The Chairman of the IARPS, David Hill, has addressed a letter to British Prime Minister David Cameron urging him to respond to the UNESCO mediation process which was initiated by the Greek government last year. As yet, there has been no official response from the British side.
The Rt. Hon David Cameron MP
Prime Minister
70 Whitehall
London UK
SW1A 2ASDear Prime Minister
I am writing to you as Chairman of the International Association for the Reunification of the Parthenon Sculptures to urge the British Government and the British Museum to agree to a renewed offer by UNESCO to mediate the issue of the Parthenon Sculptures currently held in the British Museum.
The International Association for the Reunification of the Parthenon Sculptures has volunteer committees in sixteen countries that are dedicated to the return of the Parthenon Sculptures from London to be reunited with the other surviving sculptures in Athens. (www.parthenoninternational.org)
UNESCO first offered to convene mediation of this issue following a request from Greece in July 2013. To date Britain has not responded to the UNESCO proposal.
At a recent meeting of the relevant UNESCO committee dealing with restitution of cultural property in Paris on 1 and 2 October 2014, UNESCO again invited Britain to agree to mediation with Greece on the matter. Britain has also been asked to respond to the proposal for mediation within six months.
By refusing to seriously discuss this issue the British Government and British Museum are increasingly out of step with widespread public and professional opinion in the UK and around the world. For well over a decade every public opinion poll conducted in the UK shows that an overwhelming majority of the British public support the return of the Parthenon Sculptures to Greece. These poll results are consistent with an earlier survey conducted by the well-respected British Museums Association which revealed that 97% of its members also support restitution of cultural property in certain circumstances. Further, you should note that the Museums Association policy relating to repatriation of cultural property calls on Museums to ‘deal sensitively and promptly with requests for repatriation both within the UK and from abroad’.
By agreeing to the proposed UNESCO mediation, the British Government and the British Museum would enable the matter to be resolved in a spirit of cooperation and goodwill and in a way that might benefit both sides as well as all humanity.
I would be happy to come to London to discuss this matter with you.
Yours sincerely
David HillChairman, International Association for the Reunification of the Parthenon Sculptures
November 2014
None of the arguments put forward by the UK Government and the British Museum now hold water, including the one that is possibly the strongest – Greece’s inability to satisfactorily house and care for the Marbles.
It seems undeniable to me that the main reason for our holding on to them is the prestige attached to the items. An illusory prestige, for their continued presence here is a glaring indication of the Government’s lack of a sense of justice.
Sooner or later (far better sooner) the Government and the Museum will be forced to admit this.
I believe it is an embarrassment to most of the British public that its governments have refused consistently, over too many years, to do the right thing and return the Marbles (taken from Greece by Lord Elgin) to the Parthenon, where they belong. They are indeed, wonderful works of art and it is only right they should be in the place they were made to adorn – not Lord Elgin’s garden or the British Museum. Can you please start a petition, either a No 10 one or a change.org one so that we can express our discomfort with the current situation? I am sure most British people would like to express their willingness to return the Marbles to their original home as soon as possible.
Dear Tessa,
We always urge UK citizens to write a letter to their local MP expressing their dissatisfaction with the situation. We have also started petitions in the past (such as the one at 38 Degrees) and am sure will do so again soon. There have also been a number of very encouraging poll results regarding this issue. You can find this information here http://www.marblesreunited.org.uk/category/resources/documents/polls/