OTTAWA, March 1, 2006 Minister of Canadian Heritage and Status of Women Beverley J. Oda, together with Minister of Foreign Affairs and Minister of the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency Peter Gordon MacKay and Minister of National Defence Gordon O'Connor, has announced that Canada has acceded to two Protocols of the UNESCO Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict, also known as The Hague Convention. The Protocols come into force in Canada today.
By acceding the Protocols, Canada is reinforcing its commitment to respecting the value of every country's cultural heritage. It also sends a clear message to those who may seek refuge after taking part in looting or illicit export of heritage property during a conflict.
"Cultural property has great value for the citizens of all countries and it is irreplaceable. As a supporter of multilateral relations, Canada has a responsibility to help countries preserve their cultural property so that future generations may benefit from it," said Minister Oda. "By acceding to the two Hague Convention Protocols, Canada is declaring its readiness to promote the protection of cultural heritage internationally."
"Recent events have shown that cultural property, regrettably, continues to be a target in conflicts," explained Minister MacKay. "The international community seeks to prevent and suppress such attacks with these Protocols. By adhering to them, Canada is demonstrating that it is strongly committed to protecting cultural heritage throughout the world."
"Canada continues to contribute to peace and security on the international stage. Our military personnel are trained to carry out any mission, while remaining vigilant with respect to the protection of cultural property," said Minister O'Connor. "Canada's commitment today to The Hague Convention ' s Protocols reaffirms our unchanging pledge in this regard."
To accede to the two Protocols, the Government of Canada brought forward amendments to legislation allowing Canada to prosecute Canadians for criminal acts committed abroad, including theft, vandalism, arson, or the illicit export of cultural property protected by the Convention and its Protocols. Bill S-37, An Act to Amend the Criminal Code and Cultural Property Export and Import Act, was unanimously passed and received Royal Assent on November 25, 2005. On November 29, Canada deposited its instruments of accession to the two Protocols with UNESCO and, in accordance with the two protocols' provisions, the first and second protocols entered into force in Canada on March 1, 2006.
Information:
Jean-Guy Beaupré
Chief, Media Relations
Canadian Heritage
(819) 997-9314
Backgrounder
The Hague Convention Protocols
There are two protocols to the 1954 Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict .
The 1954 "First" Protocol
The First Protocol to the Hague Convention contains provisions prohibiting the illegal export of cultural property from occupied territories. The provisions provide for the safekeeping of cultural property by a State Party at the request of another State Party in the event of armed conflict. There are currently 92 State Parties to the First Protocol.
The 1999 "Second" Protocol
The Second Protocol was introduced to rectify weaknesses in the Convention and to update and expand on its provisions in response to changes seen in armed conflict since World War II and changes to the threat to cultural heritage, such as the increasing incidence of deliberate targeting of cultural property in non-international conflicts of an ethnic nature.
The Second Protocol establishes a range of new measures, including an Intergovernmental Committee for Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict, a fund to assist State parties in implementing the Convention and Protocols, and a new regime of "Enhanced Protection" for cultural property. It also clarifies and provides for specific obligations in the pursuit and prosecution of violations of the Convention and its Protocols. There are currently 38 States Parties to the Second Protocol.
Backgrounder
The Hague Convention
The UNESCO Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict (1954), known as the Hague Convention, was developed in response to concern over the destruction of cultural property, including monuments, museums, libraries and archival repositories, during World War II. The Convention is based on the principle that damage to cultural property belonging to any nation diminishes the cultural heritage of all nations. It seeks to provide for the most effective protection possible for such property in times of armed conflict. The Convention is regarded as one of the most important components of the international effort to protect cultural heritage and is considered by the International Committee of the Red Cross as belonging to a group of instruments that constitute international humanitarian law.
In peacetime, the Convention prescribes proactive measures such as the identification and distinctive marking of significant property. In the event of armed conflict it brings into force measures to prevent the damage, theft or destruction of cultural property.
The Convention applies to the following three broad categories of cultural property:
immovable and movable items of artistic, historic, scientific, or other cultural value, whether religious or secular, such as historic monuments, works of art, or scientific collections
premises used for housing movable cultural property, such as museums, archives and libraries
"centres containing monuments," such as designated areas in important historic cities or archaeological zones
A total of 114 countries are currently States Parties to the Hague Convention. Canada became a State Party to the Convention in 1999.
The Hague Convention complements two other UNESCO international conventions concerning the protection of cultural heritage, to which Canada is already a State Party: the Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property (1970), and the Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage (1972). The Convention and its two Protocols also reflect prohibitions of hostile acts against cultural objects, monuments, and sites that are contained in the Additional Protocols to the Geneva Conventions of 1949, to which Canada is a State Party.
