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Two women charged after Captain Cook statue defaced in Sydney's Hyde Park Greens staffer among two women alleged to have defaced Captain Cook statue in Sydney
(about 3 hours later)
The 27 and 28-year-old have been charged with destroying or damaging property and possessing a graffiti implementThe 27 and 28-year-old have been charged with destroying or damaging property and possessing a graffiti implement
Two women have been charged after a Captain Cook statue in Sydney’s Hyde Park was allegedly defaced. Two women, one of whom is a part-time employee of NSW Greens MP David Shoebridge, have been charged with allegedly spraying graffiti on a Captain Cook statue in Sydney’s Hyde Park.
Police were alerted to graffiti on the statue about 4am on Sunday and arrested two women –aged 27 and 28 – nearby on College Street in the city centre, NSW police said in a statement. The women, aged 27 and 28, were arrested on Sunday near College Street in the city centre after police were alerted to graffiti on the statue at 4am, NSW police said in a statement.
The women were allegedly found with several spray cans in a bag.The women were allegedly found with several spray cans in a bag.
They were charged with destroying or damaging property and possessing a graffiti implement and were refused bail to appear at Parramatta bail court later on Sunday. Shoebridge, a member of the NSW legislative council, said police had informed him one of the women was employed part time by his office working on the Sniff Off campaign – which opposes the overuse of drug sniffer dogs on the public.
The bronze statue, which dates back to 1879, depicts the navigator who charted the east coast of Australia in 1770 holding a telescope. “I understand that one of the two people charged regarding the incident involving the statue in Hyde Park has part time employment with my office,” he said in a statement.
“They were not engaged in employment at the time of the incident, which occurred well outside of work hours.
“I will not be making any further comment on the matter as it is currently before the courts,” he said.
The two women were charged with destroying or damaging property and possessing a graffiti implement and were refused bail to appear at Parramatta bail court later on Sunday.
The bronze statue, which dates back to 1879, depicts the Yorkshire-born navigator who charted the east coast of Australia in 1770.
It comes as Victorian police are also investigating the defacing of statues in Ballarat.It comes as Victorian police are also investigating the defacing of statues in Ballarat.
The statues of former Australian prime ministers Tony Abbott and John Howard were sprayed with red paint on Saturday morning.The statues of former Australian prime ministers Tony Abbott and John Howard were sprayed with red paint on Saturday morning.
They have since been covered and fenced off and a conservator will assess the damage on Monday.They have since been covered and fenced off and a conservator will assess the damage on Monday.
A Captain James Stirling statue in Perth, Western Australia was on Friday also defaced and a 30-year-old man has been charged with criminal damage or destruction of property.A Captain James Stirling statue in Perth, Western Australia was on Friday also defaced and a 30-year-old man has been charged with criminal damage or destruction of property.
The statue’s neck and hands were painted red and an Aboriginal flag was painted over the inscription at the base.The statue’s neck and hands were painted red and an Aboriginal flag was painted over the inscription at the base.
Historical monuments across the world have been toppled over the past two weeks as Black Lives Matter protesters march through the streets to call out racism following the death of African American man George Floyd in Minneapolis last month.Historical monuments across the world have been toppled over the past two weeks as Black Lives Matter protesters march through the streets to call out racism following the death of African American man George Floyd in Minneapolis last month.
In Australia, people have defied public health warnings amid the Covid-19 pandemic and turned out to protest Indigenous deaths in custody and to rally in support of the BLM movement in Sydney, Perth, Darwin, Adelaide and Melbourne.In Australia, people have defied public health warnings amid the Covid-19 pandemic and turned out to protest Indigenous deaths in custody and to rally in support of the BLM movement in Sydney, Perth, Darwin, Adelaide and Melbourne.
On Sunday, the trade minister, Simon Birmingham, responded to what he labelled the “very sad” and “inappropriate vandalism” of statues of former prime ministers.On Sunday, the trade minister, Simon Birmingham, responded to what he labelled the “very sad” and “inappropriate vandalism” of statues of former prime ministers.
“It shouldn’t occur and no doubt it will be investigated,” he told Channel Seven’s Weekend Sunrise.“It shouldn’t occur and no doubt it will be investigated,” he told Channel Seven’s Weekend Sunrise.
Birmingham said Ballarat’s avenue of former prime ministers “celebrates them all regardless of their politics, and it’s a key part of our history as a nation”.Birmingham said Ballarat’s avenue of former prime ministers “celebrates them all regardless of their politics, and it’s a key part of our history as a nation”.
“None of us are perfect and none of the figures in history were perfect either.“None of us are perfect and none of the figures in history were perfect either.
“But just because of their imperfections, their failings or failures, that doesn’t mean you go about vandalising or tearing down those statues. We should learn from history, not seek to airbrush it or shove it away.”“But just because of their imperfections, their failings or failures, that doesn’t mean you go about vandalising or tearing down those statues. We should learn from history, not seek to airbrush it or shove it away.”
Labor’s health spokesman, Chris Bowen, said although there was legitimate debate about how to include Indigenous Australians in the commemoration of history there was “no place” for vandalism.
Bowen told reporters in Sydney that Cook and Macquarie had an “important place” in Australian history and former prime ministers Howard and Abbott “deserve to be honoured and recognised”.