Publié avec l'appui de l'Office Fédéral de la Culture (OFC), de l'Académie Suisse des Sciences Humaines et Sociales (ASSH) et du Laboratoire Archéologie et Peuplement de l'Afrique (APA) de l'Université de Genève.
Summary
The African continent has been looted for many centuries, the nature, form and motivation varying with conquest, colonization, independence and globalization. Over the last decades, however, the destruction of archaeological sites and the illicit trade in cultural goods has reached such proportions that they seriously undermine African history and goes against human rights by compromising the development of populations. The exportation and repatriation of human remains also raise important ethical questions.
In response to this alarming phenomenon, laws have been passed, conventions ratified, ethical codes proclaimed and ethics commissions established. Local initiatives to protect heritage have been created, and the return of cultural objects and human remains organized. Yet the hoped-for positive benefits do not always materialize given that the situation is more complex than expected.
Not without reason, Switzerland is often criticized, along with other European, North American, Asian or Near East Countries, for acting as a hub of illicit trade of cultural goods. Antique dealers specializing in the “primitive arts”, auction houses, private museums and collectors benefit greatly from this situation. At the same time, Switzerland is very involved in the fields of development and respect for human rights, and acknowledged for the growing awareness and efficiency of its custom, police and justice institutions.
This book, following a conference held in Geneva, includes contributions by archaeologists, sociologists, museum curators and heritage managers, as well as legal experts and representatives of the police, and blends points of view from Africa, Europe and Switzerland. Apart the voice of researchers responsible for the cultural heritage of African Countries that denounce alarming situations, ethical reflections and update of legal aspects linked to heritage questions, several projects of international cooperation are presented, all of them trying to find innovative ways of acting in this very difficult context, and giving hope for the future.
Table of contents - Table des matières
Preface (English) — F. Lüth
Préface — F. Lüth Remerciements
INTRODUCTION
African Memory in Danger: Which Solutions?
Memoire africaine en péril: quelles solutions?
Anne Mayor
Part 1 — FROM EYEWITNESS ACCOUNTS…
DES TÉMOIGNAGES DE TERRAIN…
Butins et trophées de guerre: le trésor de Ségou
Abdoulaye Camara
Plundering of Archaeological Sites in Nigeria: Implications and Remedies
Musa Oluwaseyi Hambolu
Pillage et gestion du patrimoine culturel au Niger
Oumarou Amadou Idé
Part 2 — …T0 SOCIOLOGICAL AND ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS
…AUX RÉFLEXIONS SOCIOLOGIQUES ET DEONTOLOGIQUES
Rhétorique du matériel, corporéité et inégalité sociale. Une réflexion biopolitique sur les représentations du « phénomène du pillage » au Mali
Cristiana Panella
Repatriation Begins at Home: Violence Against South Africa’s Underclass, a Colonial Legacy that Needs Closure
Andrew B. Smith
Ethique et archéologie africaine: quelques pistes de réflexion
Eric Huysecom
Inset / Encadré
La valorisation du patrimoine africain par les datations scientifiques
Eric Huysecom
Part 3 - LAW IN THE SERVICE OF CULTURAL HERITAGE PROTECTION
LE DROIT AU SERVICE DE LA PROTECTION DU PATRIMOINE
Turning around Fortunes: Confronting Forces Plundering Africa’s Cultural Heritage
Dawson Munjeri
Legal Protection of Archaeological Objects
Marc Weber
La conservation du patrimoine africain au péril du droit
Vincent Négri
African Waters, Treasure Trove for International Entrepreneurs in the Antiquities Market
Thijs J. Maarleveld
Inset / Encadré
Le rôle d’INTERPOL dans la protection du patrimoine de l’Afrique
Stephane Théfo
Part 4 — COOPERATION PROJECTS, SUGGESTED SOLUTIONS
PROJETS DE COOPÉRATION, PISTES DE SOLUTIONS
Pillages et destructions — sauvetages et restitutions: leçons du passé et perspectives d’avenir en Afrique centrale
Pierre de Maret
Inset / Encadré
Mémoire africaine en péril: l’exemple de Kerma-Doukki Gel (Soudan)
Charles Bonnet
Patrimoine culturel et développement local en Afrique: tendances récentes de la coopération culturelle extérieure de la Commission européenne
Christoph Pelzer
La banque culturelle de Dimbal au Mali: un exemple de gestion locale du patrimoine
Anne Mayor, Daouda Keita et Boureima Tessougué
Coopération avec des musées en Afrique: un mal ou un bien?
Lorenz Homberger