Vandals target Captain Cook's statue on Australia Day and cover it with bright red paint By Cameron Carpenter For Daily Mail Australia Published: 20:45 GMT, 25 January 2022 | Updated: 21:20 GMT, 25 January 2022 Viewcomments A Captain Cook statue has been vandalised ahead of Australia Day celebrations. The monument in St Kilda in Melbourne's southeast was covered in red paint and plastered with protest signs. One demands: 'Why should we abolish Australia Day?' It adds: 'So-called Australia is built on the genocide of Aboriginal people.' Police have now launched a hunt for the culprits and are scouring local CCTV footage to track down those responsible. The Captain Cook monument in St Kilda, Melbourne 's southeast, was splattered with red paint (pictured) The vandals appear to have poured red paint over the head of the statue, standing around 3m high, covering it from head to toe before its plinth too was also covered in paint. The statue was built to commemorate Captain James Cook, a British explorer who made the first recorded European contact with Australia's east coast on April 29, 1770. Arthur Philips and the first fleet arrived in Australia on January 26, 1788. The date later became known, and celebrated as Australia Day. For many Aboriginal Australians, European arrival in Australia represented the loss of Indigenous culture – and was informally named 'Invasion Day'. Members of the Aboriginal community loudly campaigned for the date of Australia Day to be moved, with the first protest held in Sydney in 1988. 'Invasion Day' groups continue their protest this year, with rallies planned in cities across Australia today. Protesters will gather at Canberra's Aboriginal Tent Embassy - which marks 50 years of advocacy - before an expected march to Parliament House. While the date of Australia Day remains contentious, a new Roy Morgan poll shows 65 per cent of Australians say January 26 should be considered 'Australia Day' - up six points on a year ago - with 35 per cent saying "Invasion Day" is more appropriate. However, the figures are reversed when it comes to Australians under 25, with 64 per cent in favour of 'Invasion Day'. 'Supporters of the date being known as 'Australia Day' say the date is a positive and inclusive day ... and reject the notion that there was anything resembling an invasion begun on that day,' Roy Morgan CEO Michele Levine said. 'For those who say that January 26 should be known as 'Invasion Day' they say the date marks the beginning of the invasion of Australia and the oppression, dispossession, abuse and genocide of the Indigenous people of this continent.' Share or comment on this article: All rights reserved for this news site (dailymail) and under his responsibility