Statues of former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Indian independence leader, Mahatma Gandhi in the UK could be pulled down after a Welsh government termed both as “complicit” in colonialism and slavery.
The government report was a review of historical figures.
The report said that “many reputations have been brought into question” and “there is a need to assess the culpability or otherwise of individuals who are publicly commemorated and celebrated”.
The government report questions the reputation of Churchill and Gandhi.
The report claimed that Churchill “expressed a belief in the superiority of the Anglo-Saxon race”, was “opposed to dismantling the British Empire”, and failed “to take sufficient action to relieve the Bengal famine”.
On the other hand, the report also implicated Gandhi, who led India to independence for “racism against Black South Africans”.
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While Churchill has two buildings and 15 streets named after him in the UK, there are several statues of Gandhi across the country, most prominent being his sculpture at Parliament Square in London.
Gayor Legall, who led the audit told The Guardian that some contentious memorials “could be moved to museums so people can see the links”.
Andrew Roberts, author of “Churchill: Walking with Destiny” said that he did not see the point of destroying things as there were enough death and destruction around.
“It’s rare for quite such a level of ignorance to be squeezed into one single paragraph, but the Welsh Government has exceeded itself in the bilge it has regurgitated about Winston Churchill,” a report quoted Roberts.
“Churchill did not order troops with bayonets into Tonypandy. Nor did any of Churchill’s actions make the Bengal Famine worse than the typhoon had already made it,” Roberts said.
The Welsh government had authorized “tripe posing as history”, he said.