Racist graffiti spray-painted close to Portsmouth war memorial

VANDALS have spray-painted a racist message near to the war memorial in Guildhall Square in Portsmouth.
The racist graffiti close to the war memorial in Guildhall SquareThe racist graffiti close to the war memorial in Guildhall Square
The racist graffiti close to the war memorial in Guildhall Square

White capital letters reading ‘UKIP’ and ‘DIRTY POLISH’ were put on a wall.

The incident was revealed after a photo was posted on Facebook.

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It comes after reports of dozens of racist incidents nationally since Britain voted to leave the European Union on Thursday.

David Bell, who shared the picture, said: ‘It’s disrespectful as many Poles fought alongside us in the Second World War.

‘Whoever done it needs to be caught. In some ways it’s causing more tension which I think some want and point the finger.’

Hampshire police said the incident had not been reported. Despite this, leading members of the Muslim community said they had not experienced an upturn in hate crime in the city since the EU referendum.

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On one Facebook group called Portsmouth, England International Politics – No Holds Barred, a series of offensive ‘jokes’ were posted aimed towards minority ethnic groups. But Abu-Suyeb Tanzam, from Portsmouth, said he has not heard of any racism since the referendum.

‘I would not say there has been an increase in comments made towards the Muslim community,’ he said.

‘There has not been any trouble similar to what has been reported in other parts of the country here in Portsmouth. Everyone was entitled to their own opinion when it came to the EU referendum and people voted for what they believed in. Some voted leave, some voted remain and that decision was down to them.’

Prime minister David Cameron called the racist incidents reported in the media ‘despicable’ while speaking in the House of Commons yesterday.

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He said: ‘In the past few days we have seen despicable graffiti daubed on a Polish community centre, we’ve seen verbal abuse hurled against individuals because they are members of ethnic minorities.

‘Let’s remember these people have come here and made a wonderful contribution to our country. We will not stand for hate crime or these kinds of attacks, they must be stamped out.’