WRITTEN QUESTION E-1808/01 by Stavros Xarchakos (PPE-DE) to the Commission. Illegal excavations and trade in antiquities in the Member States.
Date: 2001-06-19
Institutions: European Parliament, Provisional data
Subjects: archaeology, art trade, cultural heritage, heritage protection, illicit trade, tax system

14.2.2002

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Official Journal of the European Communities

C 40 E/107

As a matter of fact, the aims of the Convention are not against trade in endangered wildlife, but to
contribute to the conservation of these species by regulating trade therein, whilst fighting illegal traffic.

In the beginning of this year the Commission funded a workshop in Brussels, organised by the CITES
Secretariat, where eleven major wildlife exporting countries, amongst which Madagascar, Party to CITES
since 1975, had the occasion to discuss their problems with the implementation of the CITES Convention,
striking a balance between benefit from nature for local people and the conservation of species. On this
occasion the Madagascarian authorities advised about their efforts to implement CITES in a responsible
way, setting export quotas for some species and prohibiting the export of other species and undertook to
strenghten their control measures as far as possible in order to combat illegal trade.

With regard to the effectiveness of the Community Regulations and the possibility of prohibiton of
ownership of certain wild animals, the Commission would refer the Honourable Member to the last
paragraph of its joint answer to his written questions E-238/01, E-239/01 and E-240/01 (2).

(1) Commission Regulation (EC) no 191/2001 of 30 January 2001 suspending the introduction into the Community of

specimens of certain species of wild fauna and flora (OJ L 29, 31.1.2001).

(2) OJ C 261 E, 18.9.2001, p. 71.

(2002/C 40 E/107)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1808/01

by Stavros Xarchakos (PPE-DE) to the Commission

(19 June 2001)

Subject: Illegal excavations and trade in antiquities in the Member States

The catalogue for the exhibition of Minoan antiquities held in the German city of Karlsruhe from
27 January to 29 April 2001 listed Minoan works of art such as vases, copper figurines, seals, necklaces
etc. Eminent archaeologists claim that these objects come from illegal excavations in Crete and were found,
inexplicably, to belong to the (cid:145)collection(cid:146) of an antique-shop owner in the Swiss city of Basle.

What is the Commission(cid:146)s position on illegal excavations and the trade in antiquities, which have become
endemic in countries with large quantities of antiquities such as Greece and Italy? How can these
phenomena (cid:129) which is tantamount to looting the cultural treasures of our continent (cid:129) be stopped? Does
the Commission have any data to indicate the extent of illegal excavations and trade in antiquities in
Greece?

What immediate measures could it take to stem the flow of cultural artefacts into private collections
without the knowledge of the countries of origin of those artefacts? Is it true that the European Union
collects revenue from value added tax of 2,5 % from the sale of antiquities? Does the Commission check
whether that tax also comes from the sale of objects which have been illegally excavated and traded?

Answer given by Mr Vitorino on behalf of the Commission

(11 September 2001)

The Commission does not have detailed statistics but is informed and aware of the effects that illegal
excavations and trafficking in antiquities have on the heritage of the Member States, especially in southern
Europe. But it must emphasise that protection of the cultural heritage,
including the protection of
monuments and sites, is a matter for the Member States, Community action being confined to a support
and backup function.

The Commission notes that there are great disparities between the Member States as regards the means
and structures for combating illegal trafficking in cultural goods and that this is an area that does not yet
enjoy the priority it deserves in the fight against organised crime and criminal gangs.

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14.2.2002

insurers, dealers and collectors, on possible practical

The Commission wishes to combat trafficking by acting on the prevention front. In May 2001, when the
European Crime Prevention Forum was launched, it began studies with police and heritage protection
authorities,
improvements. These would involve
enhanced international police and administrative cooperation, the exchange of information on objects
being sought, precautionary rules in dealings in (cid:145)sensitive(cid:146) goods, cooperation with the authorities in
countries of origin of goods being trafficked, notably in terms of training and awareness, and informing
collectors of the risks they sometimes run in terms of the international conventions already in force.

The Commission would inform the Honourable Member that in the European Economic Area cultural
goods obtained as a result of illegal excavations and trafficking may be eligible for the protection offered
by Council Regulation (EEC) No 3911/92 of 9 December 1992 on the export of cultural goods (1) and
Council Directive 93/7/EEC of 15 March 1993 on the return of cultural objects unlawfully removed from
the territory of a Member State (2). An action for the return of goods is also provided for internationally by
the States that have ratified the 1995 Unidroit Convention on stolen or illegally exported cultural objects.

The Commission notes that, generally speaking, value added tax (VAT) applies to all sales of goods and
supplies of services in the Community. Transactions in antiques are like any other transactions and are
therefore taxed. Accordingly, if antiques are sold by a taxable person to Community residents, VAT at the
appropriate rate is chargeable. If antiques are sold to non-Community residents, and the antiques are
exported from the Community, no VAT arises.
If antiques are imported into the Community and
purchased by Community residents, or are purchased outside the Community and imported, then VAT is
payable in the Community. If, on the other hand, antiques imported for resale are simply purchased for
export, no VAT arises.

As regards the rate of VAT, again the general principle applying to other goods applies to antiques. This
means that the standard rate of VAT should be applied, as antiques do not feature in Annex H to the Sixth
VAT Directive (3), which is the list of supplies of goods and services to which a reduced rate can be
applied.

Nevertheless, the Sixth VAT Directive permits Member States to apply the reduced rate of VAT (which
cannot be lower than 5 %), to imports of antiques as defined in Annex I of that Directive. A list of the VAT
rates charged by Member States on antiques can be found in the Commission publication VAT rates
applied in the Member States of
is available at http://
europa.eu.int/comm/taxation_customs/publications/info_doc/taxation/tva/taux_tva-2001-5-1en.pdf.

the European Community. This document

The Commission has no role in checking whether a Member State(cid:146)s VAT receipts have arisen as a result of
legal or illegal transactions.

(1) OJ L 395, 31.12.1992.
(2) OJ L 74, 27.3.1993.
(3) Council Directive 77/388/EEC of 17 May 1977 on the harmonisation of the laws of the Member States relating to
turnover taxes (cid:129) Common system of value added tax: uniform basis of assessment. (OJ L 145, 13.6.1977), as last
amended by Council Directive 2001/41/EC of 19 January 2001 (OJ L 22, 24.1.2001).

(2002/C 40 E/108)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-1810/01

by Chris Davies (ELDR) to the Commission

(19 June 2001)

Subject: Ban on goods made from dog and cat fur

I understand that the US government has recently introduced a domestic ban on the sale of goods made
from dog and cat fur.