Over 100 mourners expressed sorrowful prayers and appeals for unity and kindness on Sunday at the ceremony for a family from Sri Lanka killed in one of the most horrific mass killings in Ottawa’s history.
Several people gathered at the Infinity Convention Centre for a multi-faith service to honor the six individuals, including four children, who were discovered dead on March 6 inside a townhouse in Ottawa’s south-end Barrhaven suburb.
Ajahn Viradhammo, a monk who spoke at the ceremony, urged those mourning worldwide to concentrate on helping each other rather than giving in to despair or anger.
“We in the Ottawa area are in the center of this crisis, but we realize that its impact is experienced globally,” he said.
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THE CANADIAN PRESS/ Patrick Doyle
“It is in these dark moments that we must find strength from kindness and wisdom that are at the core of faith. We come together united by our shared humanity and our unwavering dedication to kindness.”
The victims included 35-year-old Darshani Ekanayake and her four children, who ranged in age from two months to seven years old, as well as a family friend.
Her husband and the kids’ father, Dhanushka Wickramasinghe, was taken to hospital with injuries to his hands and face.
Wickramasinghe was seen crying at the ceremony, his hands clasped in prayer with one finger bandaged. He was surrounded by family members, including a man sobbing into a handkerchief.
Funeral organizers said on Friday that he has requested privacy to mourn the loss of his family, but is thankful for the outpouring of public support since his relatives died.
Five coffins sat at the front of the room, including three smaller white ones and two larger wooden caskets, one of which had framed photos of both Ekanayake and her baby.
The ceremony included audio recordings from the wife and daughter of Gamini Amarakoon Amarakoon Mudiyanselage, a family friend who was also killed. His loved ones in Sri Lanka were unable to travel to Canada for the suneral.
The service included a Buddhist ritual as well as remarks from preachers from various religions, who prayed for surviving relatives to have strength.
Dignitaries from multiple levels of government urged unity in comments during and after the ceremony.
“We have to continue to put our arms around these two families,” Ottawa Mayor Mark Sutcliffe told reporters. “They will have so many difficult days ahead of them and so many challenges.”
The Wickramasinghe family members were Sri Lankan newcomers to Canada, and the youngest was born in this country.
Police arrested a 19-year-old Sri Lankan man on the evening of the attack and charged him with six counts of first-degree murder and one count of attempted murder.
Police said Febrio De-Zoysa was an international student who had been living with the family at the time of their deaths.
De-Zoysa’s attorney, Ewan Lyttle, mentioned that his client is currently in protective custody, and his family is clearly very distressed by the accusations.
