<?xml version="1.0" encoding="ISO-8859-1"?> <docID>336923</docID> <postdate>2025-01-24 09:36:22</postdate> <headline>‘Blatant violation’: prime minister statues decapitated</headline> <body><p><img class="size-full wp-image-336924" src="https://citynews.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/20220501001653757451-original-resized.jpg" alt="" width="900" height="600" /></p> <caption>Statues of former prime ministers Kevin Rudd and Paul Keating have been vandalised. (Lukas Coch/AAP PHOTOS)</caption> <p><span class="kicker-line">By <strong>Holly Hales</strong> in Melbourne</span></p> <p><strong>The heads of two Australian prime minister statues have been decapitated, among 20 sculptures damaged as police hunt for the vandals.</strong></p> <p>Police were told the figures were vandalised on the Prime Ministers Avenue in the Ballarat Botanical Gardens between 2 and 5am on Thursday.</p> <p>The heads of two statues, reportedly of former Labor prime ministers Paul Keating and Kevin Rudd, were removed and stolen, police said.</p> <p>The name plates of the 18 remaining statues have been covered in spray paint.</p> <p>Ballarat Botanical Garden Foundation said it was "deeply saddened" by the vandalism.</p> <p>"The avenue is a source of pride for the local community and has been a site of national significance since it was opened by the Governor of Victoria in 1940," the group said on Instagram.</p> <p>"This blatant violation of this vital part of their story and heritage is a severe blow to not only the community but to all who work and care for the gardens."</p> <p>A City of Ballarat spokesperson also condemned the act, saying "this type of senseless damage is completely unacceptable".</p> <p>"It is not only extremely costly to our ratepayers and will divert money away from critical council services, but it detracts from Ballarat as a city," they said.</p> <p>The avenue contains a collection of busts of the first 29 prime ministers of Australia, each featuring a bronze cast mounted on a polished granite pedestal.</p> <p>The exhibit has long been the site of vandalism attempts, with Tony Abbott and John Howard's busts sprayed with red paint in 2021.</p> </body>