A mural painted by well-known graffiti artist, Iain “Ewok” Robinson, at the Durban North Beach Skate Board Park commemorating Israeli Apartheid Week has been removed!

According to Khadeeja Manjra, a member of Flashmob4Gaza, it has not yet been established who removed the mural from the wall. “The wall may be removed, but the spirit of the art work and all it encompassed will always remain. Painting over the words "Freedom, Peace, Justice, Equality" is so fitting. The wrong wall got taken down. Destroy the Apartheid Israel wall!” said Khadeeja.

An eyewitness at a skate store in Durban alleges that the wall was still intact at 7:38am this morning. On revisiting at 3:46pm, it had been painted over. He alleges that it was the municipality who painted over it.

Yesterday the DA’s Hanief Hoosein said he could confirm that he had received a number of complaints about the comments made by a DA Durban Councillor, Avrille Marcia Coen, who argued that the usage of the term ‘apartheid’ in relation to Israel constitutes 'hate speech'.

Hoosein said he contacted Coen and instructed her not to take further action on the matter after she advised that she would instruct the Parks & Leisure Department to immediately remove the Israeli Apartheid Week (IAW) graffiti mural.  He confirmed that she had not requested the municipality to remove the graffiti off the wall.
 
Hoosein added that whoever has painted over the wall has very little respect for freedom of expression.

Coen said she knows nothing about the artwork being removed.