UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson sees the removal of a 125-year-old statue in Bristol honoring slave trader Edward Colston as an act of crime, his spokesperson said Monday
LONDON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 08th June, 2020) UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson sees the removal of a 125-year-old statue in Bristol honoring slave trader Edward Colston as an act of crime, his spokesperson said Monday.
The bronze statue to the 17th century merchant who left his fortune to charities was pulled down from its base and dumped into the harbor on the second day of anti-racism protests that swept the United Kingdom over the weekend.
"People can campaign for the removal of a statue but what happened yesterday was a criminal act and when the criminal law is broken that is unacceptable," the spokesperson said, as cited by national media outlets.
Johnson "absolutely understands the strength of feeling" that the controversial monument had provoked, they added, but "if people wanted the removal of the statue there are democratic routes which can be followed."
Bristol Mayor Marvin Rees said the monument had been at the center of controversy for around two decades. He said he understood the sense of loss that some people felt but did not share it.
"We had a statue up to someone who made his money buying and selling people. That statue is now underwater, which is a piece of historical irony," Rees said.
Bristol police have launched an investigation to identify what they called a small group of people involved in the "act of criminal damage." Chief Constable Andy Marsh defended the decision not to intervene in the toppling to avoid injuries to both police and protesters.
