Cover Bien Culturel_En 21.1.2004 15:38 Page 1 PROTECTION OF CULTURAL PROPERTY IN THE EVENT OF ARMED CONFLICT PROTECTION OF CULTURAL Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict Report on the Meeting of Experts Advisory Service on International Humanitarian Law ICRC 0805/002 02.2002 1000 Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict Report on the Meeting of Experts (Geneva, 5-6 October 2000) Marı´a Teresa Dutli in cooperation with Joanna Bourke Martignoni Julie Gaudreau International Committee of the Red Cross Advisory Service on International Humanitarian Law 19 Avenue de la Paix, 1202 Geneva, Switzerland T +41 22 734 6001 F +41 22 733 2057 E-mail: [email protected] www.icrc.org Original: French February 2002 ISBN 2-88145-119-5 # International Committee of the Red Cross Geneva, February 2002 TABLE OF CONTENTS Acknowledgements .............................................. 7 Introduction .................................................. 9 PART ONE Meeting of experts on national implementation of the rules for the protection of cultural property in the event of armed conflict ................... 13 Chapter I Presentation of topics ........................... 15 “ The importance of respect for international humanitarian law and the activities of the ICRC Eric Roethlisberger, Member of the Committee, ICRC ....... 15 “ Competing priorities: placing cultural property on the humanitarian law agenda Yves Sandoz, Special Adviser to the ICRC ................... 21 “ New rules for the protection of cultural property in armed conflict: the significance of the Second Protocol to the 1954 Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict Jean-Marie Henckaerts, Legal Adviser, ICRC ................ 27 “ UNESCO’s activities for the implementation and promotion of the 1954 Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict and its two Protocols Jan Hladı´k, Programme Specialist, International Standards Section, Division of Cultural Heritage, UNESCO .................... 57 “ National implementation of international humanitarian law, the work of the ICRC Advisory Service and the protection of cultural property, including strategies for the ratification of the relevant humanitarian law treaties Marı´a Teresa Dutli, Head, Advisory Service on International Humanitarian Law, ICRC ................. 69 3 Chapter II National implementation activities .............. 79 “ National measures for the implementation of the rules governing the protection of cultural property in the event of armed conflict in Switzerland Rino Bu¨chel, Protection of Cultural Property, Federal Office for Civil Protection, Switzerland .............. 79 “ The identification and registration of cultural property in Lebanon Dr Hassan Jouni, Professor, Law Faculty, University of Lebanon, Lebanon ............................ 85 “ The criteria used to identify and register protected cultural property in Guatemala Eduardo Andrade Abularach, Architect, Guatemala......... 93 “ The procedure for marking cultural property in Slovenia Dr Savin Jogan, Ministry of Culture, Slovenia ............... 97 “ The role of the Interinstitutional Committee on International Humanitarian Law in the implementation of the protection of cultural property in El Salvador Claudia Herrera Nosthas, Legal Adviser, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, El Salvador...................... 103 “ Training and dissemination in the Austrian armed forces Major Franz Schuller, Secretary-General, Austrian Society for the Protection of Cultural Property, Austria .................................................. 107 “ Training and dissemination activities in the Italian armed forces Brigadier General Leonardo Prizzi, School of Application, Italian Armed Forces, Italy.................................. 113 Chapter III Working groups ................................. 119 “ Introduction to the themes discussed..................... 121 “ Report from Group I ...................................... 125 4 “ Report from Group II...................................... 129 “ Report from Group III ..................................... 133 Chapter IV Conclusions of the meeting ..................... 137 Yves Sandoz, Special Adviser to the ICRC PART TWO Practical advice for the protection of cultural property in the event of armed conflict ................................ 143 ANNEXES I. Programme .............................................. 187 II. List of participants ....................................... 191 III. Questionnaire on national measures of implementation concerning the protection of cultural property in the event of armed conflict ............................ 195 IV. Comparative tables of the replies to the questionnaire on national measures of implementation concerning the protection of cultural property in the event of armed conflict ....... 199 5 Acknowledgements This report was drawn up by the Advisory Service on International Humanitarian Law of the International Committee of the Red Cross following the Meeting of experts on national implementation of the rules for the protection of cultural property in the event of armed conflict, held in Geneva on 5 and 6 October 2000. The meeting was attended by about forty participants from around the world who discussed the various topics on the programme, in plenary and in working groups. As experts in museology, legal advisers, military specialists and specialists on monuments and archives, they made a substantial contribution to the preparationof this report, either in the form of the presentations they made in plenary, of their active participation in the working groups, or of the invaluable suggestions and comments they made during and after the meeting with a view to the establishment of the Practical advice for the protection of cultural property in the event of armed conflict, which aims to help national authorities adopt and implement measures for the effective protection of such property. Our gratitude to them knows no bounds. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) plays a special role in the protection of cultural property. It is the driving force behind the promotion and implementation of the international instruments governing the protection of cultural property in the event of armed conflict, of which it is the depositary. UNESCO, and in particular Mr Jan Hladı´k, Programme Specialist, International Standards Section, Division of Cultural Heritage, played an active part in the meeting and were associated in the preparation of the Practical advice. We would also like to thank those who made more specific contributions to the preparation of the Practical advice, namely Mr Rino Bu..chel, Head, Protection of Cultural Property, Federal Office for Civil Protection (Switzerland), Mr Ariel Walter Gonzalez, First Secretary, Permanent Mission of Argentina to UNESCO, Colonel Charles Garraway, Directorate of Army Legal Services, Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom), Mr Michael Meyer, Head of International Law, British Red Cross (United Kingdom), Mr Steven Solomon, Deputy Legal Adviser, Permanent Mission of the United States to the United Nations in Geneva, and Mr Michael Turner, President of the Israel World Heritage Committee. 7 Introduction The rules governing the protection of cultural property in the event of armed conflict are well established in both treaty and customary international humanitarian law. They are far, however, from being systematically applied and indeed are often flouted. The growing number of interreligious and interethnic conflicts has implied not only attacks against civilians but also, in many cases, the destruction of civilian objects, in particular cultural property. Acts of vandalism directed against such objects or their destruction are particularly common in such conflicts, as cultural property can be considered to symbolize the cultural identity and history of the adverse party. Of course, in any armed conflict, the priority remains to protect the civilian population and persons not participating directly in the hostilities, and we should not forgot that the protection of civilian objects is also a basic rule of humanitarian law. We should nevertheless not underestimate the need to establish an effective system for the protection of cultural property in the event of armed conflict. Not only is the protection of such property, part of the world historical and cultural heritage, intrinsically important, its destruction could act as a catalyst, sparking more widespread hostilities and further blurring the distinction between military targets and civilian objects. Efforts to strengthen the protection of cultural property must therefore continue to be made alongside those undertaken to heighten the protection of civilians and civilian goods. Measures to protect cultural property in the event of armed conflict must be adopted in time of peace. Steps must be taken to promote the adoption of adequate legislation, to attribute institutional responsibilities, to draw up plans of action for the protection of cultural property, and to establish appropriate education and training programmes for armed forces and emergency service members, the personnel of cultural institutions and the general public. The action taken to heighten the public’s awareness of the need to protect and respect cultural property is an essential component of the measures that can be taken in peacetime. Educational campaigns play a key