Red tape in Ottawa has volunteers scrambling to raise more money to pay for a memorial designed to honour Canadians who fought in the Battle of Hong Kong and then languished for years in brutal Japanese prison camps.
The cost of the memorial to be unveiled next month has doubled to $300,000 after the National Capital Commission requested design changes.
The requirement has put unwelcome pressure on the Hong Kong Veteran's Commemorative Association, which is funding the project with private donations.
The NCC says the changes were necessary to make the monument fit in with other prestigious buildings on Sussex Drive, including Rideau Hall and the prime minister's residence.
More than one-quarter of the 1,975 troops Canada sent to help defend Hong Kong in 1941 died in battle or in prison camps.
The association says some of the few surviving veterans will be on hand for the dedication of the memorial on Aug. 15.
