Vandals in El Salvador have damaged a prominent statue of the murdered Archbishop Oscar Romero, who was recently declared a martyr.
The right hand, which had been holding a cross, was cut off the nearly 10-foot monument, located near Plaza El Divino Salvador del Mundo, in capital city San Salvador.
Archbishop Romero “is very much loved by a vast majority of Salvadorans, but he is also one of the most hated by a small minority,” Marisa Martinez of the Archbishop Romero Foundation told Catholic News Service.
She said it was the sixth time that the statue had been vandalised — the same right hand chopped off — since the foundation placed it there in 2002. The statue also has been vandalised with paint.
Martinez said the foundation will do the restoration.
Archbishop Romero was murdered March 24, 1980, by a sniper who acted under the orders of Maj Roberto D’Aubuisson, according to the truth commission established by the United Nations in 1992 to investigate killings and human rights violations committed during the 1980-1992 Salvadoran civil war.
Areas of Catholic Herald business are still recovering post-pandemic.
However, we are reaching out to the Catholic community and readership, that has been so loyal to the Catholic Herald. Please join us on our 135 year mission by supporting us.
We are raising £250,000 to safeguard the Herald as a world-leading voice in Catholic journalism and teaching.
We have been a bold and influential voice in the church since 1888, standing up for traditional Catholic culture and values. Please consider donating.