The pillage of Egyptian
cultural heritage continues. The latest news of ravaged archaeological sites
comes from El Hibeh and Abu Sir Al Malaq where
photos depict thrown-away bones and broken artifacts that mar ancient
archaeological sites, a grisly byproduct of destructive digging by reckless
looters. Political leaders must act.
The illegal trade in
cultural heritage is a transnational, for-profit business that
depends on moving looted objects to the market. The number of Egyptian
cultural objects smuggled into the U.S. remains unknown. What is known is that
the United States is a significant consumer of Egyptian cultural artifacts. Last year
nearly 14% of all archaeological, historical, or ethnographic objects imported
for consumption into the U.S.--as a percentage of the total customs value of
all such imports--came from Egypt, making The
Land of The Pharaohs the third top supplier of declared cultural goods entering
America.
Just as Congress passed legislation
targeting plundered Iraqi heritage, lawmakers should adopt similar legislation
authorizing the President to implement emergency import protections covering
at-risk Egyptian cultural heritage. Its
language could mirror the language of the Emergency Protection of Iraqi
Cultural Antiquities Act:
SHORT TITLEEmergency Protection of Egyptian Cultural Antiquities ActEMERGENCY IMPLEMENTATION OF IMPORT RESTRICTIONS.
(a) AUTHORITY- The President may exercise the authority of the President under section 304 of the Convention on Cultural Property Implementation Act (19 U.S.C. 2603) with respect to any archaeological or ethnological material of Egypt without regard to whether Egypt is a State Party under that Act, except that, in exercising such authority, subsection (c) of such section shall not apply.
(b) DEFINITION- In this section, the term `archaeological or ethnological material of Egypt means cultural property of Egypt and other items of archaeological, historical, cultural, rare scientific, or religious importance illegally removed from locations in Egypt since [date to be agreed upon].
TERMINATION OF AUTHORITY.
The authority of the President under section 3002(a) shall terminate five years from the date of enactment.
The passage of the
Emergency Protection of Egyptian Cultural Antiquities Act would heighten
American attention to the increasing cultural heritage crisis in Egypt and give federal law enforcement an additional tool to stop
antiquities trafficking at the border.
Photo credit: exkrupier
This post is researched, written, and published on the blog Cultural Heritage Lawyer Rick St. Hilaire at culturalheritagelawyer.blogspot.com. Text copyrighted 2010-2013 by Ricardo A. St. Hilaire, Attorney & Counselor at Law, PLLC. Any unauthorized reproduction or retransmission of this post is prohibited. CONTACT INFORMATION: www.culturalheritagelawyer.com
Photo credit: exkrupier
This post is researched, written, and published on the blog Cultural Heritage Lawyer Rick St. Hilaire at culturalheritagelawyer.blogspot.com. Text copyrighted 2010-2013 by Ricardo A. St. Hilaire, Attorney & Counselor at Law, PLLC. Any unauthorized reproduction or retransmission of this post is prohibited. CONTACT INFORMATION: www.culturalheritagelawyer.com