Human rights and cultural property protection in times of conflict

Abstract

This article considers the relationship between the protection of cultural property in the event of armed conflict, as defined in International Humanitarian Law, and human rights. It contextualises this by acknowledging the social role of archaeology as developed by the World Archaeological Congress. The article uses the author's personal experience of working with the UK Ministry of Defence to attempt to protect cultural property in Iraq to illustrate the failure of the military, and its political masters, to understand the importance of cultural property and argues that there needs to be a closer relationship between the military and cultural heritage experts if the human rights of those caught up in conflict are to be ensured.

The Islamic State’s symbolic war: Da'esh's socially mediated terrorism as a threat to cultural heritage

“…In line with Gerstenblith (2014) and others (e.g. Bevan, 2012;Stone, 2012; Van der Auwera, 2012), Meskell (2015) argues that 'the destruction of cultural heritage in Syria is characterised by bombing in urban centres, attacks on religious structures, the use of archaeological sites as strategic vantage points and the looting of sites and museums for objects to be sold on the international market.' To this list, we add the genesis of socially mediated terrorism.…”

The Assessment of the Effects of Armed Conflicts on the Tangible Cultural Heritage Within the Context of Tourism

“…İkincisi bu çatışmaların maddi kaynağının yasa dışı ekonomik faaliyetlerle sağlanması ve yasal yollarla kendilerine mali kaynak sağlayamayan silahlı organizasyonlar için tarihi eser kaçakçılığının kârlı bir iş olarak görülmesidir (Van der Auwera, 2013). Kültürel mirasa bu açıdan bakıldığında, bir çatışma sırasında kültürel mirasın korunması, çatışan tarafların birinin en önemli gelir kaynaklarından birinin kapanması anlamına gelecektir (Stone, 2012 (Kila, 2013). Diğer taraftan, bu tür devletlerin yer aldığı Afrika ve Ortadoğu gibi bölgelerde kültür; daha çok, yaşam tarzı yani somut olmayan kültürel miras üzerinden tanımlanır, somut kültürel miras ise korunması gereken bir değer olarak görülmez (Van der Auwera, 2014).…”

Heritage and Conflict Situations

“…The case of Iraq is also worth mentioning, since this is a country whose heritage has suffered greatly as a result of lasting political instability (Stone ). After the 1991 Gulf War, archaeological museums throughout the country were closed, including the National Museum of Iraq, in Baghdad.…”

“…One author states that a large portion of such digging in Iraq is attributable to the high unemployment rate in the country (Campbell ). There are ongoing debates over the ranking of priorities in such countries, and heritage professionals face the dilemma of needing to consider other more ‘vital’ issues such as human lives when seeking to protect heritage, or the issue of archaeologists collaborating with military forces in doing so (Stone ; Bauer ). The importance of archaeology and heritage in connection with basic human rights is also increasingly recognised by international treaties.…”