Cultural heritage protection in Switzerland

The Swiss Agency for the Protection of Cultural Property defines measures to protect cultural property against damage, destruction, theft and loss. For this purpose, a legal basis has been established at the national level and international agreements have been made that oblige Switzerland to respect and support the protection of cultural property not only on its own territory but also on the sovereign territory of other state parties.

The history of the protection of cultural property in its current form began with the massive destruction of cultural property during the Second World War. When the UN was founded in 1945, the UNESCO was established as one of the 17 special agencies of the United Nations dealing with questions relating to education, science and culture. Even today, it continues to be the ‘mother organisation’ for international protection of cultural property. Thus, UNESCO also took the lead when in 1954 the Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict (HAC) was consolidated by international law. Switzerland joined the HAC 1962 and ratified the ‘Protocol to the Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict 1954’ (Second Protocol) in 2004, which augments the HAC since 1999.

According to Art. 1 of the Hague Convention of 14 May 1954 for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict (HAC), cultural property is defined as follows:

such as monuments of architecture, art or history, whether religious or secular; archaeological sites; groups of buildings which, as a whole, are of historical or artistic interest; works of art; manuscripts, books and other objects of artistic, historical or archaeological interest; as well as scientific collections and important collections of books or archives or of reproductions of the property defined above

such as museums, large libraries and depositories of archives, and refuges intended to shelter, in the event of armed conflicts, the movable cultural property defined above.

i.e. locations with a large amount of cultural property as defined in above paragraphs.

The interests of the protection of cultural heritage are acknowledged at federal, cantonal and communal levels. In addition, several cultural institutions and associations as well as private entities are committed to the preservation and protection of Swiss cultural assets. At the federal level the Section for the Protection of Cultural Property has the lead. It is part of the Federal Office for Civil Protection (Federal Department of Defence, Civil Protection and Sport DDPS) – The section serves as reference point for all questions relating to the protection of cultural property in Switzerland. Its main tasks include the support and promotion of the cantons in carrying out the prescribed measures, the issue of directives and guidelines for specialist training, training of top PCP cadre within the context of civil defence, the funding of non-constructional measures to safeguard cultural assets of national or regional importance and the establishment and consolidation of contacts with domestic and foreign partner organisations. The Federal Committee for the Protection of Cultural Property (formerly the Swiss Committee for the Protection of Cultural Property) supports the DDPS and the Federal Office for Civil Protection FOCP as an advisory body. Delegates from the departments of the federal administration, cantonal offices (monument conservation and archaeology) and cultural institutions (archives, museums and libraries) are members of this extra-parliamentary committee. They are nominated by the Federal Council. The relevant contacts for questions relating to the protection of cultural property in the cantons are the cantonal officers for the protection of cultural property. They are either employed by the cantonal cultural division – usually by the historic monuments section – or by the Federal Office for Civil Protection. As specialist agencies, the historic monuments sections bring in the expertise for dealing with objects, while the civil defence organisation provides the human resources for local and regional operations. Apart from these authorities, Switzerland has numerous other partners and institutions that contribute to the preservation of its cultural heritage: the cultural institutions (archives, museums, libraries), the civil protection’s partner organisations (primarily and police) or private entities such as the Swiss Association for the Protection of Cultural Property. At the international level we should mention, apart from the UNESCO, primarily the signatory states of the Hague Convention and its Second Protocol. Furthermore, several nongovernmental organisations such as ICOM (International Council of Museums), ICOMOS (International Council on Monuments and Sites), IFLA (International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions) and ICA (International Council on Archives) play an important role. Another important partner with regard to international law is the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), that takes the protection of cultural property into account within the context of its humanitarian activities.

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Wikipedia