Apologies for cross posting

Subject:  "Blue Shield" Statement on the impact of Hurricane Katrina

STATEMENT

by ICBS on the impact of Hurricane Katrina on the cultural heritage of
Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama


The International Committee of the Blue Shield (ICBS) expresses its
sorrow and solidarity with the American people and in particular with
the population of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama for the loss of
lives and for the terrible disruption of their livelihood caused by
hurricane Katrina and the ensuing floods.

Although the highest priorities must be accorded to minimising the loss
of life and to the humanitarian activities intended to re-establish
decent living conditions for the hundreds of thousands of people whose
homes and means of subsistence have been wrecked by this natural
disaster, the International Committee of the Blue Shield must express
its profound concern for the fate of the cultural heritage in the
affected states.

ICBS wishes to emphasise that the cultural heritage of a community
reflects its way of life, its history and identity, provides the link
between its past, present and future, and contributes substantially to
its economic sustainability and welfare.  A community cannot function
effectively in the larger societal context if deprived of its identity
through the loss of its cultural heritage.

ICBS, therefore, calls on the Federal Government of the United States
of America, and on the Governments of the States of Louisiana,
Mississippi and Alabama to swiftly draw up and implement plans to ensure
the survival and restoration of historic buildings and sites, museums
collections, books in libraries, and documents in archives.

ICBS also calls on the international community to give the fullest
possible support to the efforts, official and voluntary, now being made
by United States citizens and agencies to rescue the rich and unique
heritage of New Orleans and other cities and towns in the region.
Paris, 12 September 2005



The Blue Shield network is the cultural equivalent of the Red Cross and
strives to protect cultural objects and sites in the event of natural or
man-made disasters.

The International Committee of the Blue Shield, founded in 1996,
comprises representatives of the four Non-Governmental Organisations
(NGOs) working in this field:

o the International Council on Archives (www.ica.org),
o the International Council of Museums (www.icom.org),
o the International Council on Monuments and Sites (www.icomos.org),
   and
o the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions
   (www.ifla.org)

and it works in co-operation with UNESCO, the International Centre for
the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property
(ICCROM) and the International Committee of the Red Cross.

The status of the ICBS as an 'eminent professional organisation',
which has a formal relationship with UNESCO and an important advisory
role, has been recognised in the 2nd Protocol (1999) of the Hague
Convention (1954) for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event
of Armed Conflict.

Further information about ICBS is available from its website
http://www.ifla.org/blueshield.htm

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