Asia
Embargoes
Particular attention should be paid to the EU-wide rules on cultural items from Syria and Iraq, which impose a ban on imports and exports of cultural items into and out of both countries and on dealing in such items. This comprehensive ban does not apply to cultural items originating from Syria if it can be shown that they were exported from Syria prior to 9 May 2011, whereby the obligation to furnish evidence lies with the owner of the relevant cultural item. Similar rules apply to cultural items from Iraq; in this caseA significant number of cultural objects originating from East Asian countries are at particular risk. Details of the relevant categories of objects can be found in the “Red Lists” maintained by the International Council of Museums (ICOM). The Red List for Iraq was redrafted by ICOM in 2015 on the basis of the first version published in 2003. It is available online in multiple languages (English, Arabic, French, German and Turkish). An ICOM Red List for Syria has been available since 2014 in English, French, Arabic, German and Turkish. Red Lists are also available for Afghanistan, China, Cambodia and Libya., the cultural items must have been exported prior to 6 August 1990, and the obligation to furnish evidence again lies with the owner. Under the German Foreign Trade and Payments Act (Außenwirtschaftsgesetz, AWG), an infringement of these bans constitutes at least an administrative offence and potentially a criminal offence.
A significant number of cultural objects originating from East Asian countries are at particular risk. Details of the relevant categories of objects can be found in the “Red Lists” maintained by the International Council of Museums (ICOM). The Red List for Iraq was redrafted by ICOM in 2015 on the basis of the first version published in 2003. It is available online in multiple languages (English, Arabic, French, German and Turkish). An ICOM Red List for Syria has been available since 2014 in English, French, Arabic, German and Turkish. Red Lists are also available for Afghanistan, China, Cambodia and Libya.
Links are provided below to information about the regulations governing exports from all of the Asian countries that are signatory states to the 1970 UNESCO Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property, as well as certain countries which are not signatory states but which play a key role as tourist destinations or whose cultural property is at particular risk (Israel, Malaysia, Thailand); this information is updated on a regular basis.
In some cases, information on the protection of movable cultural property is also available via ICHCAP (International Information and Networking Centre for Intangible Cultural Heritage in the Asia-Pacific Region under the auspices of UNESCO).
