Woke Welsh government threatens to remove artwork if it's not 'decolonised'

Public bodies have been warned that if they do not "decolonise" their public-facing artwork and statues they could be removed, according to new Welsh Government guidance.

The devolved Labour government's new guidelines pertain to paintings, plaques and much more, and they instruct public bodies such as Wales’s National Museum in Cardiff to "right historic narrative".

The guidance adds that public artwork should "celebrate the achievements of our diverse society".

The word "decolonisation" refers to the process of moving away from a Western bias, while the Washington Post defines it as "a process that institutions undergo to expand the perspectives they portray beyond those of the dominant cultural group, particularly white colonisers".

Local authorities must now make sure art in public view does not “insult or hurt”, but rather project “present values”. If art remains “highly contentious” it could be removed or “concealed” from public view, according to the guidelines.

The measures, given the go-ahead by Dawn Bowden, Wales' Deputy Minister for Arts, were laid out in response to the Black Lives Matter protests as part of a plan to make sure Wales is “an anti-racist nation” by the year 2030.

The plan calls on councils to advocate “decolonised account of the past, one that recognises both historical injustices and the positive impact of ethnic minority communities”.

This is not the first move made in Wales to take down offending statues. In 2021 a statue of Thomas Picton, a Welsh military officer and colonial administrator who fought in the Napoleonic Wars, was to be removed from Cardiff City Hall after a city council vote.

However, despite the monument being boxed up, Express.co.uk understands it remains in place.

The Telegraph has reported fierce criticism of the new guidance. Andrew RT Davies, the leader of the Welsh Conservatives, snapped: “Labour’s new guidance for statues and public commemorations is an affront to our history and puts extreme ideology before the facts.

“This guidance, which places heavy emphasis on ‘decolonising’ Welsh history, is wrongheaded and divisive.”

A Welsh Government spokesman told the publication: “The guidance on public commemoration in Wales is neither promoting the removal nor retention of contentious historic memorials. Rather, the guidance is to help local authorities, town and community councils, and other public bodies reach well-informed decisions about existing and future public commemorations.

“Public bodies should be clear about what they want to achieve from public commemoration. They should set objectives that define its role in line with the goals of the Anti-racist Wales Action Plan to promote authenticity and balance, and a clear and decolonised understanding of the world.

"This does not mean censoring or erasure of the historical record, but it does mean that historical injustice is acknowledged, reputations are open to debate and narratives that devalue human life do not go unchallenged."