All figures are controversial one way or the other.  I believe they should stay as they represent a part of history of a location.  The Captain James Cook statue in Cairns had a funny story attached to it, as it was intended to be only 10 feet tall, but in the time of transition from imperial measures to metric, the builder took it as 10m, hence the oversized statue.  It was an icon on Sheridan Street and recognizable from afar.  Whilst I don't care really, I would have preferred it to remain.  

:) It was certainly huge.

The writer of this nonsense obvious has little idea of anything Nazi. The Nazi salute, what a load of codswallop. An absolute disgrace, Captain James Cook is regarded as one of the greatest explorers of all time. Read your history books. If he hadn't stumbled across the East Coast of Australia, which led to the first settlement at Botany Bay, none of us would probably be here now and whoever was would be speaking German, French, Spanish or Portuguese. How would our precious first nations survive without Centrelink. Perhaps funds should be taken from the appropriate Government Department to erect a bigger and better statue of the great explorer Captain James Cook who is held in great esteem by anybody with an education. Explorers of the past, heroes if you will, are the equivalent of the NASA astronauts of today. But probably even more so, leaving their family for years on end, traveling to who knows where, no technology, no radar and with no idea what the weather holds from one day to the next. Sailing on small flimsy wooden ships, no refrigeration, few supplies, hoping to pick up some on the way to who knows where and in most case untrained seamen. All this for very little pay, simply glory which was greatly appreciated and respected once. Back in the day people call them heroes and acknowledge their great feats. But today the academics, yes people who have never worked in their life but simply study, wish to wipe these great people from history and declared them a monstrosity. Shame Shame Shame. History is just that, history, not always perfect but what is. Not all explorers were Saints, far from it but where would we be without them. They should always be held in the highest of esteem which they earned and deserved. Times change and not always for the better regrettably but history doesn't. Jacka.

I am not in favour of this statue of Captain Cook...and... it does look like a Nazi salute. Why not a military salute!

Australia has gone completely woke. The Captain Cook Hotel in Sydney is now just The Captain. This great explorer is being written out of history when it was Lieutenant Cook who discovered  and mapped the east coast of Australia for the Europeans. Yes, there were inhabitants in Australia and Cook mentioned them in his journals as well as stating that '… the Country it self so far as we know doth not produce any one thing that can become an Article in trade to invite Europeans to fix a settlement upon it …' . The term "terra nullius" was first recorded in 1835, well after Cook's voyage and the First Fleet. Why can we not continue to honour those brave men and women who helped to shape Australia? It seems we are bowing to the wishes of woke people who are actually feeling offended on behalf of others.

A small point and that is Cook actual Naval rank was a Lieutenant when he sailed the Pacific and charted the positions of New Zealand and the East and North Coast of Australia.  The Captain term was used because he was in command of the ship. 

He was a brilliant navigator who had risen through the ranks of the Royal Navy achieving promotion to Commissioned Rank of Lieutenant from the rank of Master which we would describe as a Petty Officer Rank today.

The statue in question really should be destroyed as it does not reflect the achievements, or character, of the man. Cook was killed in Hawaii trying to stop a fight between members of his crew and locals over a theft from his ship.    

I would like to see statues of politicians in every town square so that we can bombard them with rotten tomatoes.

OH the purity of some people - what ever happened to the good old Queenslander who could have a jibe with fun. Then again - so many outsiders ?invaders (a '20s word)  have poured in.

Poor old Capt. Cook -who would have the guts to do it these days. And let's get over the invasion carry on. Don't they teach world history in these enlightened times!

There it goes ...