,i #aacth ,,congress #b;d ,session ,h4 ,r4 #egjc ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,november #ac1 #bjad ,mr4 ,engel 7for himself and ,mr4 ,smith of ,new ,jersey7 introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,foreign ,affairs1 and in addition to the ,committees on ,ways and ,means1 ,armed ,services1 and the ,judiciary1 for a period to be subsequently determined by the ,speaker1 in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned ,a ,,bill ,to protect and preserve international cultural property at risk of destruction due to political instability1 armed conflict1 or natural or other disasters1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,protect and ,preserve ,international ,cultural ,property ,act4 #b4 ,definition ,in this ,act3 7#a7 ,appropriate congressional committees ,the term appropriate congressional committees means the ,committee on ,foreign ,affairs of the ,house of ,representatives and the ,committee on ,foreign ,relations of the ,senate4 7#b7 ,cultural property ,the term cultural property has the meaning given in ,article #a7;a7-#a7;c7 of the ,hague ,convention for the ,protection of ,cultural ,property in the ,event of ,armed ,conflict1 concluded at ,the ,hague on ,may #ad1 #aied 7,treaty ,doc4 #ajf-a7;,a774 #c4 ,findings and statement of policy 7a7 ,findings ,congress finds the following3 7#a7 ,protecting international cultural property is a vital part of ,united ,states cultural diplomacy1 showing the respect of the ,united ,states for other cultures and the common heritage of humanity4 7#b7 ,international cultural property has been lost1 damaged1 or destroyed due to political instability1 armed conflict1 natural disasters1 and other threats4 7#c7 ,in ,egypt1 recent political instability has led to the ransacking of its museums1 resulting in the destruction of countless ancient artifacts that will forever leave gaps in humanity's record of the ancient ,egyptian civilization4 7#d7 ,in ,iraq1 after the fall of ,saddam ,hussein1 thieves looted the ,iraq ,museum in ,baghdad1 resulting in the loss of approximately #ae1jjj items4 ,these included ancient amulets1 sculptures1 ivories1 and cylinder seals4 ,many of these items remain unrecovered4 7#e7 ,in ,syria1 the ongoing civil war has resulted in the shelling of medieval cities1 damage to five ,,unesco ,world ,heritage ,sites1 and the looting of museums and archaeological sites4 ,archaeological and historic sites and artifacts in ,syria date back more than six millennia and include some of the earliest examples of writing4 7#f7 ,in ,iraq and ,syria1 the militant group ,,isis_/,,isil has destroyed cultural sites and artifacts1 such as the ,tomb of ,jonah in ,july #bjad1 in an effort to eradicate ethnic and religious minorities from contested territories4 ,concurrently1 cultural antiquities that escape demolition are looted and illicitly trafficked to help fund ,,isis_/,,isil's militant operations4 7#g7 ,in ,mali1 the ,al-,qaeda affiliated terrorist group ,ansar ,dine destroyed tombs and shrines in the ancient city of ,timbuktu--a major center for trade1 scholarship1 and ,islam in the #aeth and #afth centuries--and threatened collections of ancient manuscripts4 7#h7 ,in ,afghanistan1 the ,taliban decreed that the ,bamiyan ,buddhas1 ancient statues carved into a cliff side in central ,afghanistan1 were to be destroyed4 ,in #bjja the ,taliban carried out their threat and destroyed the statues1 leading to worldwide condemnation4 7#i7 ,in ,cambodia1 following the ,khmer ,rouge's seizure of power in #aige the ,khmer ,rouge systematically destroyed many of ,cambodia's ,buddhist temples1 desecrated statues1 and destroyed ,buddhist literature4 ,the ,khmer ,rouge also destroyed mosques and nearly every ,catholic church existing in the country4 7#aj7 ,in ,china1 during the ,cultural ,revolution much of ,china's antiques were destroyed1 including a large portion of old ,beijing4 ,chinese authorities are now attempting to rebuild portions of ,china's lost architectural heritage4 7#aa7 ,in ,haiti1 the #bjaj earthquake destroyed art1 artifacts1 and archives important to the people of ,haiti1 and partially destroyed the #agth century ,haitian city of ,jacmel4 7#ab7 ,the #bjjd ,indian ,ocean earthquake and tsunami not only affected eleven countries1 causing massive loss of life1 but also damaged or destroyed libraries1 archives1 and ,,unesco ,world ,heritage ,sites such as the ,mahabalipuram in ,india1 the ,sun ,temple of ,koranak on the ,bay of ,bengal1 and the ,old ,town of ,galle and its ,fortifications in ,sri ,lanka4 7#ac7 ,the destruction of these and other cultural properties represents an irreparable loss of humanity's common cultural heritage and is therefore a loss for all ,americans4 7#ad7 ,the ,united ,states ,armed ,forces have played important roles in preserving and protecting cultural property4 ,on ,june #bc1 #aidc1 ,president ,franklin ,d4 ,roosevelt established the ,american ,commission for the ,protection and ,salvage of ,artistic and ,historic ,monuments in ,war ,areas to provide expert advice to the military on the protection of cultural property4 ,the ,commission formed ,monuments1 ,fine ,arts1 and ,archives 7,,mfaa7 teams which became part of the ,civil ,affairs ,division of ,military ,government ,section of the ,allied armies4 ,the individuals serving in the ,,mfaa were known as the ,monuments ,men and have been credited with securing1 cataloguing1 and returning hundreds of thousands works of art stolen by the ,nazis during ,world ,war ,,ii4 7#ae7 ,the ,u4,s4 ,committee of the ,blue ,shield was founded in #bjjf to support the implementation of the #aied ,hague ,convention for the ,protection of ,cultural ,property in the ,event of ,armed ,conflict and to coordinate with the ,united ,states military1 other branches of the ,united ,states ,government1 and other cultural heritage nongovernmental organizations in preserving international cultural property threatened by political instability1 armed conflict1 natural1 or other disasters4 7b7 ,statement of policy ,it shall be the policy of the ,united ,states to-- 7#a7 protect and preserve international cultural property at risk of destruction due to political instability1 armed conflict1 or natural or other disasters2 7#b7 protect international cultural property pursuant to its obligations under the #aied ,hague ,convention for the ,protection of ,cultural ,property in the ,event of ,armed ,conflict and customary international law in all conflicts to which the ,united ,states is a party2 7#c7 prevent1 in accordance with existing laws1 importation of cultural property pillaged1 looted1 or stolen during political instability1 armed conflict1 or natural or other disasters2 and 7#d7 ensure that existing laws and regulations1 including import restrictions imposed through the ,office of ,foreign ,asset ,control 7,,ofac7 of the ,department of the ,treasury1 are fully implemented to prevent the trafficking in stolen or looted cultural property4 #d4 ,white ,house ,coordinator for ,international ,cultural ,property ,protection ,the ,president shall appoint a ,white ,house ,coordinator for ,international ,cultural ,property ,protection4 ,the ,coordinator shall-- 7#a7 coordinate and promote efforts to address international cultural property protection activities that involve multiple ,federal agencies1 including diplomatic activities1 military activities1 law enforcement activities1 import restrictions1 and the work of the ,cultural ,antiquities ,task ,force established pursuant to the ,consolidated ,appropriations ,act1 #bjjd 7,public ,law #ajh-aii72 7#b7 submit to the appropriate congressional committees an annual report on interagency efforts to protect international cultural property based on information required under section #e of this ,act2 7#c7 provide policy recommendations1 if necessary2 7#d7 resolve interagency differences in a timely1 efficient1 and effective manner2 and 7#e7 work and consult with domestic and international actors such as foreign governments1 nongovernmental organizations1 museums1 educational institutions1 research institutions1 and the ,u4,s4 ,committee of the ,blue ,shield on efforts to promote and protect international cultural property4 #e4 ,information on activities to protect international cultural property 7a7 ,information on activities of the ,department of ,state ,to protect international cultural property ,the ,secretary of ,state shall submit to the ,white ,house ,coordinator for ,international ,cultural ,property ,protection information on efforts of the ,department of ,state to protect international cultural property1 including-- 7#a7 activities undertaken pursuant to the ,hague ,convention for the ,protection of ,cultural ,property in the ,event of ,armed ,conflict1 including-- 7,a7 procedures the ,department has instituted to protect international cultural property at risk of destruction due to political instability1 armed conflict1 or natural or other disasters2 and 7,b7 actions the ,department has taken to protect international cultural property in conflicts to which the ,united ,states is a party2 and 7#b7 actions the ,department has taken to protect international cultural property pursuant to other cultural property protection statutes1 international agreements1 or policies4 7b7 ,information on activities of ,,usaid ,to protect international cultural property ,the ,administrator of the ,united ,states ,agency for ,international ,development 7,,usaid7 shall submit to the ,white ,house ,coordinator for ,international ,cultural ,property ,protection information on efforts of ,,usaid to protect international cultural property1 including activities and coordination with other ,federal agencies1 international organizations1 and nongovernmental organizations regarding the protection of international cultural property at risk of destruction due to political unrest1 armed conflict1 natural or other disasters1 and ,,usaid development programs4 7c7 ,information on activities of the ,department of ,defense ,to protect international cultural property ,the ,secretary of ,defense shall submit to the ,white ,house ,coordinator for ,international ,cultural ,property ,protection information on efforts of the ,department of ,defense to protect international cultural property1 including activities undertaken pursuant to the ,hague ,convention for the ,protection of ,cultural ,property in the ,event of ,armed ,conflict1 other cultural protection statutes1 and international agreements1 including-- 7#a7 directives1 policies1 and regulations the ,department has instituted to protect international cultural property at risk of destruction due to political instability1 armed conflict1 or natural or other disasters2 and 7#b7 actions the ,department has taken to protect international cultural property1 including actions to avoid damage to cultural property through construction activities abroad4 7d7 ,information on activities of the ,department of ,justice ,to protect international cultural property ,the ,attorney ,general1 in consultation with the ,secretary of ,homeland ,security1 shall submit to the ,white ,house ,coordinator for ,international ,cultural ,property ,protection information on efforts of the ,department of ,justice to protect both international cultural property and international cultural property located in1 or attempted to be imported into1 the ,united ,states1 including activities undertaken pursuant to statutes and international agreements4 ,such information shall include the-- 7#a7 statutes and regulations the ,department has employed in criminal1 civil1 and civil forfeiture actions to prevent and interdict trafficking in stolen and smuggled cultural property1 including investigations into transnational organized crime2 and 7#b7 actions the ,department has taken in order to ensure the consistent and effective application of law in cases relating to both international cultural property and international cultural property located in1 or attempted to be imported into1 the ,united ,states4 #f4 ,authorization for ,federal agencies ,to engage in international cultural property protection activities with the ,smithsonian ,institution 7a7 ,in general ,notwithstanding any other provision of law1 the ,department of ,state1 the ,department of ,defense1 ,,usaid1 the ,department of ,homeland ,security1 the ,department of ,justice1 the ,department of the ,interior1 the ,national ,archives1 the ,national ,science ,foundation1 and any other agency that is involved in international cultural property protection activities are authorized to enter into agreements or memoranda of understanding with the ,smithsonian ,institution to temporarily engage personnel from the ,smithsonian ,institution for the purposes of furthering such international cultural property protection activities4 7b7 ,salaries and expenses ,the ,federal agencies or departments specified in subsection 7a7 are authorized to pay the salaries and expenses of personnel from the ,smithsonian ,institution to assist such agencies or departments in their international cultural property protection activities1 including in support of military or diplomatic missions and law enforcement efforts4 #g4 ,grantmaking authorization for the ,secretary of ,state for international cultural property protection activities ,the ,secretary of ,state is authorized to make grants to private individuals or organizations for the purposes of international cultural property protection activities in areas at risk of destruction due to political instability1 armed conflict1 or natural or other disasters4 #h4 ,emergency protection for ,syrian cultural property 7a7 ,presidential determination ,notwithstanding subsection 7b7 of section #cjd of the ,convention on the ,cultural ,property ,implementation ,act 7#ai ,u4,s4,c4 #bfjc7 7relating to a ,presidential determination that an emergency condition applies with respect to any archaeological or ethnological material of any ,state ,party to the ,convention71 the ,president shall apply the import restrictions referred to in such section #cjd with respect to any archaeological or ethnological material of ,syria as if ,syria were a ,state ,party to such ,convention1 except that subsection 7c7 of such section #cjd shall not apply4 ,such import restrictions shall take effect not later than #fj days after the date of the enactment of this ,act4 7b7 ,definitions ,in this section-- 7#a7 the term archaeological or ethnological material of ,syria means cultural property of ,syria and other items of archaeological1 historical1 cultural1 rare scientific1 or religious importance unlawfully removed from ,syria on or after ,august #ah1 #bjaa2 and 7#b7 the term ,state ,party has the meaning given such term in section #cjb of the ,convention on the ,cultural ,property ,implementation ,act 7#ai ,u4,s4,c4 #bfja74