Fury over decision to keep statue
Print Edition
A statue at Oxford University of 19th-century British imperialist Cecil Rhodes will not be taken down despite protests, the college at the center of the dispute said yesterday, to the fury of campaigners.
“Following careful consideration, the college’s governing body has decided that the statue should remain in place,” Oriel College said in a statement.
But it denied newspaper reports that it feared losing donations worth some US$140 million if it did take the statue down.
Rhodes — a white supremacist like many builders of the British empire — gave his name to the territories of Rhodesia, now Zimbabwe and Zambia, and founded the De Beers diamond company.
The tycoon was also a donor to Oriel, one of Oxford’s 38 colleges, and endowed the Rhodes Scholarship, which has helped non-British students like former US president Bill Clinton and ex-Australian prime minister Tony Abbott study at the prestigious university.
Inspired by the “Rhodes Must Fall” campaign, which prompted the removal of the University of Cape Town’s Rhodes statue last year, many current students objected to the presence of his statue in the historic English city.
The “Rhodes Must Fall” group yesterday called Oriel’s decision “outrageous, dishonest, and cynical, adding:
“This is not over. We will be redoubling our efforts and meeting over the weekend to discuss our next actions.”
Oriel responded to critics by saying: “The recent debate has underlined that the continuing presence of these historical artefacts is an important reminder of the complexity of history and of the legacies of colonialism still felt today.”
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