Turkey is a magnet for tourism with its bright sun, beautiful sea and beaches. Unfortunately, it is also the country that attracts the most smugglers as she is the mother of many civilizations for millennia.
There are tens of thousands of artefacts belonging to Turkey around the world which have been taken out of the country without the consent of the Government. Sadly every year valuable historical artefacts are stolen from Turkey and made part of the collections of various museums around the world.
According to researcher and writer Yaşar Yılmaz, Turkey is the fourth on the list after China, Greece and Iran among the 118 countries whose historical artefacts have been plundered. Yılmaz said, “As the Ottoman Empire was crumbling, as our nation was fighting wars, the looting barbarians did not cease pillaging and smuggling our artefacts out of the country. We have so many artefacts in France, Belgium and Germany that it is impossible for them to have been transported to these countries legally.”
Anti-smuggling and Organized Crime Bureau KOM and the Culture Ministry of Turkey signed a new protocol in 2005 to combat the smuggling of historical artefacts. It seems their work is cut out to stamp the illegal trade of artefacts and which denies the people access to the heritage and history.
Let’s hope we can see the historical artefacts in their real home where they belong or would have belonged. The doors of the Museum are wide open to visitors and historians alike. The eye can marvel at these pieces of history and never tire of wondering what golden age they represented and the kind of lives these amazing people lived.
I am sure the sight of these artefacts will bring out rage in any fair minded human being that how for centuries and to this day our history and heritage is being stolen by a few before our very eyes. There can never be any justification for the illegal trade of national treasures such as these. The custodians of these illegal treasures around the world must reconsider their ethical rights in holding on to the heritage of countries such as Turkey. The alarm bells are beginning to sound and they are not going to be silenced any time soon.
In the meantime enjoy the marvel of a museum near you and smugglers be aware!
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Semra Eren-Nijhar 