A white bike memorial for cyclist and road rage victim Mark Garalde has been installed on P. Casal Street in Quiapo on Sun, Jul 31.
Bicycle enthusiasts and advocates joined a unity ride which began at Rizal Park and ended on the spot where Garalde was shot dead in a horrific encounter last week. The group lit candles and said prayers at the crime scene.
(Read: Caught on CCTV: Car driver shoots bicycle rider in Quiapo)
Organizers NJ Mijares and Howie Severino led the group into errecting a bike frame on the pavement and painting it white on the spot.
“I am saddened and angry about the senseless murder of Mark Vincent Garalde, a fellow cyclist. I don’t know him, but nevertheless, i am affected. He doesn’t deserve that. No one deserves that,” wrote Mijares on the Facebook page Busykleta.
Mijares organized the event using social media, and it eventually got the support of the biking community who helped him gather materials and secure permits for the event.
“It began as a simple gesture. My own way of paying respect for Mark. A few days after posting my plan, the Bike Memorial project snowballed into a movement,” he added later on.
“Ghost bikes,” white bicycle roadside memorials for those who were either killed or seriously hit while riding, is a quiet global movement encouraging cities to make the roads co-habitable for bikes, vehicles and pedestrians.
MIjares, however, thought that the term “ghost bike” was a bit negative, so he retained the concept but changed name to “Lifecycle.” Garalde’s was the first Lifecycle memorial to be installed in the Philippines.
According to GMA News, Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada is mulling the installation of bike lanes in the city, while Mark Garalde’s shooter Vhon Tanto was arrested on Fri, Jul 29.
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