GS- Paper-1/ Art & Culture

Context- It’s great to hear about the new ‘Cultural Property Agreement’ between India and the USA.  This agreement represents a significant step towards protecting and preserving India’s rich cultural heritage by combating the illicit trafficking of antiquities.

• The involvement of key figures such as, the Secretary of the Ministry of Culture, , the US Ambassador to India, underscores the importance of this collaboration.
• This agreement, signed on the side-lines of the 46th World Heritage Committee meeting at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi.
• Highlights the commitment of both nations to safeguard cultural treasures. The presence of the Union Minister of Culture and Tourism further emphasizes the importance of this initiative.

Purpose of the Agreement-

• The main goals of the Cultural Property Agreement between the United States and India are twofold:
• Justice: This underscores the importance of returning cultural artifacts or property to their country of origin. It emphasizes the moral and legal responsibility of addressing historical wrongs and ensuring that items which hold significant cultural or historical value to a country are rightfully returned.
• Cultural Exchange and Global Connection: This aspect focuses on fostering international relations and understanding. By returning these artifacts, there is not only a rectification of past injustices but also an enhancement of cultural ties and mutual respect between India and the rest of the world.

About the Cultural Property Agreement- 

• This agreement is established between India and the United States.
• Its aim is to prevent and combat the illegal trafficking of antiquities between the two countries.
• The agreement is consistent with the 1970 UNESCO Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export, and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property.
• It restricts the import of specific archaeological and ethnological materials into the United States.
• India has been added to the list of 29 existing partners in bilateral cultural property agreements with the US. The US currently has 28 active bilateral cultural property agreements with countries such as Afghanistan, China, Cambodia, Egypt, Greece, Italy, Jordan, and Turkey.
• On this occasion, the USA also returned 262 antiquities to India. Since 1976, India has repatriated a total of 358 artifacts, with 345 of these having been recovered since 2014.

Significance-

• The agreement is regarded as a major advance in safeguarding India’s extensive cultural heritage and historical artifacts.
• Protecting and preserving cultural heritage has become a key aspect of India’s foreign policy, especially under the leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi.

G20 Presidency- under India’s G20 Presidency, the ‘Protection and Promotion of Cultural Property’ emerged as the main topical priorities reflecting the core concerns of the Culture Sector globally.

• The ‘Kashi Culture Pathway,’ the Outcome Document of the G20 Culture Working Group, was collectively  endorsed and called for a more robust global coalition to combat the illicit trafficking of cultural property.
• This commitment for enhancing efforts against illegal trafficking at national, regional, and international levels, to facilitate the return and restitution of cultural property to its countries and communities of origin, was reaffirmed in the New Delhi Leaders’ Declaration (NDLD) in 2023.Top of Form.