Poland will try to “save from censorship” a sculpture of Pope John Paul II, which might be removed in northwestern France, by moving it to Poland, Polish Prime Minister Beata Szydło has said.

Szydło added that moving the statue of the late Polish-born leader of the Catholic Church needs to get the green light from French authorities.

Her suggestion came after a top French court decided that a cross must be removed from the monument in Ploërmel, northwestern France, because its presence in a public place violated the principle of separating church and state.

Referring to the late pope, Szydło said: “Our great Pole, a great European, is a symbol of a Christian, united Europe. The dictate of political correctness – secularisation of the state – makes room for values which are alien to our culture, which leads to terrorising Europeans in their everyday life”.

The monument, sculpted by Georgian-Russian artist Zurab Tsereteli, was erected in Ploërmel in 2006 and, according to French daily Le Figaro, the cross included in the artwork has always been contentious.

Ploërmel's authorities have six months to remove the cross from the monument.

But Le Figaro wrote that Ploërmel Mayor Patrick Le Diffon may resolve the issue by reclassifying the area where the monument stands, so it is no longer formally considered a “public place”. (vb/pk)

Source: PAP