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Introduction
Artifact theft is an interesting topic for me, as it is rather confusing and ambiguous from a criminological perspective. In this situation, it is necessary to take into account many social and political factors to find a solution. Through a brief reflection can one realize that in the described case of the British Museum, a contradiction arises between rationality and the sovereign right of certain territories to preserve their own culture.
A real-life case of artifact theft
The accusations of the British Museum in storing stolen artifacts and objects of cultural heritage are directly related to crimes, as they are considered from the point of view of a law violation. As Alberge (2019) argues, the Elgin Loot views the cultural repatriation process as respect for human rights. In particular, the need to return the artifacts was recognized by courts in England, Ireland and the US which have ruled that nation states have sovereignty over items that constitute keys to their heritage (Robertson, 2020, para. 8). Human rights treaties also support this decision, as does the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People (Robertson, 2020). Thus, the task of criminology in connection with the existing situation is to analyze the reasons for the accusations that have arisen, as well as the response to them within the framework of the legislation.
Inquires
The presented accusations of theft have grounds since, in the modern world, the topic of the negative consequences of the colonial period of history is extremely acute. According to Hobbess ideas, for self-preservation, people must submit to a sovereign authority that would act for the benefit of all people (CRI389). In this case, the British Museum acts as such an authority, which helps not only to preserve the cultural heritage of certain territories but also to present it to the world. It is also worth noting that in line with enlightenment ideas that have had a great influence on UK law, the power of expert knowledge to improve society is stated (CRI389).
With regard to accusations of artifacts theft, it is difficult to say how efficiently the territories of origin of these parts of cultural heritage could take care of their preservation. The British Museum is not only a kind of sovereign cultural authority but also a knowledge expert that can make a positive contribution to the preservation of artifacts. In this case, repatriation may be respected for cultural human rights but also a violation of rationality.
However, repatriation is still a difficult process due to the relationship of former colonial countries to European ones. Paternalism, preserved as a stereotype of the cultural superiority of past centuries, is an obstacle to repatriation and therefore to cultural human rights (Guy, 2019). In the east, there is another problem of frustration and discontent when visiting European museums (Al Quntar, 2017). Usually, repatriation is favored by high-quality storage and the complexity of transportation of certain exhibits. In addition, according to research, the indigenous population of interested countries is gradually aging, being replaced by a younger generation that is less aware and generally indifferent to the problem (Crawford & Jackson, 2020). At the same time, UNESCO and many other authorities are working in this direction with the aim of creating appropriate transport conditions and programs for tracing cultural heritage objects, so that in the end there will be a confident opportunity to deliver them to their homeland.
Conclusion
Museums educate people by preserving humanitys social, cultural, and scientific history in a form that allows visitors to learn about how people acted and reacted to the world around them in the past. Therefore, one should consider different perspectives as to what a museum is able to do in protecting the artifacts and cultural significance behind the objects, instead of constantly blaming the nation itself for taking the artifacts from other countries.
References
Al Quntar, S. (2017). Repatriation and the Legacy of Colonialism in the Middle East. Journal of Eastern Mediterranean Archaeology and Heritage Studies, 5(1), 19-26. Web.
Alberge, D. (2019). British Museum is worlds largest receiver of stolen goods, says QC. The Guardian. Web.
Crawford, N., & Jackson, D. (2020). Stealing Culture: Digital Repatriation (A Case Study). University Museums and Collections Journal, 12(2), 77-83. Web.
CRI389: Rights, freedoms and responsibilities in criminal law. Class 3.
Guy, M. (2019). Reclaiming the Past: How a Legacy of Paternalism Affects Modern Efforts of Artifact Repatriation [Thesis]. Morgan State University. Web.
Robertson, G. (2020). Its time for museums to return their stolen treasures. CNN Style. Web.
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