Director General/Executive Director
Excellencies,
Colleagues,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
My warm thanks to Cyprus for organizing this event on cultural rights and the protection of heritage, particularly in armed conflict situations.
Cultural heritage is important both for its own sake, but also as a measure of humanity's collective achievements.
The Temple of Bel in Palmyra, the Mosul Museum and the Tower of Elahbel have long been bywords for civilization, tradition, and history. They are tragically no more.
All of them were wantonly destroyed by ISIL/ Daesh as they consolidated their hold on parts of Syria and Iraq. And these are only a few depressing examples.
The world is witnessing the destruction, trafficking, looting and sale of cultural property by terrorists and violent extremists, in some cases working closely with organized criminal groups.
Trafficking in cultural property is also an important vehicle for laundering criminal proceeds.
It has furthermore been identified as a possible source of financing for terrorist groups.
These profits enable the recruitment of terrorist fighters, and enhance the capabilities of these groups to conduct their deadly activities.
Instability, corruption and a lack of resources to control borders and offer security at archaeological sites or museums are adding to the challenges faced by many countries attempting to counter this threat.
Iraq, Syria and Libya all suffered widespread destruction of their cultural heritage as well as persistent looting.
In 2011, UNODC reported that the proceeds of transnational crime related to art and cultural property were estimated to be between 3.4 and 6.3 billion dollars.
The situation has only worsened since. However, currently available data remains sporadic and incomplete.
More research is needed, if we are to understand the scope and the scale of the problem, including the existing trafficking routes.
I encourage every state to collect more data on this activity to ensure that we can begin to build more comprehensive and integrated national and regional policy responses.
Concerning activities already undertaken by the international community, I commend the work of UNESCO and UNIDROIT for upholding the relevant international instruments, especially those related to conflict situations.
These include the Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict, its two protocols, and the Convention on Stolen or Illegally Exported Cultural Objects.
Alongside these instruments, I would emphasize the need to also fully implement the UN Convention against Transnational Organized Crime, the United Nations Convention against Corruption, as well as the International Convention for the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism.
UNTOC and UNCAC can serve as effective tools for combatting trafficking and its exploitation for financing terrorist groups, as well as facilitate the return and recovery of cultural property.
The Security Council has also recognized the close link between illicit trafficking in cultural property and the financing of terrorist activities of ISIL/Daesh, in UNSC resolution 2199.
Furthermore, I very much welcome the General Assembly resolutions urging Member States to criminalize activities related to trafficking in cultural property as a serious crime.
For its part, UNODC is helping in many ways. This includes:
Supporting crime prevention and criminal justice responses;
UNODC works in the Middle East and North Africa and elsewhere to strengthen cooperation across borders and we maintain a directory of national authorities to promote international cooperation through the application of UNTOC.
The Office has also developed and mantains a database of relevant laws and cases to assist Member States in their efforts to combat this phenomenon.
A comprehensive response needs to be undertaken globally. This means stopping the cultural property leaving the vulnerable nation, while preventing such goods from being transported and sold at auction, and entering private collections.
Ladies and gentlemen,
The theft, trafficking and destruction of cultural property are undermining our global attempts to preserve our cultural heritage for future generations.
We must break up the criminal organizations involved, and sever the channels that fund terrorists and violent extremists. But we need to act quickly and in the spirit of cooperation.
History will judge us. We cannot afford to be found wanting. Thank you.