Torn apart

Natalie Wong


Wednesday, August 25, 2010

Of the five members of the Leung family on the Manila death bus, only Mrs Leung - Amy Ng Yau-woon - left it alive and unhurt.

Husband Ken Leung Kam-wing, 58, and daughters Doris Leung Chung-see, 21, and Jessie Leung Song-yi, 14, lay dead.

Nineteen-year-old son Jason Leung Song-xue was carried away in a critical state with a head injury.

Mrs Leung said she only survived because her husband used his body to shield her from a hail of bullets. And even if she had escaped physical harm, she was being torn apart by grief.

When officials from the Philippine government visited her yesterday, she had nothing for them but recriminations and tears.

"You have come too late," she cried. "Why was there no assistance when we were being held hostage for several hours?

"I know the gunman initially didn't want to kill us as he was making requests to the Philippine government. Why couldn't you satisfy him? Was it because of money?"

That said, her thoughts returned to son Jason, in intensive care after undergoing brain surgery.
In Hong Kong, meanwhile, Leung family friends and colleagues were talking of the lost ones.

Ken Leung, who was managing director of Stadium Asia and who attended the same secondary school as lawmaker Fred Li Wah-ming, was being recalled by contemporaries in the University of Hong Kong industrial engineering class of 1977 as as "a straightforward, straight-talking man" who was always helpful and "gave 100 percent of himself to everything he did.

" They wrote: "By all accounts, Ken made the ultimate sacrifice, using his body to shield his loved ones from the killer's bullets.

"For his classmates, this was only to be expected of this brave man. We feel very sad, but are proud of him.

"We offer our deepest condolences to Ken's wife, Amy, and son, Jason, who is critically ill in hospital, and all the families and friends of the victims of this terrible and tragic event."

Doris had been studying in Canada and Jessie, the youngest victim of the tragedy, was a Form Two student at the Hong Kong Management Association David Li Kwok Po College.
The school has set up a memorial blog to mourn her and to send get-well wishes to her brother, who is an alumnus of the college.

Principal Nicholas Puiu described Jessie and Jason as "polite, well-spoken, well-mannered students who were a pleasure to teach."