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Mahatma Gandhi statue vandalised in South Africa
A statue of Mahatma Gandhi has been defaced by a group of people who threw buckets of white paint on it amid racist taunts.
A statue of Mahatma Gandhi has been defaced by a group of people who threw buckets of white paint on it amid racist taunts.
The incident occurred on Sunday when the group came in a car and threw buckets of white paint on the statue and surrounding plaques detailing Gandhi’s history in South Africa, security guard Ntandzo Khwepe said. They were bearing placards reading: "Racist Gandhi must fall."
The statue is on a public transport hub square which was renamed Gandhi Square because the offices in which he practiced law during his stay in the city is on the periphery of the square.
"They said we should not stop them because Gandhi was a racist man," Khwepe said, adding that the group was wearing African National Congress (ANC) regalia.
ANC spokesman Keith Khoza condemned the incident and denied the ruling party’s involvement, saying that they could have been posing as ANC members to discredit the party.
