Peace Statue in Berlin Forcibly Removed After Five Years (Comprehensive)

Mitte District Office Mobilizes Police Just Three Days After Injunction Rejection

The Peace Statue, known as the "Statue of a Girl," which had been erected in Berlin, Germany, was forcibly removed after five years.

According to the Korea Verband, a civic group of Koreans in Germany, the Mitte District Office in Berlin removed and relocated the statue from public land within its jurisdiction at around 7 a.m. local time on the 17th.

The Mitte District Office mobilized a service company and police to dismantle the statue just three days after the court rejected the Korea Verband's injunction request to suspend the demolition order issued on the 14th.

In response to the district office’s pressure, the Korea Verband had wrapped the statue in tape, and members along with local residents took turns monitoring it, but they were unable to prevent the forced removal.

Citizens protested by placing signs with messages such as "Why use violence against Ari (the nickname for the Berlin statue) again?" and "Peace Statue instead of war preparations."

Han Jeonghwa, head of the Korea Verband, stated, "Three activists were guarding the statue, but 25 police officers surrounded it and blocked access."

The Berlin Peace Statue was installed in September 2020. The Mitte District Office has been demanding its removal since last year, stating that the two-year temporary art installation period had expired.

The authorities' pressure to remove the statue intensified after Berlin Mayor Kai Wegner met with Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa in May last year and pledged to resolve the issue of the statue.

Civic groups suspect that the Berlin city and Mitte district authorities, who had previously tolerated the statue, changed their stance due to lobbying by the Japanese government.

The Mitte District Office also ordered the removal of the statue in September last year, but at that time, the Korea Verband’s injunction request was accepted. The court-permitted period for the statue to remain ended on the 28th of last month. After this period expired, the Mitte District Office imposed a fine of 3,000 euros (about 4.97 million won) and notified that the statue would be forcibly removed if it was not voluntarily relocated.

The Korea Verband has appealed the court’s decision to reject their injunction request on the 14th. A representative from the Korea Verband said, "The district office told us they would inform us later where the statue is being kept," and added, "We are currently discussing both short-term and long-term plans for reinstalling the statue."