In a shocking & disgraceful incident a 25-year-old Caucasian man urinated on the Komagata Maru Memorial in Vancouver in broad daylight and shouted abuses at two South Asian men who had gone there on a visit.
The deplorable incident happened on Monday afternoon when Pargan Mattu from Surrey had taken a friend from Seattle to see the Komagata Maru Memorial in Vancouver.
Speaking with The Voice, Mattu said, “We were totally shocked at this behaviour.”
Mattu’s friend had come over from Seattle to meet him and he took him to Vancouver to see the Komagata Maru Memorial. While they were looking at the memorial a young Caucasian man confronted them.
“He was around 25-years old and was carrying a soccer ball. First he slammed the ball on the picture of the memorial and asked us what are you guys trying to prove. I asked him what was he trying to prove. He said he can prove anything and started urinating on the memorial. I took his picture and he said I can do whatever I want. He was desperately looking to fight and my friend wanted to thrash him but I said let’s go and complain to the police, which we did,” Mattu told The Voice.
“This was extremely embarrassing for me and especially for my friend who had come all the way from Seattle to see the memorial,” Mattu said.
Pargan Mattu has complained to the VPD who are looking into the incident. According to VPD spokesman, Randy Fincham, the hate crimes unit is looking into this.
According to the Vancouver Park Board, who issued a statement after the incident, the monument was created in partnership with the Khalsa Diwan Society “to embrace multiculturalism and remind people about the devastating impact that racial intolerance and discrimination have had upon our community.”
“We are saddened and deeply offended by this disgraceful act,” Park Board Chair Sarah Blyth said in the statement, adding that Parks staff have since cleaned the monument.