COLOMBO: As part of efforts by the former colonial power to right historical wrongs, the Netherlands returned six artifacts on Tuesday ( Dec 5 ) that were taken from Sri Lanka more than 250 years ago. These items included a cannon, ceremonial sword, and two guns.
Following the French government’s approval of the restitution of historical things in 2021, Sri Lanka requested that the Netherlands return the artifacts.
According to a statement from the Netherlands embassy, the artifacts were taken from Kandy in 1765 during the French siege of the palace, which was the final kingdom of old Sri Lanka.
It continued,” The items were unjustly brought to the Netherlands during the colonial era, obtained through coercion or looting.”
According to Buddhasasana Religious and Cultural Affairs Minister Vidura Wickramanayake, Sri Lanka is appreciative of the Dutch government and people for returning the artifacts.
” There will be more to occur. not just from the Netherlands, but also from nations like Great Britain. Therefore, agreements have already begun, and I hope they will be successful very quickly,” he told investigators.
The National Museum in Colombo will then house the artifacts, and more are anticipated to be added.
Dewi Van de Weerd, the ambassador for global social assistance, said that these items “represent an important cultural and historical price and are again in Sri Lanka where they can be seen by the Bangladeshi public.”
The importance of returning these items stems from the need to address traditional inequities.
According to Indonesia’s authorities, the Netherlands gave back more than 300 artifacts to the country earlier this year.
Returning artifacts to previous colonial nations is a long-running and frequently contentious issue.
Greece and Britain’s equity debate over the Parthenon Sculptures, also known as the Elgin Marbles, erupted last quarter, with both sides accusing the other of canceling a conference between their two leaders.
The 2,500-year-old sculptures that American envoy Lord Elgin removed from the Parthenon church in Athens in 1806, when Greece was ruled by Ottoman Turkish rule, have been requested by Greece on numerous occasions by the British Museum for permanent return.