The one time chairman of Marbles Reunited & long time reunification supporter has died aged 78

I first met Eddie O’Hara in 2001. Since then, I have got to know him well through out common interest of the return of the Parthenon Marbles, and he later chaired the Marbles Reunited Committee of which I am a member. On standing down from Parliament in 2010, he became Chair of the BCRPM,

He was tireless in his support for the issue, regularly raising it in Parliament, as well as speaking at conferences around the world in support of restitution.

During recent years, he had respiratory problems, but he never let this stop his campaigning, despite the fact that it clearly made travel far more difficult thatn it had once been.

Eddie passed away on Saturday 28th May 2016. His wisdom and vigour will be missed by all who knew him.

Eddie O’Hara MP and Parthenon Marbles campaigner

From:
Guardian

Eddie O’Hara obituary
Labour MP with a passion for the reunification of the Parthenon marbles
Julia Langdon
Tuesday 31 May 2016 17.22 BST

Eddie O’Hara, the former Labour MP for Knowsley South, who has died aged 78, had a lifelong passion for Greek scholarship and culture and was a fervent enthusiast for the long-running campaign for the reunification of the Parthenon marbles.

An irony of his years of dedication he gave to this cause was his good fortune to be alive to pursue it, as he had been personally identified as a military target when doing national service with the British Army in Cyprus in the late 1950s. A keen sportsman and athlete, he took a daily run outside the army camp, always along the same route in the Cypriot countryside, a routine that was observed by the Eoka terrorists who were fighting to free their island from what was termed “the British yoke” and who mined his path. Had the booby-trap not been discovered in time, the Greek Cypriots would have been denied the subsequent support O’Hara demonstrated as one of the most tireless and articulate advocates of their political interests.
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As outlined in yesterday’s post, Liberal Democrat MP Andrew George is due to table an Early Day Motion later today, urging the government to return the Parthenon Sculptures to Greece. Andrew George is also the chair of the Marbles Reunited campaign, based in the UK.

I’m disappointed to see that the BBC has chosen to unquestioningly print the assertions of the British Museum, that Elgin rescued the sculptures so that the world could enjoy them. All evidence available in the form of letters from Elgin to his wife & others, indicated that he wanted them to adorn his new house which was being built at Broomhall. It was only much later on, when bankrupt & trying to justify his ownership of them to the government, that he came up with the notion that he had been acting first and foremost as a preservationist.

MacGregor says that these items should be shared with as many people as possible, but as has been said many times before, if this is the case, then surely Beijing would be a better location for the sculptures than London?

A metope from the Parthenon Sculptures, currently in the British Museum

From:
BBC News

9 March 2015 Last updated at 08:06
Elgin Marbles: Commons motion urges return to Greece

A parliamentary move to expedite the return of the Elgin Marbles from the UK to Greece will be made later.

In an early day motion, Lib Dem MP Andrew George will urge the government to make moves towards “reuniting” them with those in the Acropolis Museum.
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In September 2013, a request was made by Greece to Britain, to enter a mediation process to resolve the Parthenon Sculptures reunification issue. The process would take place via the snappily named Intergovernmental Committee for Promoting the Return of Cultural Property to its Countries of Origin or its Restitution in case of Illicit Appropriation, a sub-committee of UNESCO.

The request for mediation marked a new step for Greece, and a clear realisation that small scale informal negotiations to resolve the issue were making little progress.

Since the request was issued, any appeals for updates have indicated that the British Government is still considering their response.

Last year, it was requested that a response would be made by 31st March 2015. However, government sources say that they are unable to make any significant announcement this side of the May election. We must bear in mind at this stage, that all current predictions are that there will be no clear majority in the May 2015 general election, so if not a change of government, at the very minimum, we can expect a significant restructuring of the coalition.

The British Government is clean to prevaricate over what is likely (according to all past policy indications) to be a negative response, but the reality is that any negative response might well be met by a stronger riposte from Greece.

For a number of years now, talks have taken place in secret in Greece regarding the possibility of some form of legal action over the Parthenon Marbles. These talks became more public when it became known that Amal Clooney was involved. As a side note, she was in fact involved all along – I have had sight of confidential papers that her name is ascribed to, from early 2011. Previously though, the lawyers were able to operate beneath the radar though, whereas Amal’s new found fame means that this is no longer such a simple proposition.

The likelihood of litigation is increased by the recent news that even if there Greek Government does not have the money to invest in this sort of venture, there are others who are happy to do so on their behalf.

What this leads on to, is that it is clear that Greece is considering other options. If their mediation request is rebuffed, they are not going to just drop the issue, but have fall back options, that could be a lot less palatable than mediation.

It is unclear, whether after an initial rejection of the mediation request, the offer to enter into the process would still be open to Britain.

Meanwhile, the British Museum, while unwilling to invest efforts in actual negotiations seems to have been taking measures to try & prop up their own back story behind why retention of the sculptures is a good idea. The first step was the rather controversial and secretive loan of one of the sculptures to the Hermitage in St Petersburg, which was announced to much fanfare in The Times. The second step is the commissioning of a rather narrowly focussed poll, aimed at giving the impression that those in the industry were entirely favourable of return (well they would say that wouldn’t they).

These moves are indicative that the British Museum is no longer sitting quite as comfortably as it once was. It is trying to make its position more secure, yet the loan to the Hermitage seems to have done exactly the opposite, with many former retentionists being strongly critical of the Museum’s actions.

It is clear that we are entering a new chapter in Greece’s quest for the return of the sculptures – one that has move on from informal applications to something much more structured. The stakes may be higher for both sides, but the aggressive responses from the British Museum indicate that the Greek approach seems to be having some sort of success. My hope is that the new SYRIZA led coalition is willing to keep up the pressure, rather than making a complete change of policy.

Parthenon Marbles in British Museum

From:
Independent

Elgin Marbles row: Greece tells British Government to stop stonewalling on return of Parthenon sculptures
Ian Johnston
Saturday 07 March 2015

The Government is refusing to negotiate with Greece about the return of the so-called Elgin Marbles despite a request to do so from the United Nations, a decision that could prompt Athens to begin legal action for the first time.

British campaigners likened the UK’s stance to “clinging on to stolen booty for dear life” and contrasted it with the “generous act” of returning the sculptures to help a friendly country on the brink of economic collapse. Youth unemployment has hit 50 per cent and suicide rates have soared amid a crisis so severe the Financial Times has warned Greece could turn into a “quasi slave economy”.
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Andrew George, Chair of the Marbles Reunited campaign, has issued a statement on the recent loan of one of the Parthenon Sculptures to Russia by the British Museum.

From:
Marbles Reunited

NEWS RELEASE
Friday 5th December 2014
For immediate release
“IF WE CAN LEND TREASURERS TO HOSTILE RUSSIA THEN WE CAN LOAN PARTHENON SCULPTURES TO OUR FRIENDS IN THEIR PLACE OF ORIGIN”

British Museum accused of snubbing the Greeks

The MP who chairs the British campaign for the return of the Parthenon Sculptures, Liberal Democrat Andrew George, criticised the British Museum for its decision to snub the Greek request for the return of the Sculptures and for lending them instead “to a country which has backed rebels who kill British citizens”. Andrew George chairs the British Campaign Group Marbles Reunited and has advocated the return of the Sculptures to Athens.

Mr George said, “British Museum Director, Neil MacGregor, justifies his decision by claiming that these Sculptures should be ‘shared and enjoyed by as many people…as possible”. But these Sculptures have not been ‘shared and enjoyed’ by the Greeks for over 200 years, since they were purloined in a dodgy deal by Lord Elgin during a period when Greece was occupied by the Ottomans!

“I sense that the British Museum’s grip on the Sculptures is weakening. If Britain did the decent and gracious thing, and returned the Sculptures, the Greeks have made clear that they would willingly loan many other Greek artefacts and great works to Britain so that they could be ‘shared and enjoyed by as many people…as possible’”.

He recently raised the question of their return in Parliament. He has also engaged in debate on the subject; joining Stephen Fry to succeed in a debate to persuade a large London audience that returning the Sculptures would be “a decent and gracious act”.

– ENDS –

The book & now the film of Monuments Men have been covered a number of times already on this website.

Now that the film is out in the cinemas, others have also made the connection between the stories it describes & that of the Parthenon Sculptures.

At a recent press conference, George Clooney was asked by a journalist about whether he thought that Britain should return Greek artefacts (a clear reference to the Parthenon Sculptures). He stated that he felt that Greece had a very good case to make, and that is would be a very fair thing to happen if they were returned.

George Clooney, Star of Monuments Men

In response to this, the the chairman of the Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee, John Whittingdale, suggested that Clooney didn’t know what he was talking about & that “There’s a very strong view in this country that they should stay in the UK”. Clearly, he has not seen the results of the previous polls organised by the BCRPM & Marbles Reunited a few years ago, which indicated an overwhelming level of support amongst people who were well informed about the issue.

You can see a video of the actual question here:

From:
Independent

George Clooney believes Britain should lose its Marbles
Ian Johnston
Sunday 09 February 2014

Hollywood actor George Clooney has called for the UK to return the Parthenon Marbles to Greece, saying it is “the right thing to do”.

Clooney was speaking at the Berlin Film Festival yesterday during a press conference for his film The Monuments Men, which tells the story of a team sent by the Allies to try to save artefacts from being stolen by the Nazis.
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Marbles Reunited’s campaign Manager, Maria Koutsikou attended a lecture given in Athens yesterday by John Fardoulis, the person in charge of the excavations of Lord Elgin’s ship, The Mentor, which was wrecked off Kythera en-route to England via Malta.

You can read the full writeup of the event here.

Andrew George MP, the chair of the Marbles Reunited campaign, has tabled a new Early Day Motion, highlighting many of the recent developments that relate to the return of the Parthenon Marbles. EDMs are a way in which members of parliament can both gauge the level of support for proposals.

From:
Parliamentary Information Management Web Site

PARTHENON MARBLES
Session: 2012-13
Date tabled: 18.09.2012
Primary sponsor: George, Andrew
Sponsors:Caton, Martin; Corbyn, Jeremy; Galloway, George; Hancock, Mike; Sanders, Adrian

That this House is aware that half of the Parthenon sculptures, controversially removed from Athens by Lord Elgin 210 years ago using a flimsy legal justification during the Ottoman occupation of Greece, remain on display in the British Museum; notes that, when presented with the facts, the British public favours the reunification of the Parthenon Marbles in Athens; and that at the Intelligence Squared debate on 11 June 2012, the audience voted 384 to 125 in favour of return, having marginally voted in favour of their retention before the debate commenced; further notes the opinion poll being conducted by the Journal of the Museums Association which showed 73 per cent in favour of reunification and 27 per cent against; is aware that the British Museum has abandoned most of its conventional arguments and now advances the novel concept of a universal museum; believes that in view of the uniqueness of the case for the reunification of these sculptures, it would consequently not constitute a precedent for other restitution cases; and calls on the Government to take heed of the consistent indications of domestic public and professional opinion and the growing worldwide interest by initiating a review of the cultural, ethical and political justifications for refusing to reunite these British-held Parthenon sculptures with those now displayed in the purpose-built Acropolis Museum in the shadow of the monument to which they belong, the Parthenon in Athens.

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Marbles Reunited is running a competition to create images that promote the return of the Parthenon Sculptures to Greece.

On offer as prizes are two tickets to the opera in Athens about the Elgin Marbles: “Opus Elgin: The destruction of the Parthenon”

So – if you have great ideas for images, or if you have already produced images that might be suitable, make sure you enter the competition.

From:
Marbles Reunited

Win two tickets to the upcoming event “Opus Elgin: The destruction of the Parthenon”

In recent months, a number of activities have occurred, all with the aim of raising the public’s awareness with regards to the matter of the reunification of the Parthenon sculptures. A noteworthy effort, and an event which promises to be memorable is the upcoming opera in two acts “Opus Elgin: The destruction of the Parthenon”.

Raising public awareness is paramount to the cause and Marbles Reunited wholeheartedly support noteworthy efforts in doing so. In aid of this event, and with the cooperation of Imeros for Culture, we have decided to both inspire people further and encourage them to attend this event.
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The Marbles Reunited campaign’s latest newsletter is now available to download from their website.

Download it here.

Andrew George MP, Chair of the Marbles Reunited campaign, explains some of the reasoning behind his request that the the British Government return the Parthenon Sculptures.

From:
politics.co.uk

Comment: No bailout, but will the Elgin marbles do?
Tuesday, 28 June 2011 10:35 AM
We might not want to be involved in the bail out, but returning the Elgin Marbles would show we are Greece’s friend.
By Andrew George MP

Whilst the current financial crisis dominates all current press coverage relating to Greece, there is no reason why we should use this as an excuse to ignore other key Anglo-Hellenic issues.

At present, news coming from Greece is predominantly negative – returning the Parthenon Sculptures (popularly known as the Elgin Marbles) would give people there something positive – a reason to celebrate and something that would increase the tourist draw to the country, helping to revive their economy.
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More coverage of David Cameron’s rebuttal of Andrew George’s Prime Minister’s Questions on the Parthenon Marbles.

You can watch the video coverage of it on the BBC’s website. The relevant part is 20:40 into the clip.

From:
The Guardian

David Cameron rejects call to return Parthenon marbles to Greece
PM dismisses suggestion by Liberal Democrat that collection of classical Greek marble sculptures should be returned to Athens
Hélène Mulholland, political reporter, Wednesday 22 June 2011 14.50 BST

David Cameron has rejected a call for Britain to “put right a wrong” that dates back just short of two centuries by returning the Parthenon marbles to Greece.

Andrew George, the Liberal Democrat MP for St Ives, reopened the issue of the marble sculptures, currently in the British Museum, when he incorporated the Greek financial crisis in a Commons question.
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Andrew George MP, Chair of the Marbles Reunited campaign has asked during Prime Ministers questions whether now should be the time to return the Elgin Marbles to Greece. Unfortunately, his suggestion was strongly rejected by the Prime Minister – although it clarify the views of the current government on the subject – something that was assumed previously, but had not been confirmed.

From:
Andrew George MP

ANDREW GEORGE MP, HOUSE OF COMMONS, LONDON SW1A 0AA
PRESS RELEASE, Wednesday 22nd June 2011, For immediate release
Losing our marbles?

The MP who leads the British campaign for the restitution of the Parthenon Marbles called upon the Prime Minister not to provide a unilateral contribution to the Greek bail out but to give the Marbles back.

In his question to the PM he said that the return of the ‘Elgin’ Marbles would help to regenerate the flagging Greek economy and put right a wrong committed over 200 years ago.

The Prime Minister refused to consider such a proposal but Mr George argues that public opinion is on his side and that following the recent creation of the new Acropolis Museum Athens would be a far better place for the Marbles, whilst the casts which the British Museum sent to Athens to replace them could be returned for display in London.

ENDS