17 June 2014

Blue Shield is appalled by the great suffering and loss of life in the current fighting in Iraq and expresses great concern about the safety of Iraq’s invaluable cultural and historical heritage.

Blue Shield urges all armed combatants to observe the international laws that protect cultural heritage and to act responsibly, safeguarding the testimony of Iraq’s unique history for the enrichment of future generations.

Iraq is home to some of the world’s oldest and most significant archaeological and cultural sites. Iraq has three UNESCO World Heritage sites and twelve tentative World Heritage sites. Iraq’s museums, particularly the national museum in Baghdad and the regional museum in Mosul, are repositories for countless irreplaceable artefacts that record this unique history.

In the event of international military action, Blue Shield calls on any participating countries to be mindful of obligations under the 1954 Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict and its two Protocols; the 1972 UNESCO Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage; the additional Protocols to the Geneva Conventions; and customary international law to avoid targeting cultural heritage sites and repositories and to minimize collateral damage to cultural heritage wherever possible.

Iraq ratified the 1954 Hague Convention and its First Protocol in 1967, thereby acknowledging and committing to the protection and preservation of cultural heritage in the case of armed conflict. Blue Shield urges the international community to help Iraq fulfil its obligations to this Convention and also urges all parties to the conflict to abide by Iraq’s Antiquities Law, Law Number 55 of 2002.

Blue Shield is concerned that archaeological and cultural objects may be removed from museums, libraries, archives, and archaeological sites and placed on the illegal international art market. The actions of all governments in preserving this heritage should be consistent with the terms and spirit of the 1970 UNESCO Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property, of which there are 127 States Parties. Blue Shield implores auction houses and other art outlets to ensure that no illegally exported material is sold.

27 February 2014

Following the civil conflict that has been shaking the Ukraine, the Blue Shield wishes to express its deep concern regarding the safeguarding and protection of the country’s invaluable cultural and historical heritage, as well as the institutions that house them and the people that care for them.

Ukraine’s museums, libraries and documentary heritage, monuments, churches and monasteries are under risk of threat from looting and destruction. The international heritage community wishes to warn of the potential harm that cultural property may suffer.

Reports regarding damages endured by the Kiev History Museum have given the Blue Shield and its members reasons for concern. The destruction of monuments linked to the political history of Ukraine is also at the forefront of the cultural community’s concerns. The Blue Shield urges the Ukrainian government to investigate the incident which occurred in the Kiev History Museum’s storage rooms on the nights of 18 and 19 February 2014, and to allocate protected storage space for particularly threatened collections.

Mindful of the importance of protecting the historical, artistic and scientific heritage of Ukraine, the Blue Shield welcomes the recent creation of a Blue Shield National Committee for Ukraine. This Blue Shield Committee is currently hard at work protecting all national monuments, regardless of their political or social origins. The Blue Shield strongly supports the Ukrainian National Committee’s initiative to protect the country’s rich range of cultural heritage and its efforts to coordinate and store information on the cultural assets.

Ukraine has been a State Party to the 1954 Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict and its first Protocol since their ratification on 6 February 1957. Ukraine is also a State Party to the 1972 Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage since its ratification on 12 October 1988.

Ukraine’s 2004 International Humanitarian Law Manual clearly states that personnel responsible for the defence and protection of cultural property are “protected under international humanitarian law” and that directing attacks against such persons or “clearly identifiable cultural property” constitutes “a serious violation of international humanitarian law”. Cultural property is clearly defined within the manual as being “objects of great importance to the cultural heritage of peoples [and] that play an important role in their spiritual life.” These include, among others, works of art and religious or secular monuments.

The ratified international conventions, Ukraine’s specific legislation, and customary international law impose on nations the obligation to protect their cultural heritage in times of armed conflict. The Blue Shield calls on all parties concerned to fulfil these obligations and to protect the outstanding cultural heritage sites and repositories located within Ukraine.
The Blue Shield’s mission is to work to protect the world’s cultural heritage threatened by armed conflict, natural and human-made disasters. For this reason it places the expertise and network of its member organisations at the disposal of their colleagues working in Ukraine to support their work in protecting the country’s heritage, and if necessary, in assessing for subsequent recovery, restoration, and repair measures.

January 2014

The UNOCHA Asia-Pacific Regional Guidelines For The Use Of Foreign Military Assets In Natural Disaster Response Operations are a reference guide for Member States who plan and execute foreign military support for international disaster response, as well as humanitarian entities, in order to establish the basic framework for the effective and efficient use of foreign military assets in international disaster response operations in support of an Affected State[s] in the Asia-Pacific region.

March 2012

In the last three years Australia has witnessed unprecedented floods, cyclones and bushfires and destruction from the forces of nature is becoming more frequent and with greater consequences.

Our cultural heritage is precious to us as individuals, as local communities, as regions and as a nation. Cultural heritage is very much about those things which have meaning for people and communities – those things which demonstrate their past, whether they be books and documents, buildings, cultural landscapes, archaeological sites or museum objects. A community’s cultural heritage is a fundamental part of its way of life, history, traditions, civilization and identity. It contributes substantially to a community’s long-term economic sustainability, stability and welfare and provides the strength of will for people to live, recover and grow after trauma. There are many tales of appreciation and joy when affected people have recovered even small, but precious, objects often holding sole memories and important associations.

While understanding that the highest priorities must be accorded to humanitarian activities following a disaster, of significant concern also is the fate of cultural heritage. A delay in an appropriate emergency response inevitably leads to irreparable damage, diminished or complete loss of recovery capacity of cultural items, ongoing physical degradation and potential looting. Where regional networks of cultural institutions exist they have been be very effective in providing timely and effective aid to assist local and remote communities to repatriate and rehabilitate cultural items affected in a disaster.

For its MayDay 2012 campaign, Blue Shield Australia is organising a series of free regional workshops around Australia, to promote local co-operative agreements around disaster preparedness, planning, response and recovery. The aim of these workshops is to build networks, including emergency response personnel, where they do not exist presently and to examine existing network models so that they may be adapted for adoption in other regions.

The workshops are free but places are limited, so early registration is advised. We hope to see you on the day. Please see the flyer for more information or contact Donna McDowell by phone 1300 313 443 or email donna@thelibraryagency.org.au

More details are available in the attachments. MediaRelease.BSA.Disaster.Recovery.Workshops.2012 Flyer.BSA.Disaster.Recovery.Workshops.2012

June 2012

The Prince Claus Fund welcomes project proposals that focus on providing first aid to heritage or cultural goods that have been damaged by natural disaster or conflict in the year 2012. Also eligible for funding under this call are measures to protect cultural heritage that is under imminent threat of destruction.

Through its Cultural Emergency Response (CER) programme, the Prince Claus Fund provides first aid to stabilise a situation until a longer term solution can be found. CER supports quick actions to rescue cultural heritage, aims to prevent further damage and carries out basic repairs. CER implements its cultural emergency relief actions in direct cooperation with local partners in the affected communities.

The deadline for the submission of projects is the 1st of October 2012.

Proposals received after this date shall be processed in 2013. Given the emergency character of the work we would like to ask you to send in proposals as soon as possible. The form that needs to be filled out to submit a proposal can be found here: http://www.princeclausfund.org/en/programmes/about-cultural-emergency-response

May 2012

For its MayDay 2012 campaign, Blue Shield Australia is organising a series of free regional workshops around Australia, to promote local co-operative agreements around disaster preparedness, planning, response and recovery.

Please read our media release MediaRelease.BSA.Disaster.Recovery.Workshops.2012

The aim of these workshops is to build networks, including emergency response personnel, where they do not exist presently and to examine existing network models so that they may be adapted for adoption in other regions.

More information about the workshops is available here Flyer.BSA.Disaster.Recovery.Workshops.2012

April 2012

Australian & New Zealand Disaster and Emergency Management Conference
The Australian & New Zealand Disaster and Emergency Management Conference will provide a forum to examine the issues surrounding natural and man-made hazards. The conference will be held in Brisbane, 16 – 18 April 2012.

More information is available at http://anzdmc.com.au/

June 2012

The need for a New Zealand branch of Blue Shield has been highlighted by the Christchurch earthquakes. A group of 14 organisations across the culture and heritage sector as well as the Archives and Records Association of New Zealand (ARANZ) and the Ministry of Civil Defence and Emergency Management met for an initial meeting in November 2011 and discussed the benefits of setting up Blue Shield in New Zealand.

June 2011

The articles on pages 3 and 4 of Museum and Gallery Services Queensland’s (M&GSQ) quarterly publication M&GSQ_Source_Volume7_Number2_Winter2011 feature recognition of Christine Ianna and Lydia Egunnike’s work during Queensland’s natural disasters at the the recent Queensland Disaster Heroes ceremonies held across the State as a part of Queensland Week.

Keep up to date with their work at http://www.magsq.com.au/

8 June 2011

Blue Shield Australia has been awarded a grant by the Office of the Arts, though the Distributed National Collections program.

Blue Shield Australia has been active in promoting cultural heritage risk preparedness in Australia since its inception in 2005.

In awarding the funding the Hon Simon Crean MP, Minister for Regional Australia, Regional Development and Local Government in Australia’s Federal Government, stated that given the recent spate of natural disasters in Australia the project is both timely and important. The project BSA: Building cultural heritage resilience in regional Australia. Please see the media release for more information.