Monument installed in memory of farmworkers killed in B.C. van crash

ABBOTSFORD, B.C. – Three farmworkers who died when an overloaded van crashed on a British Columbia highway will be honoured with a monument in Abbotsford.

The nearly seven-metre Golden Tree monument featuring the images of three women in its twisting gold-leafed trunk will be unveiled Saturday on the grounds of the Friendship Garden behind the city’s public library.

Thirty-one-year-old Sarbjit Kaur Sidhu, 52-year-old Amarjit Kaur Bal and 46-year-old Sukhvider Kaur Puna were killed in March 2007 when a van struck a concrete median on Highway 1 near Abbotsford.

They were among 17 women plus a driver on their way to work in a poorly maintained 15-passenger vehicle that was equipped with two seatbelts.

A coroners jury in 2009 recommended that 15-passenger vans be classified as high-risk vehicles and that farmworkers be given better education about their rights.

Labour Minister Shirley Bond says changes have been made to improve the safety of farmworkers and that she hopes the statue will raise awareness about the importance of farm work in B.C.