The Labour government

THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT REFUSES TO RETURN THE MARBLES

Metope As we report below, the Labour government, from its first days in office, declared its opposition to the return of the Parthenon Marbles to Greece. Now the Culture, Media and Sport Committee of the House of Commons is to conduct an inquiry into the return of cultural property. Does this signify a change of heart by the government? Could this inquiry open the door to the return of the Parthenon Marbles? We very much hope so, but we won't be holding our breath.

Below we reprint the press release announcing the setting up of the inquiry. The parts which have particular importance for the case of the Parthenon Marbles have been highlighted in bold.

Text of the Press release from the Culture, Media and Sport Committee of the House of Commons.

20 October 1999
At its meeting today the Culture, Media and Sport Committee of the House of Commons decided in principle to conduct an inquiry into The Return of Cultural Property. The Committee is likely to begin taking oral evidence in February or early March 2000.

The terms of reference will be announced by the Committee in due course, probably early in the New Year. The inquiry will be concerned in part with measures to control the illicit trade in cultural property, but will also consider public policy towards the return of cultural property in other circumstances . Among the issues the Committee are likely to consider are:

The operational effect of European legislation relating to the return of cultural objects;
the advantages, disadvantages, requirements and consequences of UK ratification of the 1995 UNIDROIT Convention on the International Return of Stolen or Illegally Exported Cultural Objects and the 1970 UNESCO Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property; and
the policies of the Government and of publicly funded museums towards the accession, retention and de-accession of cultural property subject to claims for return .

The Committee reports to Parliament and makes recommendations for the Departure for Culture, Media and Sport and its associated public bodies. The Committee will decide in due course the extent to which the inquiry will examine the application of policies on return in relation to particular objects or items .

The Committee will issue a general invitation for written evidence in the New Year. Those who wish to receive further information about the inquiry when it is available or wish to draw the Committee's attention to matters which may be relevant to the inquiry should write to Colin Lee, Clerk of the Culture, Media and Sport Committee, Committee Office, House of Commons, 7 Millbank, London SW1P 3JA.

The current position of the British government

One of the first statements by the new Labour government was the announcement by the new Minister for Culture, Media and Sport Chris Smith that the Parthenon Marbles would not be returned to Greece. It has been obvious for some time that the policy of a previous Labour leader, Neil Kinnock, that the Marbles should be returned, was no longer supported by the Union Jack waving patriot Tony Blair.

However, an encouraging interview was given to the Daily Telegraph 12 months before the election by the then Labour Heritage spokesperson, Mark Fisher. He is now the Arts Minister. He was reported as saying then that a Labour government would reopen talks with Greece to discuss the return of the Parthenon Marbles to Athens.

Talks

According to Fisher, Greece had now met many of the British objections to their return. Standards in Greek museums had improved and atmospheric pollution in Athens had been reduced. Also, a museum was now planned for the Acropolis which would provide a suitable home for the Marbles. Mr Fisher is quoted by the Daily Telegraph as saying that "it would be foolish and internationally churlish not to hold proper talks with the Greek government."

Not so encouraging were his next comments. He claimed that the Labour Party was open minded about the outcome of the negotiations and that the British Museum had "a very good case as well as the Greeks". All this has now been superseded by the decision of ... who exactly? ....... that the Marbles will remain in the British Museum.

Policy review

When we were preparing this site at the beginning of 1997 we sent an email to the Policy Unit at Labour Party headquarters, asking for the Labour Party's position on the Parthenon Marbles. Their brief reply by email said:

"The Labour Party has no plans at present to return the Elgin (sic) Marbles, however this policy is currently under review and a statement is due out sometime in 1997."

Unfortunately, the Labour Party has never adopted a policy on the Parthenon Marbles. This leaves it up to the Labour Party leader to decide on policy. Two former leaders of the Labour Party, Michael Foot and Neil Kinnock, both supported the return of the Parthenon Marbles to Greece. Unfortunately, neither of them became Prime Minister.

The "New" Labour Party is even more reluctant to consult its members on policy than the "Old" Labour Party was. So there is little chance that Labour Party members will get the chance to express an opinion and form Labour Party policy. That means the decision will remain in the hands of the Labour leader.

Mark Fisher refuses to come clean

Parthenon Marbles activist Malcolm Wright recently wrote to the Arts Minister Mark Fisher in an attempt to clarify the government's position. Below we print his letter and the Government's reply, probably written by a civil servant.

Dear Mr Fisher,
I write regarding a subject that is very close to my heart -- and indeed it is a subject that I believe has been of considerable interest to you. That subject is the Elgin Collection in the British Museum.

In October 1996 you held an interview with William Stewart from Channel 4 for a Without Walls documentary on the return of the marbles. In that interview, you clearly stated that the opening of negotiations with Greece for the return of the marbles would be on the Labour Party agenda. In May of last year, supporters' hopes were dashed by Chris Smith's rash statement that the marbles were "now an integral part of the British Museum". However, if the sculptures are integral to anything, it is to the Parthenon -- and literally so, for many of the reliefs were carved into the building itself rather than attached as decoration.

So, clearly there appears to be a change in policy, but where did this come from? I urge the Labour Party to reconsider this rash decision. The issue is about to resurface with a new edition of a book that argues the justified return of the sculptures. Therefore, this subject will really not go away.

The Labour Party is looking to provide a world stage for the Millennium with the dome at Greenwich. Whilst 2000 is now too close to return the marbles, what if negotiations were opened in time for 2004 when Athens will hold the Olympics? Would it not be seen as a great gesture of forward thinking by the British Government to offer the return of such a disputed treasure? Imagine, the Olympics as a central stage to the world and Athens' most prized and known symbol (in fact a symbol of all democracy) -- the Parthenon once again whole with the sculptures being returned to the new, imminent museum at the base of the Acropolis.

Mr Fisher, I realise that there are many, many issues that the Labour Party must tackle in its first term, but this is a key to so many people -- and not just in Greece. If you have access to the Internet I urge you to take a look at http://www.uk.digiserve.com/mentor/marbles/ and gain an insight in to how the global population feels about this subject.

Finally, please can you spare me five minutes to let me know exactly where the Labour Party now stands on the issue. I would love to take the opportunity to meet you in person and discuss this matter. However, if this is too difficult I would be more than happy with a written response.

Thanks for your time in reading this letter and I hope to receive a response from you in the near future.

Kind regards,
Malcolm Wright.

The Ministry of Culture's reply

18 March 1998

Dear Mr Wright,
Thank you for your letter of 1 March addressed to the Arts Minister, Mr Fisher, about the Parthenon Sculptures. I have been asked to reply.

The Government recognises the importance of the history of Greek culture and thinking to all modern Europeans, and values the exchange of ideas and information. However, the Government has considered all the evidence, including the historical background to the acquisition of the Sculptures and the implications for the return of other objects to their countries of origin, and has concluded that the Sculptures should remain in the British Museum. The Sculptures were legally acquired and are vested in the Trustees of the British Museum, who are prevented under the Museum's governing statute from disposing of objects in the Museum's collections unless they are duplicates or worthless. The British Museum is a universal museum, transcending national boundaries, in the same genre as those in Paris and Berlin and the Sculptures are an integral part of the museum's whole collection. The Government believes that any general attempt to return legally acquired objects to their countries of origin could involve dispersing most of the world's great collections.

Mr Fisher did not say in 1996 that the Sculptures should be returned. He was pointing to a number of factors which are relevant to the decision and have to be taken into account. The Government has considered those factors but has nevertheless decided against the return of the Sculptures, given the British Museum's legal ownership of them and the very wide implications of returning legally acquired objects.

Yours sincerely,

Jason Ward

Protest at the Labour decision

This government reply says nothing new of course.

1) Legality
Even if we accept that the Turks had the right to dispose of the Parthenon Marbles, the question of whether Elgin legally acquired them is still open to dispute. We do not accept that they were legally acquired and we soon hope to make available an academic paper which proves they were not legally acquired.

2) Change the law.
While it is true that the British Museum is not permitted to dispose of its treasures, a change in the law would make it possible for the Marbles to be returned to Greece.

3) Only the Parthenon Marbles
Greece is not demanding any of its other treasures back and there is no evidence that the return of the Parthenon Marbles would lead to demands from all over the world for the return of other artefacts.

4) Replicas for the empty hall
Whether or not the Parthenon Marbles are an "integral part" of the British Museum's display, they could quite easily be replaced by a replica once the originals have been returned to Greece.

So all the government's objections are paper thin as usual.

What we want to know is:
1) When was the new policy adopted?
2) Who exactly took the decision?
3) What consultations took place before the decision was taken and who with?

Why not send an email to the Labour Party, protesting at their hasty rejection of the Greek claim to the Parthenon Marbles and explaining why the Parthenon Marbles should be returned to Greece. Go to our page "What you can do" for more details.

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