Re: Winter 2014/15 | Page 87

Amal Clooney In October 2014, Alamuddin-Clooney, accompanied by David Hill, Chairman of the International Association for the Reunification of the Parthenon Sculptures, and two other notable international lawyers, flew to Athens to provide legal support to the Greek culture minister. The subsequent coverage allowed the public a further insight into the actions being taken by the Greek government, affirming the force of their self-assurance in their rightful claim to the pieces. The Greek Government has, however briefly, put aside the debate over the legal ownership of the art, focusing on a collaboration of curatorship and the return of the pieces to their origin to complete the collection, since the restoration of the Marbles is its true aim. The question of the repatriation of the Parthenon Marbles is clearly of international interest, especially since a few other pieces from the Parthenon were distributed throughout Europe - one piece is held in the Louvre for example and recently Germany, after holding a consensus, returned part of a sculpture, depicting a foot, to the Greek culture minister to help reunite the pieces.  At Athens International Airport, people entering and leaving Greece were invited to vote electronically on whether the Parthenon sculptures should be returned to the Acropolis. According to the first wave of results, 125 people voted yes, while four voted no. Currently, following the request by Greek officials for UNESCO to facilitate further discussions on the reunification of the sculptures, the situation awaits a response from the trustees of the British Museum to the call for an agreement to allow the dispute between Greece and Britain to be mediated by UNESCO, which they so far have refused to answer. Subsequent official requests to Britain to agree to this mediation also remain unanswered. While awaiting response, we can try to make an informed decision as to the most desirable outcome of any discussions on the future of the Parthenon sculptures, considering the emotional ties to the pieces from the Greeks and their legal right to obtain the potentially stolen artefacts and the benefits of continuing their exhibition at the British Museum, that has been their home for the past 200 years. By Jessica Stocks 87