The murder of six people, who died from an assailant’s stab wounds in a Sydney shopping center on April 13, shocked many Australians, in a country where crimes of such violence remain rare . To pay tribute to them, several hundred people gathered with candles on Sunday at the nearby iconic Bondi Beach. The public sat on the grass in a seaside park to mourn the five women and the Pakistani security guard who died in the attack at the Westfield shopping center in Bondi Junction. “When I heard that, I cried. Because it’s new to us. This doesn’t happen often. It’s a shock,” observes Daniela Pontidas, 56, owner of a café. “I know a lot of people who have been affected in one way or another,” she told AFP. “I feel like Australia’s bubble has burst a bit.”
Paul Inggall, 50, remembers going to Bondi Junction in the hours before the attack. “These things don’t happen often in Australia, but when they do, I think they have a profound impact.” “I think it really touches people, so I want to participate” in the commemorations, he said. The perpetrator of the attack, Joel Cauchi, a 40-year-old mentally ill man, was found and then shot dead by a police officer, Amy Scott, who attended the ceremony.
With the sound of waves crashing on the beach, a choir sang “Keep Your Loving Arms Around Me” at dusk, a religious song. A didgeridoo tune followed as people lit candles despite the wind. “Bondi is strong and this community is strong. We will get through this,” said Chris Minns, Premier of New South Wales.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese offered his condolences, on behalf of the country, to the six lives “torn away on this painful Saturday afternoon”. “We are mourning all the joy they should have known,” he said.
Joel Cauchi’s parents said their son was diagnosed with schizophrenia at the age of 17. But that he left their Queensland home and had abandoned treatment. His victims are all women, apart from a 30-year-old Pakistani man who worked as a security guard. A fashion designer, a Chinese student, a volunteer surf lifesaver, the daughter of an entrepreneur and a young mother lost their lives in the attack. Ashlee Good left her injured nine-month-old baby Harriet in the care of two strangers before being rushed to the hospital where she died. The child is out of danger.
Despite the rarity of these types of crimes in Australia, two days after the mall attack, an Assyrian Christian bishop was brutally stabbed during a live service in Sydney’s west. The bishop said he was recovering in hospital. A 16-year-old suspect was charged with a “terrorist act”.
