Hiroshima Memorial Peace Park Vandalized for the Second Time

Some people are just really sick. This morning, just after 1 am, a man believed to be in his fifties vandalized a centotaph for atomic bomb victims in Hiroshima Peace Park (the memorial for victims of the atomic bombing in 1945 at the end of World War II) by spray painting gold colored paint on the inscription.


This is the second time in ten years that someone (same person?) has vandalized this memorial. In 2002, a man sprayed it with red paint.

Now, what in the world could possibly be the purpose of doing this?

The Japan Times reports:

The cenotaph for atomic bomb victims at Hiroshima's Peace Memorial Park was found defaced with what appears to be golden paint in the early hours of Wednesday, police said. 

Paint was sprayed over part of the cenotaph's inscription, which reads, "Let all souls here rest in peace, for we shall not repeat the evil," the police said. 

A security guard rushed to the cenotaph shortly before 1 a.m. after someone entered the site, setting off an alarm. According to a local security company, passersby saw a man with gray hair approach the cenotaph and use something resembling a spray can.

"I have come here every day to pray for peace over more than 30 years. It's a pity . . . that someone does a thing like this," said an 80-year-old woman.