Berejiklian calls on Greens MP to condemn staffer accused of vandalising Captain Cook statue
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian says she is not ruling out tougher penalties for offenders who deface public monuments.
She made her comments after two statues of Captain Cook in Sydney were vandalised on the weekend.
A 110-year-old statue of the famous mariner, located on Belmore Road, Randwick, in the city's east, was graffitied with black spray paint, the Ben Fordham Live 2GB show reported.
Yesterday, another statue of Captain Cook was defaced in Sydney's Hyde Park.
Two women - one of whom Xiaoran Shi, 28, is a staff member for Greens MP David Shoebridge - have already been charged over the Hyde Park incident.
Police are investigating after a second statue of Captain Cook was vandalised in Sydney. Ben Fordham
Ms Berejiklian described the action as "un-Australian" and did not rule out increasing penalties for defacing public monuments to send a tougher message to the community.
"I urge everyone - no matter how passionate are their views - not to break the law," she said.
"The penalties in place are already severe - up to five years in jail and high fines ... but we're always open to increasing this."
Ms Shi is a part-time staffer within Mr Shoebridge's office. He said she was not working at the time of the incident.
Ms Berejiklian said Mr Shoebridge "needs to stand up and condemn the actions".
Police were alerted to graffiti on the statue about 4am yesterday and arrested the two women - aged 27 and 28 - nearby on College Street in the CBD, NSW Police said in a statement.
The women were allegedly found with several spray cans in a bag.
The 110-year-old statue, located on Belmore Road, Randwick was graffitied with black spray paint. Ben Fordham
On Friday night, bronze busts of former prime minister Tony Abbott and John Howard were sprayed with red paint in the regional Victorian town of Ballarat.
A statue has also been vandalised at Edinburgh Gardens in Melbourne, graffitied with whit spray paint. It is not known when it happened.
Historical monuments across the world have been toppled over the past two weeks as Black Lives Matter protesters marched through the streets to call out racism following the death of African American man George Floyd in Minneapolis last month.
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