The Council of Europe expects the Nicosia Convention on Offences against Cultural Property to gain momentum with more countries ratifying it, allowing the international treaty to come into force.
Last week, a two-day Conference was held in Cyprus to promote what is known as the Nicosia Convention, aiming to raise awareness and promote shared efforts in fighting offences relating to cultural property.
The Convention opened for signatures on May 19, 2017, so far, 12 countries have signed it with Cyprus and Mexico the only two countries to ratify it.
Five ratifications are necessary to activate the Convention’s provisions, including at least 3 member states of the Council of Europe. The Convention aims to supersede the 1985 “Delphi Convention”, which no country ratified.
“Considering the topicality of the threat we are dealing with, everybody would like to have a quicker response from the governments,” Matjaž Gruden, Director of Democratic Participation of the CoE told CNA.
He hoped “we are going to see positive momentum” with more countries signing and ratifying the Convention.
Gruden said it is difficult to estimate the value of the global illegal trade in antiquities, which is often used to finance criminal or terrorist activities.
Asked if other countries share Cyprus’ commitment to this cause, he pointed to national experiences with stolen or damaged artefacts, adding that in every conflict, cultural heritage is very often the first target.
He said the Convention came as a response of governments acknowledging the magnitude of this threat. The immediate trigger that led to the Convention was ISIS, he added.
At the 6th CoE Conference of Ministers responsible for Cultural Heritage held in 2015 in Namur, they condemned “the deliberate destruction of cultural heritage and the illicit trafficking of cultural property” and decided to “reinforce European cooperation” in this field, leading to a Committee of Ministers` decision to draft the new Convention.
A key provisions is to reinforce cooperation between governmental and law enforcement authorities, as well as other relevant players.
“One thing that all threats from terrorism or organized crime have in common is that they are exploiting loopholes, differences in legal systems and regimes with regard to certain types of threats and offences.”
The CoE Director noted the importance of enlisting the help of civil society in order to monitor supervisory mechanisms or to even criticise governments when they are not doing their bit.
“Galleries, art dealers, museums are all key players. Together with governments they need to have a common objective.”
One of the purposes of the Convention is to raise awareness about the existence, the size and the magnitude of the threat to our cultural property.
“Thus, we are making sure that everybody involved – including galleries and art dealers – have an interest to fully cooperate or face reputational sanctions, along proper sanctions.”
The Nicosia Convention is the only international treaty specifically dealing with the criminalisation of the illicit trafficking of cultural property.
It establishes criminal offences, including theft, unlawful excavation, importation and exportation and illegal acquisition and placing on the market. (source CNA)
