Islamabad : Sensitizing the younger generation about the significance of cultural and archaeological assets is of pivotal importance for building sustainable and resilient communities.
To achieve this purpose, the policy makers must come up with an idea to include topics related to the importance of the preservation of cultural assets for educating the younger generation.
This was stated by the prominent archaeologist, Professor Dr. Muhammad Ashraf Khan while talking to this agency in connection with the International Day against Illicit Trafficking in Cultural Property, falling today (Monday).
Illicit trafficking, theft, or looting of cultural property is a serious crime and deprives the nation of its precious cultural heritage.
“To educate our students and people against the illicit trafficking of cultural property, it should be reflected both implicitly and explicitly in the curriculum of our teaching departments and also the involvement of the mass community.”
He observed that print and electronic media can play a great role in this regard and invited scholars to talk about the mafia involved in the illicit trafficking of cultural property.
International Day against Illicit Trafficking in Cultural Property will be celebrated on Monday with an aim to remind the world about combating the crimes related to theft, looting and illicit trafficking of cultural property takes place in every country.
The cultural heritage of any country reflects its tradition, norms, and history which has great significance in terms of transferring it to the next generations.
Illicitly traded cultural property is often transferred either through illicit markets worldwide or through licit markets such as auctions, including through the Internet.
People, governments, the art market, and institutions can do their part to fight this by raising awareness, being informed and ethical when buying and selling art and cultural objects, enacting and respecting laws, and protecting cultural heritage and property.
UNESCO first adopted November 14 as the International Day against Illicit Trafficking in Cultural Property during its 40th General Conference in 2019. The day was celebrated with the aim of drawing more attention of the world towards the crime related to illicit trade and cultural property and the ways to combat it.
The day also aimed at highlighting the importance of international cooperation and proactive measures through the convention on the means of prohibiting and preventing the illicit import, export, and transfer of ownership of cultural property (1970).
This Convention, which celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2020, provides an international framework for the prevention of theft and looting and the return and restitution of stolen cultural property in parallel with other advances in the fight against illicit trafficking.
It is important that every buyer complies with the required due diligence when verifying the provenance of cultural property acquired in order to put an end to the illicit trafficking of cultural property.