US embassy cable - 03THEHAGUE2459

UNCLAS THE HAGUE 002459 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR IO/SHA LROEDER 
 
PARIS FOR USREP UNESCO 
 
E.O. 12958 N/A 
TAGS: EAID, SCUL, IZ 
SUBJECT: PRINCE CLAUS FOUNDATION CREATES CULTURAL EMERGENCY 
RESPONSE MECHANISM 
 
REF: Roeder-Kushner E-mail of 9/25 
 
1.  The Prince Claus Fund for Culture and Development and 
the International Committee of the Blue Shield combined 
forces September 26 to launch a "Cultural Emergency 
Response" (CER) initiative.  The initiative is designed to 
provide emergency assistance - in the form of direct funding 
- to protect, preserve, or restore cultural property 
(documents, artifacts, monuments, etc) threatened by 
conflict or natural disaster.  Politically or economically 
unstable areas of the world will be given priority attention 
by this initiative. 
 
2.  At the September 26 launch of the initiative, CER 
provided its first disbursement: twenty thousand euro to the 
Central University Library of Baghdad to ensure its ability 
to operate by the opening of the Iraqi academic year.  In a 
separate donation commemorated at the CER launching, the 
British library donated several valuable manuscripts to the 
library.  Present to accept these donations on behalf of 
Iraq was W. Muhammed from the Iraq Governing Council's 
Cultural Ministry. 
 
3.  The ceremony was attended by Prince Johan Friso and 
Prince Constantijn, honorary chairmen of the Prince Claus 
Fund.  The key note speech was by Iraqi archeologist and New 
York University research associate Dr. Selma Al-Radi.  Dr. 
Al-Radi used vivid photographs and prose to describe 
chronologies of cultural heritage destruction in the Beruit 
museum during the Lebanon Civil War, Kuwait Museum during 
the First Gulf War, and the Iraq museum during the recent 
conflict in that country.  Her presentation was balanced and 
non-judgmental.  Post can fax a copy of Al-Radi's 
presentation to interested addressees (contact: Todd Kushner 
(Kushnerta2@state.gov)). 
 
4.  Emboff provided CER organizers with the draft program of 
the 2004 Global Disaster Information Network conference 
(sponsored by the State Department and Government of Canada) 
and urged they consider providing a speaker. 
 
Sobel