Former State Premier’s Statue Sawn Off at Ankles, Toppled Over

The statue of William Crowther had been scheduled to be taken down after objections from the Aboriginal community due to an incident of a stolen skull.

The statue of former Tasmanian premier William Crowther is seen after it was cut down by vandals at Franklin Square in Hobart, Australia, on May 15, 2024. AAP Image/Ethan James

A statue of a former Tasmanian state premier has been sawn off at the ankles and vandalised with graffiti in what appears to be the latest incident in a wider movement aimed at toppling effigies of prominent people linked with colonisation.

The statue of William Crowther was found face-down on the ground in Franklin Square, located in Hobart CBD, after it had been sawn off at the ankles. The plinth on which it stood, had been spraypainted with the phrases “What goes around” and “decolonize.”