Artist dumps 500,000 balls in Rome

The historic centre of Rome has been brought to a standstill by a protest with a difference.

Visitors to the Spanish Steps yesterday were greeted by a rather peculiar sight.



For most of the morning street cleaners and smartly uniformed policemen were chasing little brightly coloured balls, armed with dustpans and brushes.

To everyone's amazement half a million of these balls were suddenly bouncing down the steps. Within minutes, the famed Piazza de Spagna resembled a children's playground.



It was another colourful stand from Graziano Cecchini, a man who protests against government incompetence in the most unusual ways. Last year he poured a dye into the Trevi Fountain, turning it red. This latest stunt cost him £15,000 (20,000 euros) - and probably a rather large fine.

When Mr Cecchini finally appeared, walking down the steps with balls bouncing around him, he said he had done it to raise the profile of Burma and the Karen people. The Karen are a minority who have fought for an independent state since 1949, and accuse the military junta of ethnic cleansing.