Italy was elected yesterday to a 4-year seat on the newly-constituted Consultative Committee of the UNESCO Convention (1970)on the Means ofProhibitingand Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property. “This is a system success that rewards the many years of commitment by the MFA, MiBAC and the Carabinieri Corps for the Protection of Cultural Property”, commented Under-Secretary for Foreign Affairs Mario Giro.
Italy has used innovative approaches to recuperate stolen artworks that are considered good practices and a source of inspiration by many countries.
Over recent years, Italy has also conducted activities, both bilaterally and in collaboration with UNESCO, in support of investigations and police training in many developing countries working to combat illegal trafficking in cultural property, especially in the Mediterranean basin and Latin America.
“Our expertise has been internationally recognised thanks to our continuing commitment to curtail illegal trafficking in cultural properties that are a mark of the identity of their countries of origin. This multilateral success has led us to collaborate on operations and to invest in training activities for countries particularly vulnerable to being sacked. The goal is to systematise those activities, concentrate them in several regions and ensure the full support of UNESCO. We are hoping to strengthen cooperation among country members in order to make attempts to combat illegal trafficking in cultural properties more effective”, the Under-Secretary concluded.
