The Cabinet of Ministers has approved the appointment of a dedicated committee to pursue the return of Sri Lankan cultural artefacts held overseas, with particular focus on items removed during the colonial period.
The decision was announced at Tuesday’s post-Cabinet briefing by Cabinet spokesman Minister Nalinda Jayatissa, on a proposal submitted by the Minister of Buddha Sasana, Religious and Cultural Affairs.
The committee will be chaired by the Additional Secretary (Cultural Promotion and Foreign Affairs) of the Ministry of Buddha Sasana, Religious and Cultural Affairs. Daily Mirror reports it will maintain direct communication with the relevant foreign authorities and advise the government on the recovery process.
The legal basis
Jayatissa grounded the move in the 1970 UNESCO Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property.
“Under Articles 7 and 13 of the 1970 UNESCO Convention … a state has the right to request the return of cultural property belonging to it that is currently held abroad,” he said.
Asked by journalists about Sri Lankan antiquities in the British Museum in London, and about inquiries made in 2008, Jayatissa said the committee’s remit is not limited to any one institution.
“Antiquities taken from our country across various periods when we were subjugated are held in various museums and institutions around the world. This committee was appointed specifically to take action regarding all of them,” he said.
He added that historical documents also fall within the committee’s scope, and that all items of antique and historical value that could realistically be retrieved will be considered.
The Dutch precedent
Both outlets tie the decision to the returns negotiated with the Netherlands. EconomyNext reports that six artefacts were returned in 2023 — the cannon of the Lewke Disawe from the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, two further large cannons, two kastane swords and a knife.
Daily Mirror describes the Lewke Disawa gun as having been scheduled for return in 2023 as the first phase of the restoration programme, and says the government now considers a dedicated steering committee necessary to coordinate further discussions with the Dutch side and other parties.
A note on the name
The two outlets render the committee’s title differently in English. Daily Mirror calls it the “Committee for the Restoration of Sri Lankan Cultural Heritage in Foreign Possessions”; EconomyNext gives it as the “Committee for the Repatriation of Sri Lankan Cultural Heritage Held Abroad”. These appear to be two translations of the same body rather than two committees.
Ada Derana also reported the decision, but its site was unreachable at the time of writing and it is not cited here.
