The group behind an unsuccessful attempt to save the Franklin Square statue of Dr William Crowther from removal say they won’t be taking their legal fight any further.
Former Alderman Jeff Briscoe, National Trust Councillor Chris Merridew and Crowther family member Anne Blyth Burleigh led the appeal after the Hobart City Council voted to remove it in 2022.
Despite taking the matter to the Tasmanian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (TASCAT), the group lost and the council were given the green light to remove and preserve the statue, but not before vandals took to the monument with an angle grinder.
Crowther toppled to the ground in the early hours of May 15th, while his plinth was spray painted with the words “What goes around” and “Decolonize”.
Briscoe said the decision not to appeal to the Supreme Court was made “in the interests of reducing the perceived ongoing emotional conflict in the community and pursing the goals of reconciliation”.
“We have been advised there are convincing errors of law and fact in the TASCAT decision and these grounds would well and truly result in a successful Supreme Court outcome, if appealed,” he said.
He accused the tribunal of being “too sensitive to negative perceptions of some in the community without proper evidence”, but acknowledged an appeal would have dragged the matter out for “a number of years”.
“The decision has opened up the legal floodgates on colonial heritage monuments throughout Australia. Every statue could be subject to activist local councils removing these important heritage items,” he said.
The City of Hobart must now meet conditions set by the Heritage Council, including providing safe storage and keeping the plinth that remains maintained.
The group say the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery (TMAG) would be the “obvious place” for the statue and plan to lobby for it to be moved there as soon as possible.
After it was removed in May, Lord Mayor Anna Reynolds said the statue was being “stored in a safe place”.
“Our goal will be to reunite the feet with the rest of the statute and certainly care for it and preserve it in a respectful manner, which was always the decision of the council,” she said.
Tasmania Police have yet to announce if charges have been laid against the suspects in the monument’s removal.
