Ontarians from all walks of life marked the 80th anniversary of the Nanjing Massacre in Toronto, Canada the night of Dec 12, local time, to keep pace with services back in China on National Memorial Day, Dec 13.

The day also marked the fourth National Memorial Day for the victims of the Nanjing Massacre in China with a call for measures to prevent so atrocious a human tragedy from ever happening again.

On Dec 13, 1937, the Japanese army bombed Nanjing and went on a murderous rampage through the city, then China’s capital, killing Chinese residents and disarming soldiers in the following six weeks.

Last month, Wong had proposed the motion to designate Dec 13 as Nanjing Massacre Commemorative Day in the province of Ontario. Jenny Kwan, Member of Parliament of the New Democratic Party, who came all the way from Ottawa to attend the memorial, prepared to call on the Canadian government to proclaim Dec 13 as a national Nanjing Massacre Commemorative Day.

Chinese Consul General He Wei; Raymond Cho, an Ontario politician and representative of Progressive Conservative leader Patrick Brown; Soo Wong and Jenny Kwan delivered speeches to help people draw lessons from history and consolidate their commitment to peace and a solid foundation for lasting peace in the world.

Eighty attendees read the Declaration of Peace on-site and sent a peace-loving message to the whole world at the Chinese Cultural Center of Greater Toronto.

Leaders of the Buddhist Association of Canada also prayed for world peace and harmony at the memorial.