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Dozens of vigils were held across the country Sunday to remember more than 500 aboriginal women who have vanished in the last three decades and to draw attention to what organizers called a national tragedy.

In Vancouver, the haunting chant and drum beats of the women's warrior song opened the event at a waterfront park neighbouring the city's gritty Downtown-Eastside.

A large billboard was erected at the vigil showing the pictures of dozens of women who have been murdered or never found - including many victims or alleged victims of serial killer Robert Pickton.

But Gladys Radek, one of the organizers of the Vancouver event, said it's time the focus shifted away from murder trials.

"It's not about Robert Pickton. It's not about the killers that are out there. It's about the women. We love those women," Radek said, her voice cracking with emotion.

Pickton was convicted in 2007 of killing six women and still may face another 20 murder charges.

Radek's niece Tamara Chipman vanished in 2005 from the so-called Highway of Tears in Northern British Columbia, where 18 women have either disappeared or been murdered, most of them First Nations.

"When Tamara disappeared she tore a piece of my heart out," she said to the crowd of about 150 people.

In Halifax, dozens of people held hands and participated in a sacred native ceremony as they remembered murdered or missing aboriginal women.

Sitting in a circle at a Mi'kmaq friendship centre, about 60 people joined in on a native smudging ritual while urging governments and justice officials to work to solve cases of murdered or missing women.

"We call for a national plan of action that recognizes the violence faced by aboriginal women because they are aboriginal," organizer Alana Lee said as sweetgrass smoke hung heavy in the air.

"Violence against aboriginal women is too big a problem to ignore."

Margaret Brooks spoke of the shock of losing her sister, whose body was found in a local school window well in May.

Tanya Brooks, a mother of five children, was from the Millbrook First Nation near Truro, N.S., but was living in Halifax when she died. Reports indicate she had struggled with drug addiction and poverty throughout her life.

Holding a poem her sister wrote before her death, Brooks said people must not be afraid to speak out against any type of abuse.

"We all have a responsibility that if we see something that we don't approve of, speak up, say something because you never know, that might be the call that actually saves someone's life," she said through tears.

The Sisters in Spirit vigils included a national service in Ottawa to honour aboriginal women and events were held in every province and two territories.

After the vigils, the federal government released a statement reiterating its commitment to protecting and advancing the equality of aboriginal women and girls.

"Ending this type of violence and bringing to justice those who have committed crimes is a shared responsibility of all levels of government as well as law enforcement agencies, the justice system and civil society," said the release on behalf of four government ministers.

On Saturday, Edmontonians gathered in a cold drizzle at McIntyre Park in an effort to raise awareness about the dangers faced by aboriginal women.

The Native Women's Association of Canada said they have documented 520 cases of missing and murdered women over the last 30 years.

In Vancouver, Vikky Reynolds with Amnesty International said statistics show Canadian aboriginal women are five times more likely to suffer violent deaths that non-aboriginal women.

"It's because of the systemic structures of poverty, colonization and racism."

The Canadian government is unwilling to protect First Nations women from the violence, Reynolds said.