Young girl racially abused, had dog poo rubbed in face by children at Dunedin park

Navy Park, Dunedin. Photo / Google Maps

A mother has been left shocked and disheartened after her daughter was racially abused and had dog poo rubbed in her face by children at a Dunedin park.

Dunedin woman Zahra Muhammed was at Navy Park with her three young children when her 9-year-old daughter went to play in the bushes with a group of children.

But moments later, her daughter came back upset claiming she was smeared with dog poo by some boys who also threatened to shoot her with a fake gun.

Furious with the situation, Muhammed approached the group and asked who rubbed poo on her daughter's face.

"Of course they all said 'it wasn't me, we didn't see anything'," Muhammed told Stuff.

"My daughter was pointing in the direction of the one that had done it, and he still had poo on his hands."

According to Muhammed, her daughter told her the boys had called her a "stinky Indian" before rubbing poo on her face.

The mother, originally from Canada, said the group of children ranged between the ages of 9 and 12.

Her daughter also claimed she was poked in the back with sticks, and that the boys pointed a fake gun at her and threatened to shoot her.

After getting out of the car to confront them again, the two older boys ran away.

Muhammed said there were no other parents watching over the group of children.

The incident left her daughter frightened and apologetic over the incident.

Her daughter told her "maybe I shouldn't have asked so many questions and I should've just left".

Locals have since hit out at the group of children and rallied around Muhammed.

"This is so disgusting. I hope these kids were made accountable for their actions. That poor girl and her family. Why can't people just be kind," one person said.

Another wrote: "F***ing disgusting. This is why we can't tolerate any racism, ever."

A third added: "This is unacceptable and shows that racism is still a taught ideology."

Locals also praised Muhammed's daughter for being so mature during the ordeal.