[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5703 Introduced in House (IH)]
113th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 5703
To protect and preserve international cultural property at risk of
destruction due to political instability, armed conflict, or natural or
other disasters, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
November 13, 2014
Mr. Engel (for himself and Mr. Smith of New Jersey) introduced the
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs,
and in addition to the Committees on Ways and Means, Armed Services,
and the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the
Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall
within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To protect and preserve international cultural property at risk of
destruction due to political instability, armed conflict, or natural or
other disasters, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Protect and Preserve International
Cultural Property Act''.
SEC. 2. DEFINITION.
In this Act:
(1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term
``appropriate congressional committees'' means the Committee on
Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives and the
Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate.
(2) Cultural property.--The term ``cultural property'' has
the meaning given in Article 1(a)-1(c) of the Hague Convention
for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed
Conflict, concluded at The Hague on May 14, 1954 (Treaty Doc.
106-1(A)).
SEC. 3. FINDINGS AND STATEMENT OF POLICY.
(a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
(1) Protecting international cultural property is a vital
part of United States cultural diplomacy, showing the respect
of the United States for other cultures and the common heritage
of humanity.
(2) International cultural property has been lost, damaged,
or destroyed due to political instability, armed conflict,
natural disasters, and other threats.
(3) In Egypt, recent political instability has led to the
ransacking of its museums, resulting in the destruction of
countless ancient artifacts that will forever leave gaps in
humanity's record of the ancient Egyptian civilization.
(4) In Iraq, after the fall of Saddam Hussein, thieves
looted the Iraq Museum in Baghdad, resulting in the loss of
approximately 15,000 items. These included ancient amulets,
sculptures, ivories, and cylinder seals. Many of these items
remain unrecovered.
(5) In Syria, the ongoing civil war has resulted in the
shelling of medieval cities, damage to five UNESCO World
Heritage Sites, and the looting of museums and archaeological
sites. Archaeological and historic sites and artifacts in Syria
date back more than six millennia and include some of the
earliest examples of writing.
(6) In Iraq and Syria, the militant group ISIS/ISIL has
destroyed cultural sites and artifacts, such as the Tomb of
Jonah in July 2014, in an effort to eradicate ethnic and
religious minorities from contested territories. Concurrently,
cultural antiquities that escape demolition are looted and
illicitly trafficked to help fund ISIS/ISIL's militant
operations.
(7) In Mali, the Al-Qaeda affiliated terrorist group Ansar
Dine destroyed tombs and shrines in the ancient city of
Timbuktu--a major center for trade, scholarship, and Islam in
the 15th and 16th centuries--and threatened collections of
ancient manuscripts.
(8) In Afghanistan, the Taliban decreed that the Bamiyan
Buddhas, ancient statues carved into a cliff side in central
Afghanistan, were to be destroyed. In 2001 the Taliban carried
out their threat and destroyed the statues, leading to
worldwide condemnation.
(9) In Cambodia, following the Khmer Rouge's seizure of
power in 1975 the Khmer Rouge systematically destroyed many of
Cambodia's Buddhist temples, desecrated statues, and destroyed
Buddhist literature. The Khmer Rouge also destroyed mosques and
nearly every Catholic church existing in the country.
(10) In China, during the Cultural Revolution much of
China's antiques were destroyed, including a large portion of
old Beijing. Chinese authorities are now attempting to rebuild
portions of China's lost architectural heritage.
(11) In Haiti, the 2010 earthquake destroyed art,
artifacts, and archives important to the people of Haiti, and
partially destroyed the 17th century Haitian city of Jacmel.
(12) The 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami not only
affected eleven countries, causing massive loss of life, but
also damaged or destroyed libraries, archives, and UNESCO World
Heritage Sites such as the Mahabalipuram in India, the Sun
Temple of Koranak on the Bay of Bengal, and the Old Town of
Galle and its Fortifications in Sri Lanka.
(13) The destruction of these and other cultural properties
represents an irreparable loss of humanity's common cultural
heritage and is therefore a loss for all Americans.
(14) The United States Armed Forces have played important
roles in preserving and protecting cultural property. On June
23, 1943, President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the
American Commission for the Protection and Salvage of Artistic
and Historic Monuments in War Areas to provide expert advice to
the military on the protection of cultural property. The
Commission formed Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives (MFAA)
teams which became part of the Civil Affairs Division of
Military Government Section of the Allied armies. The
individuals serving in the MFAA were known as the ``Monuments
Men'' and have been credited with securing, cataloguing, and
returning hundreds of thousands works of art stolen by the
Nazis during World War II.
(15) The U.S. Committee of the Blue Shield was founded in
2006 to support the implementation of the 1954 Hague Convention
for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed
Conflict and to coordinate with the United States military,
other branches of the United States Government, and other
cultural heritage nongovernmental organizations in preserving
international cultural property threatened by political
instability, armed conflict, natural, or other disasters.
(b) Statement of Policy.--It shall be the policy of the United
States to--
(1) protect and preserve international cultural property at
risk of destruction due to political instability, armed
conflict, or natural or other disasters;
(2) protect international cultural property pursuant to its
obligations under the 1954 Hague Convention for the Protection
of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict and
customary international law in all conflicts to which the
United States is a party;
(3) prevent, in accordance with existing laws, importation
of cultural property pillaged, looted, or stolen during
political instability, armed conflict, or natural or other
disasters; and
(4) ensure that existing laws and regulations, including
import restrictions imposed through the Office of Foreign Asset
Control (OFAC) of the Department of the Treasury, are fully
implemented to prevent the trafficking in stolen or looted
cultural property.
SEC. 4. WHITE HOUSE COORDINATOR FOR INTERNATIONAL CULTURAL PROPERTY
PROTECTION.
The President shall appoint a White House Coordinator for
International Cultural Property Protection. The Coordinator shall--
(1) coordinate and promote efforts to address international
cultural property protection activities that involve multiple
Federal agencies, including diplomatic activities, military
activities, law enforcement activities, import restrictions,
and the work of the Cultural Antiquities Task Force established
pursuant to the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2004 (Public
Law 108-199);
(2) submit to the appropriate congressional committees an
annual report on interagency efforts to protect international
cultural property based on information required under section 5
of this Act;
(3) provide policy recommendations, if necessary;
(4) resolve interagency differences in a timely, efficient,
and effective manner; and
(5) work and consult with domestic and international actors
such as foreign governments, nongovernmental organizations,
museums, educational institutions, research institutions, and
the U.S. Committee of the Blue Shield on efforts to promote and
protect international cultural property.
SEC. 5. INFORMATION ON ACTIVITIES TO PROTECT INTERNATIONAL CULTURAL
PROPERTY.
(a) Information on Activities of the Department of State To Protect
International Cultural Property.--The Secretary of State shall submit
to the White House Coordinator for International Cultural Property
Protection information on efforts of the Department of State to protect
international cultural property, including--
(1) activities undertaken pursuant to the Hague Convention
for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed
Conflict, including--
(A) procedures the Department has instituted to
protect international cultural property at risk of
destruction due to political instability, armed
conflict, or natural or other disasters; and
(B) actions the Department has taken to protect
international cultural property in conflicts to which
the United States is a party; and
(2) actions the Department has taken to protect
international cultural property pursuant to other cultural
property protection statutes, international agreements, or
policies.
(b) Information on Activities of USAID To Protect International
Cultural Property.--The Administrator of the United States Agency for
International Development (USAID) shall submit to the White House
Coordinator for International Cultural Property Protection information
on efforts of USAID to protect international cultural property,
including activities and coordination with other Federal agencies,
international organizations, and nongovernmental organizations
regarding the protection of international cultural property at risk of
destruction due to political unrest, armed conflict, natural or other
disasters, and USAID development programs.
(c) Information on Activities of the Department of Defense To
Protect International Cultural Property.--The Secretary of Defense
shall submit to the White House Coordinator for International Cultural
Property Protection information on efforts of the Department of Defense
to protect international cultural property, including activities
undertaken pursuant to the Hague Convention for the Protection of
Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict, other cultural
protection statutes, and international agreements, including--
(1) directives, policies, and regulations the Department
has instituted to protect international cultural property at
risk of destruction due to political instability, armed
conflict, or natural or other disasters; and
(2) actions the Department has taken to protect
international cultural property, including actions to avoid
damage to cultural property through construction activities
abroad.
(d) Information on Activities of the Department of Justice To
Protect International Cultural Property.--The Attorney General, in
consultation with the Secretary of Homeland Security, shall submit to
the White House Coordinator for International Cultural Property
Protection information on efforts of the Department of Justice to
protect both international cultural property and international cultural
property located in, or attempted to be imported into, the United
States, including activities undertaken pursuant to statutes and
international agreements. Such information shall include the--
(1) statutes and regulations the Department has employed in
criminal, civil, and civil forfeiture actions to prevent and
interdict trafficking in stolen and smuggled cultural property,
including investigations into transnational organized crime;
and
(2) actions the Department has taken in order to ensure the
consistent and effective application of law in cases relating
to both international cultural property and international
cultural property located in, or attempted to be imported into,
the United States.
SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION FOR FEDERAL AGENCIES TO ENGAGE IN INTERNATIONAL
CULTURAL PROPERTY PROTECTION ACTIVITIES WITH THE
SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION.
(a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the
Department of State, the Department of Defense, USAID, the Department
of Homeland Security, the Department of Justice, the Department of the
Interior, the National Archives, the National Science Foundation, and
any other agency that is involved in international cultural property
protection activities are authorized to enter into agreements or
memoranda of understanding with the Smithsonian Institution to
temporarily engage personnel from the Smithsonian Institution for the
purposes of furthering such international cultural property protection
activities.
(b) Salaries and Expenses.--The Federal agencies or departments
specified in subsection (a) are authorized to pay the salaries and
expenses of personnel from the Smithsonian Institution to assist such
agencies or departments in their international cultural property
protection activities, including in support of military or diplomatic
missions and law enforcement efforts.
SEC. 7. GRANTMAKING AUTHORIZATION FOR THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR
INTERNATIONAL CULTURAL PROPERTY PROTECTION ACTIVITIES.
The Secretary of State is authorized to make grants to private
individuals or organizations for the purposes of international cultural
property protection activities in areas at risk of destruction due to
political instability, armed conflict, or natural or other disasters.
SEC. 8. EMERGENCY PROTECTION FOR SYRIAN CULTURAL PROPERTY.
(a) Presidential Determination.--Notwithstanding subsection (b) of
section 304 of the Convention on the Cultural Property Implementation
Act (19 U.S.C. 2603) (relating to a Presidential determination that an
emergency condition applies with respect to any archaeological or
ethnological material of any State Party to the Convention), the
President shall apply the import restrictions referred to in such
section 304 with respect to any archaeological or ethnological material
of Syria as if Syria were a State Party to such Convention, except that
subsection (c) of such section 304 shall not apply. Such import
restrictions shall take effect not later than 60 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act.
(b) Definitions.--In this section--
(1) the term ``archaeological or ethnological material of
Syria'' means cultural property of Syria and other items of
archaeological, historical, cultural, rare scientific, or
religious importance unlawfully removed from Syria on or after
August 18, 2011; and
(2) the term ``State Party'' has the meaning given such
term in section 302 of the Convention on the Cultural Property
Implementation Act (19 U.S.C. 2601).
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