November 14 is the International Day against Illicit Trafficking in Cultural Property. During its 40th General Conference in 2019, the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) designated the day to be annually celebrated as a Day against illicit trafficking in cultural property.
In her message in connection with the 14 November 2023 International Day against Illicit Trafficking in Cultural Property, UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay said that for over 50 years, the Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property has been an essential tool for protecting cultural property worldwide against theft, clandestine excavations and illegal exports, while assisting in its return and restitution.
According to her, UNESCO has engaged in a worldwide campaign of targeted actions to pre-empt the risks of trafficking in cultural property and, wherever necessary, to repair the damage and support reconstruction through the UNESCO Heritage Emergency Fund.
The main objective of the celebration of the day is to create awareness on heritage conservation, enable the issue to gain international attention and bolster the necessity of international cooperation regarding the issue. This year, the day is marked for the 4th time at international level and for the second time at national level.
Illicit cultural property trafficking, deals with illegal trading with heritages, robbery and illegal movement of different heritages. Illicit cultural property trafficking is among the sophisticated crimes conducted internationally and performed with huge amounts of currency exchange.
Various actors are participatory in this activity and involved with heritage owners, dealers, and final destination. Illicit cultural property trafficking causes enormous damages not only on the heritages but also on the destination, excavations areas as well as the owners of the heritages through eroding their own history.
Ethiopia is home to numerous natural, historical and cultural heritages and at the same time affected with illicit cultural property trafficking. The presence of the country’s heritages in various countries’ museums, libraries, and in individuals’ hands confirmed this scenario. In addition, the country’s ancient heritages are also available in the internet online market. Especially, the country’s movable heritages are highly exposed to illegal cultural property trafficking.
The country’s heritages are being exposed to illicit cultural property trafficking from different religious institutions, museums, archeological centers through illegal cultural property traffickers. Therefore, every citizen should fulfill its responsibility of protecting the country’s age-old heritages from unlawful cultural property trafficking as it erodes its own manifestations and history. Creating wide public awareness on the values of our age-old heritages that were inherited from our forefathers, undertaking heritage registration, successive heritage inspection activities as well as improving coordinated works with stakeholders is vital to curb illicit cultural property trafficking.
Recently, the Ethiopian Heritages Authority marked the International Day against Illicit Trafficking in Cultural Property on November 14 at Adama Town in the presence of pertinent stakeholders who have considerable participation in fighting the illicit trafficking of cultural property with various discussions and awareness creation.
While opening the event, Ethiopian Heritages Authority Heritages Division General Director Hiwot Hailu said that the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) designated the day during its 40th general conference in 2019 to be annually celebrated as a Day against Illicit Trafficking in Cultural Property so as to curb Illicit cultural property trafficking.
As to her, the major objective of marking the day is to create international awareness regarding Illicit Trafficking in Cultural Property and draw international attention that the issue concerns every country as it causes damages to countries cultural and natural heritages.
According to the General Director, these days, Illicit Trafficking in Cultural Property is worsening and becoming more complex from time to time and the market demand for Illicit Cultural Properties is also growing every now and then., she said.
“Different information shows that our heritages are being vandalized by individuals and found in other countries’ museums, at the hands of individuals as well as observed on different tenders and online markets. And the major cause to this problem is the lack of enough awareness for the issue,” she elaborated.
Some people tend to participate in illicit trafficking in cultural property and engage in selling the country’s heritages which passed down for the past generations to illegal dealers and traffickers for the reason they are less aware about the values of the heritages. Thus, coordinated works with stakeholders are required to halt such activities, she added.
At the event, various stakeholders and institutions that have closer engagement regarding illicit trafficking in cultural property have participated and held a thorough discussion. Papers that explained the nature of heritages, the causes of illicit trafficking in cultural property, on ways how to tackle the activities, and the 1970 convention that Ethiopia ratified, heritages that are proscribed to be taken out of the country and the role of stakeholders’ in mitigating illicit trafficking in cultural property and maintaining the safety of heritages were presented.
Controlling illicit trafficking in cultural properties is among the mandated role of the Ethiopian Heritages Authority. Experts in the heritage sector highlighted that competent human power is needed to create more awareness on heritages and conduct rehabilitation activities on the country’s heritages effectively. Moreover, the presence of more skilled expertise on heritage conservation would boost the country’s heritages’ life span.
Moreover, respective regional state culture and tourism bureaus are the key actors to register, conserve and investigate the national and regional heritages throughout the country. Accordingly, the country is known for various movable cultural properties. Such movable tangible heritages including; parchments, ancient books, mysterious documents, ornaments, currencies, among others require more attention to be inherited to the future generations. Thus, having effective public mobilization regarding heritages is important to maintain the safety of the country’s precious cultural properties.
In sum, the nation’s higher education institutions and other heritage related sectors have a social responsibility of doing more to arouse and strengthen the heritage preservation and protection system. Registration of the heritages is more important to secure them. While one has sufficient information about own heritage, can better protect and keep it.
BY TEWODRO KASSA
The Ethiopian Herald November 19/2023
