Black Lives Matter protests: New Zealand removes namesake statue of man accused of killing indigenous Maori people

The New Zealand city of Hamilton has removed a bronze statue of the British naval officer for whom it is named — a man who is accused of killing indigenous Maori people in the 1860s.

The removal by city authorities came a day after a Maori tribe asked for the statue be taken down and one Maori elder threatened to tear it down himself.

Cities around the world are taking steps to remove statues that represent cultural or racial oppression as support grows for the Black Lives Matter movement following the death of George Floyd at the hands of police last month in Minneapolis.

Mayor Paula Southgate said a growing number of people found the statue personally and culturally offensive.

"We can't ignore what is happening all over the world and nor should we," Southgate said. "At a time when we are trying to build tolerance and understanding between cultures and in the community, I don't think the statue helps us to bridge those gaps."

The city was originally called Kirikiriroa by Maori. In the 1860s, it was renamed after Captain John Hamilton, a British officer who was killed in the infamous Gate Pa battle in the city of Tauranga.

The statue was gifted to the city in 2013. The Waikato-Tainui tribe, or iwi, formally requested yesterday for it to be removed.