THE statue of Cecil Rhodes on Oriel College will not be removed yet, despite an independent recommendation which says it should fall.

Rhodes’ statue, which sits on the side of the Grade-II* listed building, will not be removed yet, the college’s Governing Body has decided.

In a statement acknowledging the work of an independent commission set up to investigate the legacy of the statue, the college said its Governing Body had ‘carefully considered the regulatory and financial challenges, including the expected time frame for removal’ adding these issues ‘could run into years with no certainty of outcome, together with the total cost of removal’.

The majority of members on the commission had supported the statue’s removal, as well as the removal of a plaque honouring Rhodes at the nearby King Edward Street.

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The college’s statement added: “In light of the considerable obstacles to removal, Oriel’s Governing Body has decided not to begin the legal process for relocation of the memorials.”

Instead, the college plans to start work on the other recommendations the commission had made around contextualising the memorials to Rhodes, possibly through the use of information boards or plaques.

Lord Mendoza, provost of Oriel College said: “We understand this nuanced conclusion will be disappointing to some, but we are now focused on the delivery of practical actions aimed at improving outreach and the day-to-day experience of BME students.

“We are looking forward to working with Oxford City Council on a range of options for contextualisation.”

The college’s governing body will also set up a task force to carry out other recommendations in the report.

Oxford Mail: Rhodes Must Fall protests in Oxford in May 2020.Rhodes Must Fall protests in Oxford in May 2020.

The commission, made up of eight individuals with professional backgrounds in media, heritage, and education, also recommended more should be done to encourage applications to the college from BME students, and that an annual lecture on Rhodes’ legacy should be given.

Oriel College said its admissions for UK-domiciled BME undergraduates are slightly above the University average: 21.5 per cent compared with 21.4 per cent in the three years between 2018 and 2020.

It added the same was true for students with black African and Caribbean heritage: 3.9 per cent compared with 3.2 per cent.

Protests by the Rhodes Must Fall campaign were reignited in Oxford last May.

This followed the revival of the Black Lives Matter movement due to the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis, in the USA, at the hands of police officer Derek Chauvin.

Thousands of people gathered in Oxford’s High Street outside the college, while police officers guarded the statue from the front of the building and its roof.

ALSO READ: A timeline of the protests around Oriel College's Cecil Rhodes statue

The protest and several others that followed it led to Oriel College reconsidering its 2016 decision to retain the statue and nearby plaque.

The commission was then set up to investigate the legacy of Cecil Rhodes, who was a 19th century imperialist who is considered to be a white supremacist because of his comments on the superiority of the ‘Anglo-Saxon race’.