Nations urged to join hands to save culture

Convention to combat illegal trade in antiquities nears 50th anniversary

Next year marks the 50th anniversary of the 1970 Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property.

It was established by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.

As the anniversary approaches, the agency is renewing calls for cooperation and dialogue from member states in the fight against illicit trade of cultural property.

Lazare Eloundou Assomo, deputy director of the division for heritage and the UNESCO World Heritage Centre, said challenges will remain when the 1970 convention reaches the half-century milestone but the UNESCO will continue to review challenges, identify actions, and share good practices.

"The world is evolving, there are new issues, and cooperation and partnership are absolutely important," Assomo said. " (The anniversary) will be a good opportunity to reflect for all the UNESCO member states who have signed the convention and also look at how to better cooperate with all partners ... some of the important subjects we will be discussing will pave the way for the next 50 years."

The convention is an international treaty created to combat the illegal trade in cultural items. To date, 140 states have ratified it.

Cultural property is deemed to be anything of scientific, historical, artistic, or religious significance. But the convention notes that every state can define its own cultural property, as long as the item is of importance to it.

Emiline Smith, a lecturer in art crime and criminology at the University of Glasgow, said such items are important to nations' identity.

"Certain social values, belief systems, and traditions are passed on from generation to generation, and cultural heritage is proof of this: a reflection of human civilization," she said.

"Most countries have indicated certain objects that they deem most valuable to be national cultural heritage. As such, it can unite or divide a nation. It can be used in the creation of a political narrative. It can be a source of personal or national pride, and create a sense of belonging and connection."

In an effort to tackle the issue of illicit trade in art and antiquities, groups made up of intergovernmental committees meet every year to review all issues related to illicit trafficking around the world.

Assomo stressed that the UNESCO cannot act alone and noted that cooperating with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, the International Police Organization, customs services, the private sector, and museums is key to protecting cultural heritage.

One major concern for the UNESCO is the phenomenon of terrorist groups exploiting cultural sites to finance their activities.

Smith said they are using attacks on cultural heritage "as a strategy to undermine national governments and intimidate local populations".

"In some cases, the looting and destruction of cultural heritage have been found to generate income for terrorist groups to extend their operations, for example in Iraq and Syria," she said. "They know that there is a market for the art and antiquities that they sell."

The UN Security Council adopted resolution 2347 in 2017, which aims to strengthen international cooperation in order to deprive terrorists of funding and to protect cultural heritage and curb illicit trade.

There is also a need to ramp up the fight against illicit trafficking of cultural objects in the global art market. According to the UNESCO, Europe is reportedly the largest exporter of art and antiquities, and the second-largest importer.

The UN agency acknowledges that, while most of the estimated $14.6 billion European trade is licit or "clean", there is no doubt that it also falls victim to organized crime, money laundering and terrorist financing as a means for generating illicit proceeds.

Illicit art is being detected as objects make their way in, through, and out of Europe and, at times, these objects make their way into the European licit market. Because this black market is hard to trace and quantify, the UNESCO believes preventative and tracking measures must be strengthened.

Assomo explained that education and the importance of reinforcing due diligence measures is key for the art market.

He said museums in Europe have, in the past 10 years, put in a lot of work on checking provenance, but he pointed out that more work is needed when it comes to Europe's auction houses.

Auction giant Christie's recently hit the headlines when Egyptian authorities urged it to cancel the sale of a Tutankhamun statue that Egypt claimed had been looted from a temple.

Assomo said the UNESCO reached out to Christie's after they were asked to do so by the Egyptian authorities.

Christie's went on to sell the statue for $5.96 million.

"We played our role and, of course, the auction houses have their own procedures in checking provenance, but when there is a country that is really concerned about the selling of an object that it considers at part of its cultural identity, I believe dialogue is important," he said. "This is something which we would like to push and will continue to push in the future."

boleung@mail.chinadailyuk.com

(China Daily Global 09/10/2019 page3)