Before a nearby Anzac Day dawn service, a statue in Sydney’s north-west was vandalised with red paint, infuriating the neighbourhood.
The words “here stands a mass murderer who ordered the genocide” and “no pride in genocide” were written alongside red paint on the Lachlan Macquarie statue at Windsor’s McQuade Park.
The event was brought to the attention of the mayor, Sarah McMahon, following the early-morning service, and she noted that the paint was still “significantly wet” upon inspection. She remarked, “To me, it had been done quite recently.” I find it quite sad that some people in our community believe this is the proper method to spread their message.
Police were also called to the area, and McMahon set up for council personnel to clean the statue.
“To have this done on a day of such national and local significance to me is appalling,” she added. “We are a military community here in the Hawkesbury.” “I anticipate the police will perform their duties diligently.”
Initial investigations, according to the police, showed the vandalism took place between 6am and 7am.
Anyone with CCTV, dashcam footage, or information is encouraged to contact police as an inquiry has been opened.
Tim Kelly, a local, posted a photo of the vandalised statue on Facebook, where it was met with hundreds of shocked comments. The day was focused on our service members, not on any other objectives, he stated. Absolutely everyone is disgusted.
The protest was deemed “unAustralian” by Hawkesbury member Robyn Preston.
On a day when we are all working together to celebrate the country’s soldiers who sacrificed their lives for our freedom, she called the vandalism “a cowardly and gutless act.” “It is disrespectful and dividing.”
Protests against the statue have previously been targeted. As part of an Australia Day protest, the word “murderer” was spray-painted on the statue in 2017.
The statue was commissioned in 1994 as part of the bicentennial celebrations of European settlement in the Hawkesbury, according to Monument Australia, an organisation that keeps records of monuments around Australia.
According to the website, there is dispute regarding Macquarie’s treatment of Indigenous people.
“During a military expedition in April 1816 intended to instill fear, Macquarie gave orders to soldiers under his authority to kill or capture any Aboriginal people they came across. At least 14 men, women, and kids were brutally murdered; some were shot, while others were driven off a cliff.
