After the Kojimachi boy statue costume changes I wrote about on August 27, political "makeovers" — or defacement — of bronze statues happen from time to time.
In Japan disliked statues often get red paint — crude, it seems — but this time, with flair, a bold statue in Bulgaria in Eastern Europe was painted pink
= photo top =. Jiji Press reported in August that the statue in central Sofia was covered overnight; lettering below reads "Bulgaria apologizes." Not in the photo, "Prague '68" appears beside it. On August 20, 1968, Warsaw Pact forces led by the Soviet Union invaded Czechoslovakia and crushed the "Prague Spring" democratization — Bulgaria's army joined, and this apologizes for that.
The statue honors Soviet "liberation" of Bulgaria in World War II (many such statues were built in Eastern Europe). Originally like photos lower left and lower right, web searches show many versions — Superman costume in June 2011 photo upper left, odd mask in February 2012 lower left bottom. A graffiti playground; Superman wins. Bulgaria also fought on Germany's side in WWII. Cold War ended but post-Soviet ties remain complex; debate continues over removing this statue.
