Afghanistan: protecting heritage and fighting trafficking in cultural goods
On 24 and 25 May 2022, the first two days were held of a training programme on heritage protection and the fight against illicit trafficking in Afghan cultural goods. Implemented by Expertise France at the request of the French Embassy in Kabul, these first training days were held at the National Heritage Institute, a leading partner in the field of heritage protection.
To effectively protect Afghan cultural heritage and fight against illicit trafficking in cultural goods, the implementation of this training programme aims primarily at promoting a transfer of knowledge, a sharing of good practices, and a networking of experts in order to build Afghan capacities and expertise in this field. To meet these objectives, Expertise France has gathered high-profile partners who have worked with ten Afghan beneficiaries from civil society who are now in exile. A look back at two days of intense and comprehensive training.
Heritage protection a priority project
The looting and illicit trafficking of cultural goods are nothing new in Afghanistan. In 2001, the destruction by the Taliban of two giant Buddhas carved into the face of a cliff in Bamiyan, in the centre of the country, remains a catastrophic loss of heritage which has not been forgotten. 20 years on, the shock of the Taliban returning to power in August 2021 is a cause for concern among the international community.
The French Presidency of the Council of the European Union has made the fight against illicit trafficking in cultural goods one of the priorities in its European agenda for the first half of 2022. The organisation of a conference at the Louvre to strengthen European cooperation in the fight against this trafficking on 1 February 2022, followed by an informal meeting of European Ministers of Culture, have promoted networking among actors in this field and helped identify courses of action. In this context, the Commission has adopted an action plan against trafficking in cultural goods for 2022-2025, in order to disrupt criminal activities and protect the cultural heritage. These events underscore the commitment of France and the European Union to fight this scourge and step up initiatives to ensure a better protection of heritage at international level. Through the implementation of this training project for Afghan experts, Expertise France is playing a key role in this combat.
Stem the scourge at the source: protection of heritage sites
Located at a major crossroads of the ancient Silk Road, between China, Iran, India, Central Asia and the former Russian Empire, Afghanistan has a unique cultural heritage bearing witness to a history marked by the complex mixing of different cultures for over 5,000 years: the Persian Achaemenid Empire, the Greece of Alexander the Great, Buddhism, Hinduism and Islam. Afghanistan’s cultural heritage thereby represents an immense wealth for the country, but also for the universal memory of humanity. Some 5,000 archaeological sites have been identified in the country and some have been excavated, including by French-Afghan teams from the French Archaeological Delegation in Afghanistan (DAFA), which is celebrating its centenary this year. As the looting of heritage sites is the first stage in the illicit trafficking of cultural goods, the protection of these Afghan sites and the treasures they hold must be a priority.
In this context, Expertise France has therefore opted to focus its action on the source of the problem by basing the training programme on the protection of heritage sites and the fight against their looting. The context, the challenges and the methods of looting are all problems addressed during the training days. As it is a vast and multifaceted issue, many other aspects related to the phenomenon are also developed, such as the legal framework, the traceability of the stolen works, customs clearance and money laundering. Stemming the scourge at its source, while taking into account the entire chain of the problem, is the line of attack implemented by Expertise France to fight against illicit trafficking in cultural goods and protect Afghan heritage.
A high-level programme promoting a transfer of knowledge and good practices
For this training, Expertise France has called on high-level partners from major international institutions, such as the INHA, Musée du Louvre, UNESCO, Ministry of Armed Forces, Ministry of Culture, CNRS and DAFA. They are supervised by the National Heritage Institute and coordinated by Vincent Michel, Professor of Archaeology of Classical Antiquity of the East. The diversity and quality of the trainers and partners have allowed very fruitful exchanges.
Opposite these high-level trainers are young committed Afghan experts who have proven themselves in the top French universities in various disciplines (heritage, law, security, international cooperation…). Today they form an Afghan Task Force and will acquire a high level of expertise in this field. They will subsequently be able to put their knowledge at the service of their country.
A second training session will be held from 5 to 9 September, based on judicial cooperation issues and national and international investigation services.