Terezin Declaration
On June 30, 2009, the 47 states attending the Prague Conference on Holocaust Era Assets, signed the Terezin Declaration.
The Declaration calls, among other things, to strengthen and sustain previous efforts, notably those by the Washington Conference to ensure just and fair solutions regarding cultural property, including Judaica which was looted or displaced during or as a result of the Holocaust (Shoah).
In regard to Looted Art, the Declaration calls for the recognition that restitution cannot be accomplished without the knowledge of potentially looted art and cultural property. It therefore calls for continuous provenance research, in addition to an ongoing effort to make available results on the internet, with due regard to privacy rules and regulations.
Concerning Judaica and Jewish Cultural Property, the Declaration calls for “Recognizing the urgent need to identify ways to achieve a just and fair solution to the issue of Judaica and Jewish cultural property, where original owners, or heirs of former original Jewish owners, individuals or legal persons cannot be identified, while acknowledging there is no universal model.”
Moreover, the Declaration notes that measures for the protection of sacred scrolls and ceremonial objects should be taken and where these items are currently in government hands to make them available for synagogue use where needed.
Read the Declaration here.Washington Conference on Holocaust-Era Assets Proceedings
On November 30-December 3, 1998, the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum co-hosted the Washington Conference on Holocaust-Era Assets. Delegations from forty-four governments and thirteen non-governmental organizations participated.
The conference addressed various issues related to the confiscation of assets by the Nazis and others during the Holocaust.
The principal issues of the conference were looted art, insurance claims, communal property, and archives and books.
The conference also examined the role of historical commissions and Holocaust education, remembrance, and research. Each of the main topics was addressed in a plenary session.
These topics were then discussed in greater detail in a series of “break-out” sessions.
See the full proceeds of the Washington Conference here.