Background & Creation
Background
In 2003, UNESCO devised an international solution to combat the illicit traffic of cultural property: the UNESCO Database of National Cultural Heritage Laws.
By compiling on the Internet the national laws of its Member States, UNESCO offers all stakeholders involved (Governments, customs officials, art dealers, organizations, lawyers, buyers and so forth) a complete and easily accessible source of information. In the event of a legal question about the origin of an object (which may have been stolen, pillaged, or illegally exported, imported or acquired), it is useful to have rapid access to the relevant national laws.
The UNESCO Database of National Cultural Heritage Laws allows the following to be consulted:
- national laws currently in force related to the protection of the cultural heritage in general;
- import/export certificates for cultural property (available on request);
- official or unofficial translations of national laws and certificates;
- contact details for the national authorities responsible for the protection of the cultural heritage;
- addresses of the official national websites dedicated to the protection of the cultural heritage.
The database offers access to national legislation relating to the cultural heritage in general, in other words the laws on the following main categories of heritage:
Cultural heritage:
- Tangible cultural heritage:
- Immovable cultural heritage (monuments, archaeological sites, etc.);
- Movable cultural heritage (paintings, coins, archaeological objects, etc.);
- Underwater cultural heritage (shipwrecks, underwater cities, etc.);
- Intangible cultural heritage (oral traditions, performing arts, rituals, etc.).
- Natural heritage (natural sites, physical, biological, or geological formations, etc.).
For more information, please see the list of international normative instruments for the protection of cultural heritage (conventions, agreements, charters, codes, declarations, action plans, protocols, recommendations, etc.).
Creation
The four key dates:
- 25-28 March 2003: the 12th session of the UNESCO Intergovernmental Committee for Promoting the Return of Cultural Property to its Countries of Origin or its Restitution in Case of Illicit Appropriation recommends that the Director-General 鈥渆stablish and maintain on the UNESCO website a legislation database that includes cultural heritage legislation from all Member States鈥 and invites the Member States to give their full cooperation.
- 29 September-17 October 2003: at its 32nd session, the General Conference supports the principle of establishing the database.
- 15 October 2003: the Meeting of the States Parties to the 1970 Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property recommends that Member States of UNESCO should promptly submit all their national legislation aimed at the protection of the cultural heritage.
- 7-10 February 2005: official launch of the database at the 13th session of the Intergovernmental Committee for Promoting the Return of Cultural Property to its Countries of Origin or its Restitution in Case of Illicit Appropriation, two years after the initial recommendation.
For more information, please see the list of international normative instruments for the protection of the cultural heritage (conventions, agreements, charters, codes, declarations, action plans, protocols, recommendations, etc.).
