Egypt Organizes an International Conference to Combat the Looting of Culture Heritage in the Arab World

CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt intends to organize an international conference addressing the looting of culture and heritage of the Arab world in May, titled "Cultural Heritage under Threat" in Cairo. Several international organizations are participating, including the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). On Thursday, the Minister of Antiquities Mahmoud El-Damaty released a statement that the conference, held in cooperation between the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Antiquities, and with the participation of UNESCO, will invite several Arab countries, including Syria, Iraq, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Lebanon.

The Minister added that this well-timed conference is organized specifically to highlight the significant amount of destruction on irreplaceable identities and heritage of these countries. He said that the conference would discuss cooperative policies in various areas of archaeological work, particularly facing the looting and smuggling of antiquities.

He added that the conference seeks to come up with effective solutions that should be announced on the international level. The conference will also highlight the frameworks dealing with the cultural property markets- both licit and illicit.

Earlier on Thursday, El-Damaty met with Deborah Lehr, chair of the Antiquities Coalition, and Kate Seeley, vice president of the Middle East Institute, both in Washington DC.

Much of the cultural heritage, which includes ancient antiquities and monuments, have been subjected to looting, destruction, and theft during the past few years because of the lack of security and stability in several countries in the Arab region.

*The Antiquities Coalition and the Middle East Institute are also co-sponsors of the "Cultural Heritage under Threat" conference, as both organizations focus on the preservation of cultural heritage in the Arab world.

(original statement can be found in Arabic here)

Egypt Takes the Lead to Combat Looting

The Antiquities Coalition commends the Egypt government’s leadership in the global fight against cultural racketeering – the systematic looting and trafficking of antiquities by criminal organizations or terrorist networks.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry, previously
Egyptian Ambassador to the United States - speaking at the
Embassy in Washington, DC in 2011.
Photo Credit: The Capitol Archaeological Institute

Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry was in Washington the week of February 15 to build support for Egypt’s efforts to combat extremists.  In his discussions with the White House and the U.S. State Department, he stressed the importance of cutting off sources of funding to groups such as ISIL and al Qaeda, including from cultural racketeering.  These terrorist organizations, as well as organized criminals, are benefiting from the sale of looted antiquities, including those from treasured archaeological sites in Egypt.

Egyptian Minister of Antiquities, Momdouh el Damaty, in partnership with the Egyptian Foreign

(Left to right} Kate Seelye - Senior Vice President of the
Middle East Institute, Egyptian Minister of Antiquities
Mamdouh el Damaty, and Deborah Lehr - Chairman,
the Antiquities Coalition during recent tip to Cairo,
February 2015. Photo Credit: Antiquities Coalition

Ministry, has mobilized their embassies in countries where demand is high for Middle Eastern antiquities. They are actively partnering with auction houses, internet companies and private collectors to stop the sale of looted antiquities. Egyptian artifacts have been seized as far afield as Belgium, Israel, Spain and the United States.  Christies and eBay, for example, have taken steps to ensure they are not sources of illicit antiquities.

In addition, Egypt is convening the countries of the Middle East to develop regional solutions to fight against these terrorist networks. The Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Antiquities, supported by the Antiquities Coalition and the Middle East Institute, will host a Cairo Summit in May to explore ways to halt terrorist financing though antiquities looting. This Summit will bring together nine countries of the region suffering from cultural racketeering – Iraq, Syria, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Oman, Lebanon, Jordan, and Libya – to join forces in the fight.

The Egyptian government is taking a proactive role in the fight against the cultural racketeers. Ministers Shoukry and el Damaty understand the complexity of the problem and are bringing the resources of two ministries to seek solutions.  Bringing together the combined resources of their government in this fight is an important model that we hope all the invited countries will emulate – as well as cooperating government to government to develop regional solutions that will stop this multi-billion dollar industry from putting money into the pockets of organized criminals, armed insurgents, and terrorists.

SCA press release (9-2-2015): The Arab Republic of Egypt's Ministry of Antiquities Organizes an International Conference Next May to Face the Attempts of Tempering with Cultural Heritage

Edited SCA press release (9-2-2015):

"The Ministry of Antiquities Organizes an International Conference
next May to face the attempts of tempering with cultural heritage.

The Minister of Antiquities Dr. Eldamaty discussed the possibility
of organizing an international conference under the name of "Cultural
Heritage under Threat" to be held in Cairo next May. The conference
will be in collaboration between the Ministries of Antiquities and
Foreign Affairs in contribution with the UNESCO. The Antiquities
Minister met the Chairman of the International Coalition to Protect
Egyptian Antiquities (ICPEA) Deborah Lehr and the Vice President of the
Middle East Institute – Washington, Kate Seely, to study the means of
cooperation in the various fields of archaeology work with the subject
of confronting the processes of smuggling and illegal trade of the
cultural properties as a priority.

The Antiquities Minister clarifies that the idea came in this
particular timing due to what many Arab countries face of terrorist
actions, internal and external wars, insecure and instability of
security after the Arab Spring. Many archaeological areas, museums and
cultural heritage objects were negatively influenced due to such
exceptional incidents. The meeting aimed at the coming out of effective
resolutions to be declared internationally in such cases, and how to
deal with markets that illegally trade with cultural heritage objects.
General Supervisor of the "International Organizations" Department
Ahmed Ebeid added that this conference will open the door for
coordination between the affected countries and allows experience
exchange amongst them to protect their invaluable inheritance. It will
also emphasize the actual size of the people's great loss. He also
added that it has been agreed that a number of Arab Countries are
invited like Syria, Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq.
Other issues also was discussed at the meeting like the means to
support the joint cooperation to participate in adding new Egyptian
Archaeological sites to the Cultural Heritage List and contact with
countries with previous experience at that field like China.

On the other hand, the General Director of the "Repatriated
Antiquities" Department added that there is a possibility that the
ICPEA could support the Egyptian efforts to document the artifacts
saved at the different stores and museums in Egypt through the use of
modern techniques to create a digital database to facilitate the
process of monitoring the registered, smuggled, and offered for sale
objects. He also added that a possibility to present the technical
support for Egypt to using the satellite technology in determining the
encroachments on archaeological sites was also negotiated at that
meeting. "


Original Arabic Language Article can be found HERE

United Nations Takes a Stand on Cultural Racketeering

Brava to Irina Bokova, Director General of Unesco, and the United Nations!

This past week, the United Nations Security Council unanimously adopted a Russian-led resolution calling for countries to halt the import of illicit cultural property from Iraq and Syria, in order to cut off a key funding source for the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), the Al Nusra Front (ANF), and other Al-Qaida affiliated organizations.

(Image from UNESCO)

Resolution 2199 (2015) sends a strong message by the international community that individuals must not risk funding terrorists by purchasing these blood antiquities, and countries should also close their borders to them during this time of crisis. As ISIL spreads it tentacles into other Middle East countries, antiquities imported from Egypt, Libya, Lebanon, and Turkey, for example, should also be carefully scrutinized to ensure their legitimacy.

Irina Bokova has taken a strong stance against cultural racketeering, and in particular, antiquities looting being used to fund terrorist activities. Slowly but steadily she has worked to lay the foundation for action on this crime against humanity.

After the resolution passed, she called it a “milestone for enhanced protection of cultural heritage in Iraq and Syria,” Cultural racketeering, the systematic theft of antiquities by organized crime, “fuels the conflict by providing revenues for armed groups and terrorists. This resolution acknowledges that cultural heritage stands on the front line of conflicts today, and it should be placed on the front line of the security and political response to the crisis,” Bokova noted.

The resolution condemns the destruction and smuggling of cultural heritage in Iraq and Syria by ISIL and ANF, “whether such destruction is incidental or deliberate, including targeted destruction of religious sites and objects.” The Security Council, of which the United States is a permanent member, decided “that all Member States shall take appropriate steps to prevent the trade in Iraqi and Syrian cultural property and other items of…historical, cultural, rare scientific and religious importance illegally removed from Iraq since 6 August 1990 and from Syria since 15 March 2011.”

A Syrian Kurdish woman crosses the border
between Syria and Turkey in September 2014. The UN
Security Council has made a new resolution in a
show of international resolve to confront the threat
posed by the militants who overran parts of 
Syria and Iraq. (Image from Strait Times)

While the Security Council has requested that the UN Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), take the lead in coordinating these efforts, the United States is also playing an important role. But there is always more that can be done. For one, the US should move quickly to shut its borders to illicit antiquities from the entire region, since ISIL and ANF-smuggled pieces are being traded far beyond their territory. And to aggressively investigate and shut down the underground networks that trade in these illegal obtained antiquities. 

Damage to the Great Mosque in Aleppo, one of Syria's oldest, 
shows the burning of its library containing thousands 
of rare religious manuscripts. (Image from NY Times)

In addition, to support this spirit of this resolution, Secretary Kerry could continue to raise awareness about the linkages of antiquities looting and terrorist financing. One way to show support is by the United States swiftly signing the Cultural Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Egypt that will allow the State Department to direct Immigration and Customs Enforcement to stop the import of looted antiquities from Egypt. And by proactively seeking to conclude cultural MOUs with additional countries in the region to help shut down this multi-billion dollar illegal trade.

Irina Bokova is a hero in the heritage community for her tireless efforts to bring attention to this critical issue but more important, for taking steps to resolve it. She deserves the full and active support of the United States in this fight.

Director General of UNESCO Irina Bokova (Image from UN News Centre)

From Plunder to Preservation: The Untold Story of Cultural Heritage, World War II, and the Pacific

A Conference Marking the 70th Anniversaries of the Battles of the Coral Sea, Midway, and Guadalcanal

Thursday, November 8, 2014 – Friday, November 9, 2014

Organized by The National Trust for Historic Preservation

Terressa Davis

A lifetime has now passed since the United States entered the Second World War on 8 December 1941. The recent 70th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor revived interest in World War II, and in particular, the Pacific Theater of Operations. With 2012, 2013, and 2014 also commemorating major battles, focus on the War in the Pacific has only continued to increase.

The Pacific Theater —with its Kamikaze suicide bombings, guerrilla tactics, and nuclear weapons — was a take-no-prisoners fight to the death through island jungles exotic to both the Americans and Japanese. Because the war was fought between civilizations, cultural heritage was a major target, and thus a major casualty.

The FBA, New Orleans Chapter, has assembled a nationally recognized group of speakers, including archaeologists, historians, and lawyers. They will discuss the Empire of Japan’s pillaging and destruction of Asian treasures from Mongolia to Singapore. And they will shed light on the United States’ plan to first destroy —and ultimately spare —historic Kyoto; South Korea's efforts to recover their looted artworks; the fight to prevent the desecration of major battlefields; and the environmental time bomb of sunken battleships, and gravesites themselves, in pristine South Pacific waters.

NATIONALLY RECOGNIZED PANELISTS
William Cook, J.D., Associate General Counsel, National Trust for Historic Preservation
Tess Davis, J.D., Archeologist, Lawyer and Affiliate Researcher, University of Glasgow, Scotland
Ricardo J. Elia, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Archeology, Boston University
Laura Gongaware, J.D., Bland & Partners, PLLC
Larry Murphy, former Lead Marine Archaeologist for the National Park Service; expert witness in underwater cultural heritage cases.
John Stubbs, Director of Preservation Studies, Tulane University School of Architecture
Mark J. Spalding, President, The Ocean Foundation
Ole Varmer, Attorney-Advisor, International Section, Office of the General Counsel, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Elizabeth Varner, J.D., Executive Director of the National Art Museum of Sport

Digging out of tourism downfalls: Egypt’s archaeology takes the stage

By: Deborah Lehr - Chairman, The Antiquities Coalition

Follow The Antiquities Coalition on Twitter @CombatLooting and follow Deborah Lehr @DMLehr 

Finally, there is good news from Egypt. During a visit to Washington, DC last week, Egyptian 70% this year. Tourists are venturing back to the country despite political turmoil - casting a vote of confidence in General el-Sisi’s efforts to restore economic and political stability since taking office last June. Yet, if General el-Sisi is to successfully revitalize the economy, promoting cultural tourism must be a core part of his strategy.

Tourists admire modern Cairo while exploring the ancient
Sphinx. Photo Credit: Katie Paul, The Antiquities Coalition

Tourism Minister Hisham Zaazou announced that travel to Egypt is up

Before the Arab Spring, tourism accounted for approximately 11% of the country’s GDP and was a significant job creator in the economy. In the aftermath of the 2011 Revolution, tourism dropped dramatically to 6.7% of GDP. Foreign travelers have stayed away during the political turmoil of the past three years. The breakdown in the security infrastructure also led to a massive increase in looting at archaeological sites - a devastating loss of irreplaceable cultural material. In the months since General el-Sisi has taken power, Egypt has been slowly rebuilding its reputation as a safe destination for the world’s adventurers.

In 2010, a record number– 14.7 million - of overseas travelers generated revenues of approximately $11 billion for Egypt’s economy. U.S. and European tourists -- lured by Egypt’s romantic past -- flocked there to visit the Great Sphinx of Giza, King Tut’s lavish tomb, and other mysterious ancient sites.  As the security situation improves, now is the time for Egypt to consider new opportunities to promote – and protect – its cultural and aesthetic patrimony. This must be an essential part of its economic revitalization plan.  And there are lessons to be learned from another great ancient civilization, China.

China has embarked on a creative and effective program to protect its cultural heritage and thereby 10.4%. 

Tourists flocking to Hatshepsut's Temple.
Photo Credit: Katie Paul, The Antiquities Coalition

promote tourism. In recent years, the country has sought UNESCO World Heritage designations for its historic sites and geographies. This designation serves a dual purpose: to protect and promote the unique culture of these ancient landmarks, and to encourage tourism to generate revenue. World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) researchers have proven a positive correlation between a World Heritage designation and tourism growth, with a resulting increase in long-term GDP growth. Tracking figures over a 22-year period, the IMF determined that tourism generated by World Heritage status increases growth per capita by an astounding

Not surprisingly, Chinese cities have been aggressively pursuing World Heritage designations - and the results speak for themselves. After receiving a World Heritage Designation, the historic site of Lijiang, in rural Yunnan Province, now hosts over 11 million visitors annually.  The ancient village of Kaiping saw its tourism rise from 100,000 to a staggering two million visitors a year, with revenues of $7.8 million annually, after their inscription to the list in 2007. For rural areas with little industry, cultural tourism has become an economic windfall.

To date, China is tied with Italy as the world’s largest World Heritage destination, with 47 designated sites.  Egypt, equally well known for its rich historical treasures, has a mere six.  

So what can Egypt learn from China?

• Actively pursue UNESCO World Heritage designations.  Egypt has a rich treasure trove of historical sites and geographies that deserve to be on the list.  Yet the last site to receive UNESCO World Heritage Status in Egypt was in 2004. Given the positive economic correlation, it is in Egypt’s interest to tee up a number of sites for approval.
• Build up the tourism infrastructure.  Along with these UNESCO designations must come the appropriate infrastructure to support an influx of tourists – quality hotels, restaurants and multi-lingual, well trained tour guides. Strategic infrastructure investment will have a multiplier effect throughout the local economies surrounding these sites.
• Site preservation and management.  Essential to this strategy is developing plans to protect the historical integrity of the ancient sites. Without adequate advance planning, tourists can destroy the very sites that they have come to admire.
• Strategic public relations campaigns to promote tourism in key markets.  As of spring 2014, Chinese tourists account for one of every ten tourists worldwide. American tourists spend approximately $86 billion on international tourism, but Chinese tourists far surpassed them in 2013, spending a total of $129 billion. And China’s growing middle class has a big appetite for international tourism, so it appears that this is merely the tip of the iceberg, in terms of tourism dollars.

Implementing these recommendations would help grow Egypt's promising bump in tourism, and contribute mightily to the country's economic resurgence. It would be no small task to restore the tourism industry to at least 11 percent of Egypt's GDP, but there is much economic potential in Egypt's undesignated cultural sites. Sites for consideration cover a broad range of Egypt's history, from Pharaonic temples, such as the ancient Temple of Hathor to historic Islamic mosques and Christian monasteries. These are touchstones of our common heritage that should be widely known.

Seeking Unesco World Heritage listings will also help better protect and preserve Egypt’s historic patrimony for all to experience. Yes, it will boost the Egyptian economy, but perhaps more importantly, the stories contained in these ancient sites will inform our understanding of our very foundation in human history.

Digging out of tourism downfalls: Egypt’s archaeology takes the stage appeared in the Huffington Post online on December 17, 2014

A Great Night for ASOR as the Secretary of State Says Thanks

 How would you like to hear the United States Secretary of State say this about you?

“I want to thank Professor Michael Danti for shining a light on what is without question a global, critical challenge… When it comes to elevating the fight to protect the cultural heritage of Iraq and Syria, Michael and his colleagues at the American Schools of Oriental Research are literally the gold standard.”

That was Secretary John Kerry addressing the crowd at a State Department event to underscore the threats to cultural heritage in Iraq and Syria at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. It was a proud night for our colleagues at ASOR. Under the leadership of Executive Director Andy Vaughn and Professor Michael Danti of Boston University, a dedicated team of American and Syrian scholars is working with the State Department on the Syrian Heritage Initiative. The SHI is a cooperative effort to document comprehensively the current condition of cultural heritage sites in Syria and assess future restoration, preservation, and protection needs. ASOR is taking the lead in the struggle to protect the cultural heritage of war-torn Syria.

ASOR is an original partner in the Antiquities Coalition, supporting our efforts to fight cultural racketeering and to promote and protect the world’s cultural heritage since we began. They are stalwart collaborators and their own efforts in the Middle East clearly impressed the Secretary. At the event on Monday, I saw Andy Vaughn at the reception afterwards as he smiled and humbly accepted compliments and congratulations from the assembled, allowing that Secretary Kerry’s encomium was “pretty cool,” while pointing out that there was still much to be done for the cause of safeguarding Syrian and Iraqi cultural patrimony.

As for Michael Danti, he directly preceded Secretary Kerry on stage to talk about the horrors inflicted in Syria and Iraq by the Islamic State. His presentation of the facts, accompanied by dramatic photos from Mosul and Dura Europos, drove home to the audience just how perfidious the terrorists are in their zeal to eradicate opposition and in their willful destruction of cultural sites and materials. And Michael had reason to be proud when he also heard this from Secretary Kerry. “Michael was the first American archeologist in more than half a century to gain access to the Zagros Mountains, and that's the Iraqi Kurdistan Region along the Turkish and Iranian border. And he traveled to Syria for more than two decades, right up until the conflict erupted, researching Syria's ancient heritage. And we are all profoundly grateful for his commitment.” Michael was swept up by a press maelstrom after the event, though he did tell me later, “I felt very honored to speak to such a distinguished audience on a topic that I hold dear.”

Other leaders of the Syrian Heritage Initiative are Scott Branting (ASOR), Jesse Casana (University of Arkansas), Abdal-Razzaq Moaz (Indiana University and ASOR), and LeeAnn Barnes Gordon (ASOR).

We will leave it to Professor Susan Ackerman of Dartmouth, who leads ASOR as its President, to put this evening in perspective. “It's a great day for us to be so prominently and publicly recognized and signals just how important our work to safeguard Syria's (and Iraq's) cultural heritage is, both for us as an organization and for the remains of the ancient Near Eastern past that we all hold so dear.”

It was indeed a great day for our friends at ASOR. And it was a great night for cultural heritage too. As pleased as everyone is to see the Antiquities Coalition’s partners lauded so prominently, we are pleased to hear this ringing endorsement and promise of help for preservation goals from the Secretary of State. John Kerry gets the final word. “I want you to know that President Obama and our Administration are laser-focused on protecting the cultural heritage of countries all around the world… Our heritage is literally in peril in this moment, and we believe it is imperative that we act now. We do so knowing that our leadership, the leadership of the United States, can make a difference and that the fight to protect the cultural heritage of Iraq and Syria isn’t just about shared values. It’s about protecting a shared legacy.”