During its General Assembly in New York this March, the UN approved the new Arms Trade Treaty (ATT). This was quite a break-through in international diplomacy and the result of negotiations started in 2006. After several intermediate steps, the ATT text was finalized March 28, 2013. It was passed by the UN General Assembly on April 2 and opened for signatures on June 3.  So far 77 countries have signed it and 2 countries have ratified it. 

 From the very beginning, ICOMAM - as the representative of the entire museum sector (more specifically the arms and military museums) – has tried to draw attention to the heritage we safeguard and the problems with some parts of the ATT.

 The text, on the negotiating table before finalization of March 2013, included severe restrictions on and numerous administrative requirements for the transportation, selling and buying of weapons, in an attempt to control and restrain the international arms trade. This is a noble cause, which we, at ICOMAM, of course also wish to support and defend. However, the texts did not distinguish between historic heritage arms (specifically, firearms and portable weapons prior to 1899, but also the very first tanks and airplanes) and contemporary armament, weapons of war and weapons systems.

 From the very start of negotiations, ICOMAM attempted to draw the attention of ATT negotiators to the importance of this historic heritage. This was important to the many museums worldwide who not only manage these objects in their collections, but who study them, put them on display in exhibitions and permanent galleries, transport them, purchase them or exchange them. We quite rightly feared that the new provisions would interfere with normal museum activities and would confront the institutions with additional financial and administrative burdens. This would eventually impede international usage of this specific heritage.

 Moreover, we dread measures aiming at the conversion of historic heritage weapons, which would inevitably lead to permanent damage of the objects. I have to stress that these rules and regulations would not only interfere with the workings of military and weapons museums, but would also encumber other important collections. These include the Louvre, the MET, the Rijksmuseum, the Hermitage, the Victoria & Albert, etc., as these world-famous museums all safeguard historic weapons collections and collaborate in international exhibitions and research programs.

 In November 2012, NEMO had already highlighted ICOMAM’s actions. Thanks to intense lobbying by ICOMAM, but also thanks to the support provided by ICOM (e.g. in a letter of January 2013 by ICOM’s chairman and director general addressed to ambassador Peter Woolcott, president of the ATT Conference, drawing attention to possible side-effects of the ATT) people started taking notice and asked for changes in the original text. Our effective participation in the New York negotiations in March 2013 seem to have led to language which we feel allows exceptions to the onerous requirements in the text.

 Ambassador Woolcott deliberately left the provisions, which we feel that we specifically and successfully lobbied for, slightly ambiguous. This because there was concern that there should not be overt exceptions to the treaty.  It has been universally admitted that the ATT contains numerous ambiguous provisions and the interpretation of these provision is up to the various state parties as they adopt the ATT.  These involve Article 2 Section 3 of the ATT, but I will not go into the specifics of these provisions now.

 You will understand that ICOMAM, with the support provided by ICOM, and through intense lobbying, protected the entire museum sector against additional limits, costs and administration. You can read more on the subject in the last issue of our Magazine, by downloading it through the following link: www.klm-mra.be/icomam .

 However, the ATT has yet to be ratified by enough nations in order to come into effect. As these countries ratify the ATT it is important that they state what their understanding of certain provisions are.

 Therefore, it is important to draw the attention of the different national representatives to the necessity of requesting the proper interpretations of certain provisions of the ATT (exceptions) with regards to historic arms heritage as their countries adopt the ATT. This would lift a heavy burden off museums.

 Experience teaches us that alertness is of the essence in cases such as these, as we have to act now in order to avoid complications and unforeseen side effects later on.

 Cultural commodities, which include historic arms, are to be protected as much as possible. Historic weapons are to be studied and are to be seen as witnesses of times past, as a true source of knowledge and are therefore not to be hampered by unnecessary restrictions and limitations.

 

___________

Piet de Gryse
Chairman of ICOMAM - Président de l'ICOMAM
Conservator - Conservateur
Koninklijk Legermuseum - Musée royal de l'armée
Jubelpark 3 - 3, Parc du Cinquantenaire
B-1000 Brussels - Belgium
+32 27 37 7900
+32 475 84 5017







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