The statue of the movie star and kung fu master Bruce Lee disappeared on Sunday night from the center of Mostar, where it had been installed in 2005 as a symbol of resistance to injustices in a divided city.

Unknown attackers removed the bronze statue from the plinth in Zrinjevac Park, on which is written “Bruce Lee – Your Mostar”. Information about the disappearance of the statue of Bruce Lee was first published by the local media.

The interior ministry of the Herzegovina-Neretva canton said it had received no official notification that the statue had been stolen and that a police patrol had been dispatched to investigate the case.

Not far from the base of the monument was left a makeshift wooden cart, which was probably used by the perpetrators when removing the statue.

The statue of Bruce Lee was placed in the central park of Mostar in 2005 on the initiative of the heads of the non-governmental organization “Urban Movement – Mostar”, current MP Nino Raspudic and the writer Vezelin Gatal.

As they explained by erecting the statue of a movie and kung fu star, they tried to make Mostar recognizable worldwide for motives other than war and destruction and to make it a symbol of resistance to all injustices.

The disappearance of the statue caused concern to the local community for the power of cultural symbols and the protection of public art.

The statue created by the artist Ivan Folić was targeted by vandals immediately after it was erected. The first night after the installation, the nunchucks holding the Bruce Lee effigy were removed.

After years of vandalism the statue was removed and the sculptor Zeljko Marić undertook its restoration. Despite the problems the statue returned to Mostar Park to highlight the global impact of Bruce Lee’s legacy and the community’s desire for reconciliation.