General introduction underwater cultural heritage and. The views expressed in this article are the personal opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of national oceanic and atmospheric administration or the us government. Underwater cultural heritage encompasses all traces of human existence that lie or have lain underwater and have a cultural or historical character. A large part of the underwater cultural heritage is located in an international setting and derives from international trade and communication in which ships and their contents are lost at a distance from their origin or destination. Underwater cultural heritage and international law by. The convention is intended to protect all traces of human existence having a cultural, historical or archaeological character which have been under. Cultural heritage is defined as cultural goods found within the borders of the greek state, including its territorial waters, as well as other sea zones in which greece has jurisdiction according to international law. In november 1995 a draft resolution was presented to the 28th general conference of unesco which, among other matters, dealt with the organisations future activities in the field of the underwater cultural heritage. The views expressed in this article are the personal opinions of the author and do not. Pdf study on protection of underwater cultural heritage. See tolina loulanski, revising the concept for cultural heritage. A chinese perspective on the international legal scheme. Secretariat of the of the unesco convention on the protection. The law was drafted in conformity with the united nations convention on the protection of the underwater cultural heritage and was developed due to the fact that taiwans current cultural heritage preservation law lacks the concept of protection of the cultural heritage of the sea.
This committee produced a report containing a draft convention on the protection of the underwater cultural heritage, which was adopted at the associations 66th conference in buenos aires in 1994. Apr 18, 2018 in situ preservation is not necessarily the best underwater archaeological solution, nor is it legally required in all circumstances. International protection of underwater cultural heritage robert c. Unesco convention on the protection of the underwater. Article 4 relationship to law of salvage and law of finds any activity relating to underwater cultural heritage to which this convention applies shall not be subject to the law of salvage or law of finds, unless it. Secretariat of the of the unesco convention on the. The unesco conventionon underwater cultural heritage and the international law of the sea markus rau i. A chinese perspective on the international legal scheme for the protection of underwater cultural heritage liu lina school of law xian jiaotong university china email. Cambridge university press 9780521842310 underwater. International law and the protection of cultural heritage. The us office of national marine sanctuaries has a robust maritime heritage program mhp, now years old. The usefulness and success of the database greatly depend on three factors. This article finally discusses the international development of a body of maritime law specifically concerning underwater cultural heritage.
The united nations organization for education, science and culture unesco was founded on 16 november 1945 as the united nations specialized agency. It is a bubbling cauldron of law mixed with ethics, philosophy, politics and working principles looking at how cultural heritage law, policy and practice should be sculpted from the past as the present becomes the future. Draft law on preservation of underwater cultural heritage, art. L migliorino, in situ protection of the underwater cultural heritage under international treaties and national legislation, 104 international journal of. American bar association section of international law page 1 new international law to protect underwater cultural heritage by ole varmer. United nations educational, scientific and cultural organization. In contrast to the limited publication policy when the full text of an agreement may not be reproduced in the unts in its entirety, the objective of applying the partial publication method to a particular situation is to speed up the publishing effort by e. Aznargomez professor of public international law, university jaume i, castellon, spain e. By its very character the underwater cultural heritage is an international resource. A new international regime for the protection of cultural heritage international and comparative law quarterly, vol. An emerging objective of the contemporary law of the sea london. Underwater cultural heritage united nations educational. Law 302828062002 on the protection of antiquities and cultural heritage in general the law protects the countrys cultural heritage from ancientmost times until today and also provides the protection of cultural goods originating from greece regardless of when they were taken from the country or where they are to be found at present. A chronological account of underwater cultural heritage.
Current deepsea bed technology now threatens deep water sites. The worlds cultural heritage is under threat from war, illicit trafficking, social and economic upheaval, unregulated e. Otherwise, the removal of the historical object or objects found under the sea and their. Rather, it is the first and, perhaps, the most technically desirable option, when archaeological, legal, and political circumstancesin that orderso advise. In november 2001, a new weapon was added to the united nations educational, scientific and cultural organisations arsenal used to protect and preserve the worlds cultural heritage, in the form of the convention on the protection of the underwater cultural heritage. There are also sunken ruins and cities, like the remains of the pharos. International cultural heritage law janet blake oxford. An area which has suddenly emerged as in dire need of international legal regulation is that of the underwater cultural heritage. A new international regime for the protection of cultural. In situ preservation of underwater cultural heritage as an. Waters and the 2001 unesco convention chapter pdf available january 2014 with 351 reads how we measure reads. International law literature begun to focus increasingly on the legal protection of underwater cultural heritage in the 1970s and 1980s based on two developments. It is governed by the general conference and the executive board. The protection of underwater cultural heritage in international law lowell bautista1 1.
Just as humans have over exploited much of the natural heritage off of their coasts, and now threaten the natural heritage in deep seas, we are also seeing the exploitation of our cultural heritage move into the deepest parts of the sea. Cultural property protection laws, regulations and rules cultural property, protection of foreign investment laws social aspects investments marine salvage salvage shipwrecks underwater archaeology. Userfriendly home page, fast response to the request and easy navigation based on search patterns and word search through legislation. The principle that heritage is a public matter is quite central in the developing ethics of the archaeological profession. Underwater cultural heritage can provide vital evidence about how human populations have adapted to, or been affected by climate changes in the past. The worlds cultural heritage is under threat from war, illicit trafficking, social and economic upheaval, unregulated excavation and neglect. The enunciation of legal rules to protect the underwater cultural heritage is a complex issue, involving a matrix of interests and laws, both international and national. In this it was encouraged by article 3034 of the united nations convention on the law of the sea wherein the drafters of that convention recognized the possibility of a more comprehensive regime applying to underwater cultural heritage coming into existence at a later stage. The protection of the underwater cultural heritage. Linguistic diversity original language of the legislation completed by an. It will meet next in 2011 to discuss the resulting draft. International protection of underwater cultural heritage.
New international law to protect underwater cultural heritage by ole varmer. The legal protection of the underwater cultural heritage is a field in which there is growing international interest. Underwater cultural heritage international council on. Please note that given the exceptional circumstances related to the coronavirus covid19 pandemic, regular mail sent to the world heritage centre in paris cannot be processed on a normal basis for the moment. International committee on the underwater cultural. In the negotiation of the law of the sea convention losc 1982, some nations. A chinese perspective on the international legal scheme for. In situ preservation is not necessarily the best underwater archaeological solution, nor is it legally required in all circumstances. This article is without prejudice to other international agreements. The unesco convention on the protection of the underwater cultural heritage, adopted in 2001, intends to enable states to better protect this heritage. The primary reason for this lack of equality is the preference for states rights in the relevant treaties. Study on protection of underwater cultural heritage in u. The unesco convention on the protection of the underwater cultural heritage, adopted in 2001, is intended to enable states to better protect their submerged cultural heritage.
Situated between admiraltyprivate maritime law, the law of the sea, and cultural heritage law, the legal framework of underwater cultural heritage law is robust. Blumberg, attorneyadvisor, office of oceans affairs university of virginia center for oceans law and policys annual conference on law of the sea issues in the east and south china seas xiamen, china march 12, 2005. Over the weekend, the prosecutor of the international criminal court icc, fatou bensouda, announced an arrest in the mali situation, charging ahmad al faqi al mahdi with the intentional destruction of religious andor historical monuments. While cultural heritage on land has increasingly benefitted from national and international safeguarding measures, underwater cultural heritage still lacks sufficient legal protection. The law protects the countrys cultural heritage from ancientmost times until today and also provides the protection of cultural goods originating from greece.
Managing cultural heritage underwater machu is an international project consisting of eight european union eu partners who, together, are dealing with the management of underwater cultural heritage on a european scale and developing methods for this management to be used in the future by all countries in the eu. Pdf international law and the protection of cultural. Recording, documenting and, ultimately, protecting underwater cultural heritage is an obligation of mankind and dictated by international treaties like the convention on the protection of the. Pdf study on protection of underwater cultural heritage in. The unesco convention on the protection of the underwater. Convention on the protection of the underwater cultural heritage. Abstract underwater cultural heritage uch, which includes evidence of past cultures preserved in shipwrecks, enables the relevant epistemic communities to open a window to the unknown past and enrich their understanding of history. The case is of interest to the united states because of its conditional support for the work of the icc, as well as its. In 1988, the international law association established a cultural heritage law committee. The value of underwater cultural heritage the world has been undergoing a process of modernization, and more and more countries have begun to realize the significance of cultural heritage, either tangible or intangible.
Ail these categories too are increasingly being seen to require active protection of international law. Art and cultural heritage is appropriately, but not solely, about national and international law respecting cultural heritage. On the international legal protection of underwater cultural heritage 301 i. Underwater cultural heritage and international investment law valentina sara vadi.
Potential cooperation between china and sri lanka in the. The convention on the protection of the underwater cultural heritage is a treaty that was adopted on 2 november 2001 by the general conference of the united nations educational, scientific and cultural organization unesco. A supplementary resolution appended to the law states that the central. On the international legal protection of underwater. This includes three million shipwrecks such as titanic, belitung and the 4,000 shipwrecks of the sunken fleet of kublai khan.
The current situation of maritime cultural property under the interna tional law of the sea 1. Otherwise, the removal of the historical object or objects found under the sea. Ethics, underwater cultural heritage, and international law. Read international law and the protection of cultural heritage by craig forrest available from rakuten kobo. Underwater cultural heritage sustainable development. Over a period of almost fifty years, the united nations educational, scientific and cultural organisation has adopted five international conventions that attempt to protect this cultural heritage. It sets out the international including regional law currently governing the protection and safeguarding of cultural heritage in peace time, as well as international cultural policymaking. His ageold cult goes back to the mycenaean period around 16001100 bc, as evidenced by signs of the greek linear b script from knossos and pylos.
Underwater cultural heritage, hereafter referred to as uch, is defined in article 1 of the united nations educational, scientific and cultural organization unesco 2001 convention on the protection of the underwater cultural heritage. Underwater cultural heritage and international law the unesco convention on the protection of the underwater cultural heritage 2001, which entered into force internationally in 2009, is designed to deal with threats to underwater cultural heritage arising as a result of advances in deepwater technology. The unesco conventionon underwater cultural heritage and. Shipwrecks and other underwater cultural remains in every maritime zone are threatened both by activities directed at them, such as treasure hunting, and by activities incidentally affecting them, such as mineral exploration and exploitation, pipeline and cable. Underwater cultural heritage international law oxford. Unesco 2001 convention international committee on the. Based on the fact that in recent years more and more underwater cultural heritage is disturbed.
Towards ratification australias underwater cultural heritage. Nafziger j 2006 the development of international cultural law, american society of international law. Law 302828062002 on the protection of antiquities and. This book provides a comprehensive overview of the development of international cultural heritage law and policy since 1945. The protection and management of underwater cultural heritage uch is a challenging topic, as it involves the interplay of united states u. Admiralty law is a branch entrenched within private international law relating to the control of maritime practices between private entities. The secretariat, headed by the directorgeneral, implements the decisions of these two bodies. On the international legal protection of underwater cultural. The convention consists of a main text and an annex, which sets. Underwater cultural heritage and international law by sarah dromgoole july 20 skip to main content accessibility help we use cookies to distinguish you from other users and to provide you with a better experience on our websites. Introduction in a historic moment that culminated almost a decade of negotiations, the convention on the protection of the underwater cultural heritage uch convention was adopted on 2 november 2001. The unesco conventionon underwater cultural heritage and the.
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