April 1, 2014
British Government agrees to UNESCO mediation for Parthenon Marbles
Last year, the Greek government made the announcement that they had approached UNESCO, about inviting the UK to enter into mediation over the issue of the Parthenon Sculptures. The Intergovernmental Committee for Promoting the Return of Cultural Property to its Country of Origin or its Restitution in Case of Illicit Appropriation sets out a series of rules, that such mediation should follow, although the case of the Marbles would be the first time it had actually been implemented.
Many naysayers suggested that despite this new initiative by Greece, the British Government & British Museum would not consider entering into such a procedure, as there was nothing in the rules to compel them to do so and no time limit for them to reply to the request.
There was also the issue, that in all previous requests, the British Government pointed out that such requests were a matter to be dealt with by the trustees of the British Museum, whilst the trustees would point out that they would not be legally allowed to de-accession the sculptures, under the terms of the British Museum Act 1963.
Now, in what many involved with the case have suggested is an unexpected move, the British Government have responded to Greece’s minister of culture, indicating that they are happy to enter into mediation immediately. Under the UNESCO rules, the mandated timescale for the process to be completed in is one year, meaning that the issue of the Marbles could be resolved by 1st April next year, if not before.
The issues of the Marbles being a matter for the British Museum to determine were also noted by the government in their initial response, where they explained that whilst this has been the case in the past, it is really more of a political shorthand for noting that they are uninterested in resolving the issue, noting that as the museum is largely funded by the government, they do in fact have the ability to exert a large level of control over it & would do their utmost to ensure that the Museum was fully represented during the negotiations and to enforce whatever actions were agreed to at the end of the process.
Parthenon Marbles in British Museum
From:
Department for Culture, Media & Sport
Notice of intention to enter into mediation with an aim to swiftly resolve the Parthenon Marbles issue
April 01, 2014The British Government would like to notify Greece that we have accepted their invitation to enter into mediation via UNESCO, over the issue of the Parthenon Marbles.
Previously issues have been raised over whether we had jurisdiction over the British Museum, and there are still many question marks over this. However, in the interests of progressing the resolution of this long standing embarrassment to the British people, we are jointly going to co-operate with the trustees.
We acknowledge that the issue of the Parthenon Sculptures are a unique case, and, as such we are happy to do whatever it might take to resolve the issue.
Further updates will be posted on our website in due course.
Pillory Dour
On behalf of the International Cultural Property Unit, Department of Culture, Media & Sport
From:
British Museum
British Museum agrees to Greek Mediation proposal
April 01, 2014Following a request from the Department of Culture Media & Sport, the British Museum has agreed to work in partnership with the government to satisfy Greece’s requests for mediation over the Parthenon Marbles issue.
This is not a decision that we were able to take lightly, but we realise it was a move that we had to make. We have gradually come to understand that issues such as this are not going to go away, and accept that we need to make more effort to try & resolve them, in the interests of maintaining the current levels of co-operation with countries such as Greece.
Various surveys have shown that our continuing retention of the sculptures is out of sync with public opinion. For a long time, the trustees hoped that this was a one off blip in the statistics, but we are now resigned to the fact that our continued retention of the sculptures is hurting our public image as world class museum.
We with Greece the best of luck with the mediation, and over the next year, will be able to tell you more, as the process unfolds.
Henna Biltong
Head of Press, British Museum
- Could mediation through UNESCO offer a solution to the Parthenon Marbles issue? : October 3, 2013
- ICOMOS support for Parthenon Marbles UNESCO mediation : November 17, 2014
- Could UNESCO mediation be a game changer for Greece’s Elgin Marbles issue : November 9, 2013
- When will UK respond to Parthenon Marbles mediation request : February 25, 2014
- Unfortunately, the previous post on UNESCO mediation was not accurate : April 2, 2014
- Early Day Motion on UNESCO Mediation for Parthenon Sculptures : April 11, 2014
- What will the UK do about the Parthenon Sculptures UNESCO mediation request : October 16, 2014
- IARPS support for the UNESCO mediation process to resolve the Marbles deadlock : January 20, 2014
enmanueh said,
04.01.14 at 12:04 am
RT @elginism: Blog post: British Government agrees to UNESCO mediation for Parthenon Marbles http://t.co/3FeZRNhFWq
Kapoiosmpla said,
04.01.14 at 12:13 am
RT @elginism: Blog post: British Government agrees to UNESCO mediation for Parthenon Marbles http://t.co/3FeZRNhFWq
Paul MJ said,
04.01.14 at 12:26 am
Paul MJ liked this on Facebook.
frantictrader said,
04.01.14 at 12:33 am
RT @elginism: Blog post: British Government agrees to UNESCO mediation for Parthenon Marbles http://t.co/3FeZRNhFWq
jstpwalsh said,
04.01.14 at 12:35 am
RT @elginism: Blog post: British Government agrees to UNESCO mediation for Parthenon Marbles http://t.co/3FeZRNhFWq
DimitriNakassis said,
04.01.14 at 12:40 am
RT @elginism: Blog post: British Government agrees to UNESCO mediation for Parthenon Marbles http://t.co/3FeZRNhFWq
NAHYSOSA_CYA said,
04.01.14 at 12:48 am
RT @elginism: Blog post: British Government agrees to UNESCO mediation for Parthenon Marbles http://t.co/3FeZRNhFWq
Dennis Menos said,
04.01.14 at 1:08 am
Not very funny April Fool’s joke.
LaLaGioconda said,
04.01.14 at 7:13 am
“@elginism: British Government agrees to UNESCO mediation for Parthenon Marbles http://t.co/fbcXXTWVfy”>>not an April fool joke it appears
Hercules_3941 said,
04.01.14 at 8:04 am
RT @elginism: Blog post: British Government agrees to UNESCO mediation for Parthenon Marbles http://t.co/3FeZRNhFWq
lupecz said,
04.01.14 at 8:32 am
@elginism This must be an April Fool, sadly.
lupecz said,
04.01.14 at 8:32 am
RT @elginism: Blog post: British Government agrees to UNESCO mediation for Parthenon Marbles http://t.co/3FeZRNhFWq
Victoria ჱܓ Goodall said,
04.01.14 at 9:26 am
Victoria ჱܓ Goodall liked this on Facebook.
Dr.Kwame Opoku said,
04.01.14 at 10:23 am
Revolution in British Position?
If this is not an April 1st hoax, then we must congratulate the British Government and the British Museum. If this is true, it represents a revolution in the attitude of both the British Government and the British Museum in this dispute which has been going on for a very long time.
In the statement said to have been issued by the British Museum, we notice a different tone; gone is the arrogance and the self-assured confidence that Britain has a God-given duty and right to keep, for the benefit of mankind, the art treasures of the world and all should be grateful for the protection of the artefacts acquired under dubious circumstances; gone are the insults at the Greeks and Athens. Instead we find a language of humility and almost of repentance, seeking forgiveness for past mistakes:
“This is not a decision that we were able to take lightly, but we realise it was a move that we had to make. We have gradually come to understand that issues such as this are not going to go away, and accept that we need to make more effort to try & resolve them, in the interests of maintaining the current levels of co-operation with countries such as Greece.
Various surveys have shown that our continuing retention of the sculptures is out of sync with public opinion. For a long time, the trustees hoped that this was a one off blip in the statistics, but we are now resigned to the fact that our continued retention of the sculptures is hurting our public image as world class museum.”
And what about this reference to opinion polls? Since when has the British Museum and the British Government cared much about opinion polls that have been consistent on this matter? And the flood gates theory?
The statement on the whole does not resemble the arrogant, self-serving explanations that we have been used to reading from the venerable museum in Bloomsbury in the last thirty or so years.
If these changes of position and tone are true, then there is more hope for mankind than some of us have hitherto believed. The future of museums and artefacts can be said to be bright.
We need to wait and see what comes out of this amazing situation before making any definitive judgments.
Kwame Opoku, 1 April 2014.
Betty Hood said,
04.01.14 at 8:25 pm
Unbelievable!!!
Betty Hood said,
04.01.14 at 8:26 pm
No!!!! Then I am indeed a fool …
modernghanaweb said,
04.01.14 at 9:53 pm
Revolution In British Position?: http://t.co/fU64lG04g0… http://t.co/p8q7iQVcHQ
Betty Hood said,
04.02.14 at 5:41 am
Betty Hood liked this on Facebook.