COMBATING ILLEGAL TRAFFICKING IN AFRICAN CULTURAL GOODS: AU REPORT

African Waters, a Treasure Trove for International Entrepreneurs in the Antiquities Market. Chapter 10 in: Anne Mayor, Vincent Négri & Eric Huysecom (eds.), African Memory in Danger – Mémoire africaine en péril, Journal of African Archaeology Monograph Series, Vol. 11, pp. 105-109. The relative success of the 1970 Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property and the 1995 UNIDROIT Convention has encouraged the antiquities market — and especially the big auction houses — to look for new sources for antiquities in bulk. Shipwrecks provide these from their shiploads. Due to the complexities of international law, underwater operations feeding the market had no legal restrictions until early 2009 when the 2001 UNESCO Convention on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage entered into force. It is now ratified by 49 countries, and needs to gain more appreciation and support. In the meantime, African waters have become a major target for large-scale treasure-hunting. This stealing and appropriation of heritage follows the logic of 18th and 19th century imperialism without consideration of the role of heritage in the 21st century. Operators sweet-talk governments into providing exclusive rights and museums into opportunistic acquisitions. The urgent situation in Africa is presented here with a variety of examples, including the wholesale destruction of sites in order to promote a lifestyle clothing line in Europe. These provide the background showing the need to include the maritime spheres in developing policies for management of cultural heritage in Africa.

Contemporary Journal of African Studies, 2020

This paper addresses the issue of repatriation/restitution of African cultural objects in Western museums by analysing the terminology used to discuss the demands of return by African states and people. After analysing these used terms which differ slightly from one another, the paper overviews the various types of cultural objects that ended up in European museums. The chapter finally discusses the destinations of the reclaimed cultural objects in postcolonial Africa by showing that not only the original contexts of these cultural objects have changed, but also that the countries asking for the return of these objects should work toward cohering identities for the benefit of all.

2017

Maritime archaeologists, historians and heritage managers have struggled to position maritime and underwater cultural heritage (MUCH) in the sub-Saharan African heritage context. Management of MUCH resources, based on Western legal systems, has focused almost exclusively on shipwreck sites. Management strategies have been implemented to stop treasure hunting and limit the damage caused by salvage activities. The application of internationally accepted MUCH management practices has, however, failed to engage the publics of many African nations. This has meant that the application of regulatory strategies has been a challenging task which has ultimately failed to successfully manage MUCH resources or engage sub-Saharan communities. This research proposes, applies and assesses alternative management and engagement models at several southern-African case study sites, and contributes towards establishing a new approach to MUCH. The approach examines the context in which the heritage reso...

Nigerian Bar Journal Volume 10, 2017

Partnership entails coming together of two or more persons to achieve a common goal. UNESCO aims to ensure that each country has an adequate representation of its national collection and has partnered with other bodies to achieve this. This article examines the milestones of the collaboration in curbing illicit trafficking of cultural objects under the guidance of the Intergovernmental Committee for Promoting the Return of Cultural Property to its Countries of Origin or its Restitution in case of Illicit Appropriation (ICPRCP) formed for the purpose of facilitating return and restitution of cultural objects lost during colonial times to their countries of origin.

Cultural property, which is the pillar of civilisation and peoples’ identities, has been displaced through colonisation, plunder and massive theft; causing irreplaceable loss of valuable information on mankind. Return and restitution of cultural property is achievable under the 1970 United Nations Economic, Social and Cultural Organisation Convention (UNESCO Convention) and the 1995 International Institute for the Unification of Private Law Convention (UNIDROIT Convention). However, the action steps African states need to take to derive maximum benefits from these Conventions have not attracted much scholarly attention. This study, therefore, examined the return and restitution of cultural property in some African states, under the UNESCO and UNIDROIT Conventions, with a view to determining their ratification rates, domestication and implementation. The factors hindering the efficacy of both Conventions in selected African states were also investigated. The study adopted jurisprudential theories of natural law, historicism and sociological school and applied legal research methodology. Primary data used were the UNESCO and UNIDROIT Conventions, Constitutions of randomly selected five African states with provisions protecting cultural heritage, cultural heritage legislations of 27 African states and 38 other international instruments. Key informant interviews were conducted with the legal officers involved in the drafting of the UNIDROIT Convention at UNIDROIT secretariat in Rome and heritage law practitioners and scholars at the Art Law Centre, University of Geneva. In-depth interviews were also conducted with politicians, lawyers, judges and members of the public in Ibadan metropolis. Secondary data consulted included legal texts on cultural property and policy documents. Data were subjected to interpretive and comparative analyses. As at December 2014, only 70.4% and 3.7% of the selected African states had ratified the UNESCO and the UNIDROIT Conventions respectively. None of the States had any legislation specifically aimed at domesticating the provisions of both Conventions. Largely, the provisions of both Conventions have not been implemented. Although South Africa ratified the UNESCO Convention in 2003, the enactment of The National Heritage Resources Act, 1999 predated it. There is no difference in the legislation of states such as Egypt, Nigeria and Zimbabwe that had ratified the UNESCO Convention concerning return and restitution of cultural property and those that had not (Ethiopia, Benin and Kenya). For example, both Kenya’s Antiquities Act 1983 and Egyptian Law viii 117 of 1983 declared state ownership of cultural property. Lack of awareness among politicians, lawyers and the populace about the benefits derivable from the Conventions, coupled with lack of priority given to the issue of return and restitution of cultural property were some of the factors hindering the efficacy of the Conventions in the African states. Many African states are yet to maximise the benefits derivable from the UNESCO and UNIDROIT Conventions by not ratifying, domesticating and implementing their provisions. The States need to take steps to enact cultural property specific legislations, strengthen their enforcement mechanisms and maintain control over the cultural property within their territories. Keywords: Return and restitution of cultural property, Cultural property in African states, 1970 UNESCO Convention, 1995 UNIDROIT Convention.

2958-7999, Vol. 4 (1) 2024, 2024

Investigators are an important apparatus in tackling highly organized crimes committed in a state of high confidentiality. In Africa, surveillance techniques are commonly used to expose many crimes including serious offences against individuals or a society. However, ethnographic objects and other cultural remains have received less investigative attention, and as the result they have been illegally exported out of the continent for economic benefits. Ethnographic objects refer to objects made, modified or used by humans that collectively represent cultural references and they are protected by law, rules, or customs. Cultural remains refer to tangible movable objects made, shaped, painted, sculptured, inscribed, and produced or modified by human agency. In Tanzania, like in many other African countries, relics and ethnographic objects have been plundered and illegally traded in underground economy across the world. People engaged in trading of ethnographic objects use souvenir markets as decoys and shipping passage to send goods abroad. This article presents the results from a recent investigation conducted at one of the souvenir markets in Mwenge, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, where cultural relics and ethnographic objects from Tanzania and other African countries have been brought together and shipped abroad for commercial interests. A joint team of undercover intelligence agents and key informants participated in a confidential work to investigate the process by which ethnographic objects are collected, marketed and distributed to local and foreign markets. Mwenge is one of the largest and most popular souvenir centers with large and unique artefacts shops operating as tourism attractions. During this investigation, which spanned six months, our team identified 530 ethnographic objects which were on the market, ready to be sold and exported, despite their legal status under Tanzanian law, according to which their sale and export are unlawful. This study revealed that people who are engaged in the illicit trading activities of relics and ethnographic objects are knowledgeable, use legitimate business license, collection-and export permits to conceal their illicit trade of ethnographic objects. Furthermore, they are aware of the poor monitoring institutions and the illiteracy among security officials at ports of exits. This article discloses some of the techniques used to conceal the trafficking of cultural objects in Tanzania and proposes suitable measures to counter the problem.

Towards Ratification: papers from the 2013 AIMA Conference Workshop, Edited by Graeme Henderson and Andrew Viduka, 2014

In this paper colleagues Shawn Berry, Chris Ngivingivi and Bill Jeffery present an overview of the underwater cultural heritage (UCH) programs in Tanzania and South Africa, including the background, activities, issues and way forward with these programs in the context of the 2001 Convention on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage (the Convention).

Journal of Field Archaeology, 2021

Fifty years after the adoption of the 1970 UNESCO Convention, the illicit trade in cultural objects endures, with harmful consequences to local communities, knowledge acquisition, and archaeological landscapes and objects. In this article, we present a gap analysis to assess underperforming policy and practice. We argue that a poor understanding of how the trade is organized and operates and of how it might be regulated hinders effective policy formulation. Funding structures which encourage short-term ad hoc research and inhibit information sharing are in part responsible for some of the gaps. We conclude by suggesting how sustained theoretically informed, evidence-led collaborative analyses might help reduce or mitigate these problems, preventing another 50 years of illicit trade.

2012