To date, the 1970 Convention has been ratified by146 states.
Ratification of the Convention by countries which are or have been hubs for illicit trafficking allows for joint efforts to combat illicit trafficking, which is part of the dynamic of international cooperation specific to UNESCO and the 1970 Convention.
The Convention entered into force on 24 April 1972 with respect to States which deposited their instruments of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession on or before 24 January 1972. The Convention enters into force three months after a Statedeposits its instrument of ratification, acceptance or accession.
States Parties should:
- Adopt protection measures in their territories (art. 5) :
elaborate draft appropriate national legislation
establish national services for the protection of cultural heritage
promote museums, libraries, archives
establish national inventories
encourage adoption of codes of conduct for dealers in cultural property
implement educational programmes to develop respect for cultural heritage
- Control movement of cultural property (art. 6 to 9) :
introduce a system of export certificates
prohibit the export of cultural property unless it is accompanied by an export certificate
prevent museums from buying objects exported from another State Party without an export certificate
prohibit the import of objects stolen from museums, religious institutions or public monuments
penal sanctions to be imposed on any person contravening these prohibitions
emergency import bans may be adopted when the cultural heritage of a State party is seriously endangered by intense looting of archaeological and ethnological artefacts (Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, etc.)
require art dealers to maintain a register of the exact origin of each object they purchase
- Return stolen cultural property (art. 7):
at the request of the State Party of origin, another State Party will seize and return cultural property on its territory stolen from a museum, religious institution or public monument
the request has to be made through diplomatic channels
the object has to be documented as being part of the inventory of the institution the requesting
State has to pay just compensation to an owner who has purchased the object in good faith or holds a title which is valid according to national law
the requesting State has to provide all the evidence to support its claim
