Global Heritage Alliance Initiates Congressional Letter To Department of State

For Immediate Release                      
Contact: Elias Gerasoulis                   
April 24, 2024 
No. 2

Washington, DC—The Global Heritage Alliance successfully worked with Congressman Joe Wilson (R-SC), a senior member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, to initiate a strongly worded letter to the State Department’s Acting Inspector General, requesting an investigation into the State Department’s decision to convert the “emergency” import restrictions on cultural goods for Yemen into regular ones, all without a proper Cultural Property Advisory Committee (CPAC) review or public comment, as is required by the Cultural Property Implementation Act of 1983 (CPIA). 

Ethnic minority and religious groups, including from the Jewish diaspora, as well as collector groups, with whom GHA closely collaborates with, expressed deep concerns about the MOU. To that effect, the Ancient Coin Collectors Guild (ACCG) made a Freedom of Information (FOIA) request to obtain further information regarding this extra-legal Cultural Property MOU with Yemen. 

According to GHA Executive Director Elias Gerasoulis “For years, the State Department and CPAC have made the process of approving and renewing Cultural Property MOU’s into a rubber stamp process. However, now the State Department feels that it does not even need to pretend to follow the procedures and processes set forth in the Cultural Property Implementation Act (CPIA). Congress has a critical role in oversight, and making sure the State Department follows the law. The Global Heritage Alliance applauds Congressman Wilson for his efforts to hold the State Department accountable, and to have the Yemen Cultural Property MOU investigated.”

Click Here to View Congressman Joe Wilson’s Letter To the Department of State 

For additional information, please contact Elias Gerasoulis at egerasoulis@global-heritage.org. For general information on GHA, see our Web site at https://global-heritage.org/.