MELBOURNE (Reuters) – Two historic statues were damaged in Melbourne ahead of Australia Day celebrations on Sunday where tens of thousands across the country are expected to join protests in support of Aboriginal people who say the date is not one to celebrate.
A statue of colonist John Batman, a founder of the country’s second largest city who was also involved in killings of Indigenous people, was sawn in half, while a monument commemorating Australian soldiers in World War One was daubed in red paint, with the words “land back,” in the early hours of Saturday morning, local media reported.
Australia’s national day on January 26 is a controversial date for Indigenous Australians because it marks the day that Captain James Cook landed in Sydney Cove, and the start of the country’s colonisation by the British.
In Sydney, the artwork of Wiradjuri-Biripi artist James P. Simon was projected on to the sails of the Opera House, as part of many dawn ceremonies around the country to be followed by protests and festivities throughout the day.
In Melbourne’s central business district, local shopkeepers had been warned to expect as many as 30,000 people marching through the streets, local media reported.
(Reporting by Melanie Burton; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)
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