ROUGH CUT (NO REPORTER NARRATION)br br South Africa's government is up in arms over a bronze rabbit crafted inside the ear of a large statue of former president Nelson Mandela unveiled last month.br br The government said it wanted the creature removed to "restore integrity" to the 9-meter (30 foot) bronze sculpture of the anti-apartheid hero, who died on December 5 at the age of 95.br br The statue, the world's biggest representing Mandela, was inaugurated at South Africa's government buildings 11 days after his death.br br Artists Ruhan Janse van Vuuren and Andre Prinsloo say they added the animal, its ears erect, as a personal stamp after the government stopped them from engraving signatures on their 4.5 ton statue, and as a nod to the tight deadline they faced.br br The Afrikaans word for rabbit, "haas," also means haste.br br The artists have since apologized.