that fluttered in the breeze. 'This is just so beautiful,' Philippines military spokesperson Col. Francel Margareth Padilla said of West York Island, one of nine islands, reefs and atolls occupied by Filipino forces in the long-contested waters. 'This solidifies our resolve to fight for this place whatever happens.'
Global News
7 days ago
- Global News
Memorial mass in Vancouver to mark 40 days since Lapu Lapu Day attack
Members of Vancouver's Filipino community and others will honour and pray for victims of the Lapu Lapu festival attack at a memorial mass today, 40 days after the tragedy that left 11 people dead. The date is significant in Filipino Catholic tradition as the end of a mourning period, and Rev. Francis Galvan says he expects the mass at St. Andrew's Parish church in East Vancouver at 6 p.m. to be crowded. Galvan, who is of Filipino heritage and is the pastor at Sacred Heart Parish in Delta, B.C., says it's important for the healing process to be shared. 1:54 Filipino community concerned with Vancouver's event for Lapu Lapu victims He also says it's important to show solidarity with victims' families by hearing their stories and mourning together. Story continues below advertisement Vancouver police say seven people injured in the attack remain in hospital as of Tuesday afternoon, with six in stable condition and one in serious condition. Get daily National news Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy In a statement issued Thursday morning, advocacy group Filipino BC says the 40th day 'holds deep spiritual meaning.' 'It is believed that the soul remains close to us during these 40 days, before finding peace and fully departing from the physical world.' The statement lists names and ages of all 11 people who died in the attack, who ranged in age from five to 60. 'This is not closure,' Filipino BC said of the 40th day. 'Healing does not follow a schedule. But today offers a moment to pause. To gather. To feel. And to remind ourselves that healing, while difficult, is possible when we do it together.' 2:22 Brief court appearance for Lapu Lapu Day suspect RJ Aquino, who chairs Filipino BC, said the aftermath of the April 26 attack had cast a shadow over Filipino Heritage Month, which is marked every June. Story continues below advertisement He said some people were still having a difficult time crossing the street or even leaving their homes after the attack, but being with other members of the community is a way to encourage collective healing. The City of Vancouver has separately announced plans for a large-scale memorial event later this month to honour the victims. The 'Come Together: Vancouver Strong,' benefit concert will be held at Rogers Arena, although the exact date has not been set. Attack suspect Adam Kai-Ji Lo faces eight counts of second-degree murder, and Vancouver police have said more charges are expected. He is due back in court on Friday, as preparations to determine if he's fit to stand trial continue.
