Sending 189 artefacts to France stalled by HC

The High Court (HC) yesterday stalled the sending of 189 archaeological artefacts to France, as the court found irregularities in the agreement between the Ministry of Cultural Affairs and the government of France to send the invaluable Bangladeshi items to an exhibition at a French museum.
Intelligence agencies had intervened in preventing the artefacts from being flown out, when they stopped consignment at Zia International Airport on September 15.
The HC yesterday issued a stay order on a writ petition filed by MA Kamal Yuree on September 16.
The court asked the government to produce necessary documents in support of its decision to sign the agreement with the French government on July 31.
Under the agreement, signed by the cultural ministry's secretary Abdul Howk Chowdhury and French Ambassador Jacque Andre Costilhes, Bangladesh was supposed to send 189 ancient relics dating back to 1200 years to the French Guimet Museum for an exhibition titled "Sonar Bangla" scheduled to start on October 24.
The counsel for the petitioners, Tania Amir, told The Daily Star last night that the agreement signed by the two governments is not enough to send the invaluable artefacts, and that the government was violating a number of laws.
She said the government had created a Board of Trustees under the National Museum Ordinance, 1983, which comprises experts on archaeological matters and are supposed to take the decision on whether to send the artefacts.
As such, Amir adds, the secretary does not have the authority to decide to send the artefacts according to section eight of the ordinance.
Amir also says that under section 22 of the Department of Archaeology Act, 1958 a licence is required to export these age-old items, therefore, the agreement is inadequate to send the antiques.
She adds, these items would not even qualify for a licence as the Act states that if the items are unique they cannot be sent abroad, and a replica has to be sent instead.
The counsel also says that as 24 of the artefacts are from the Barind Museum, the government does not have the authority to send them.
While Yuree, along with a number of experts and intellectuals, said that the insurance for the artefacts were farcically low and unacceptable.
Moreover, a protocol officer from the Culture Ministry, Abdul Hannan Howlader, who was supposed to accompany the artefacts was previously arrested for fraudulent activities regarding ancient relics.