Statement by the International Committee of the Blue Shield on the
international support pledged for the reconstruction of the Cultural
Heritage in Afghanistan.



The situation in Afghanistan has been dramatic in many respects. Many people
have suffered severely.

It has also been a difficult time for Afghanistan's cultural heritage. All
of us were stunned into speechlessness when we received the news of the
destruction of the famous Bamiyan Buddhas.

But this was not the only harm done to the Afghan heritage. Many monuments
were damaged, documents disappeared and the illicit traffic of cultural
artifacts rampant.
The National Museum was already destroyed a long time ago and much of its
collection stolen or looted.

The situation has certainly changed for the better now, but it is still
dramatic. Shocked by the events many people, organisations and countries
pledged assistance.

Active people from Afghanistan itself and from other countries, full of hope
to rebuild the country have decided to roll up their sleeves and start the
Herculean task of the reconstruction of the national heritage.

The National Museum appeared among the priorities. The building needs to be
rehabilitated, the staff trained, the inventory reconstituted and eventually
lost collections brought home.

Not only the National Museum, but various other monuments, sites libraries
and archives need to be reconstructed.

Notwithstanding the fact that several organisations and individuals are
already actively supporting the Afghan people, the International Committee
of the Blue Shield (ICBS) notes with distress that essential pledges made by
governments have not yet been honored. The National Museum for instance can
still not function at a basic level.

Hence the ICBS urges all governments that have made those pledges to honor
them as soon as possible so that the reconstruction of Afghanistan also
includes its valuable cultural heritage.


More information about the Blue Shield available at:
http://icom.museum/emergency.html
or http://www.ifla.org/blueshield.htm

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