Cabinet names panel to reclaim Sri Lankan artefacts held overseas

Saturday, 3 October 2026 00:12 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

The Cabinet has approved the appointment of a special committee to secure the return of Sri Lankan cultural heritage and artefacts held overseas, including objects taken from the country during the colonial period, Cabinet Spokesperson and Minister Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa said on Tuesday.

Briefing the media on decisions taken at the Cabinet meeting held on Monday, Dr. Jayatissa said the Committee for the Restitution of Sri Lankan Cultural Heritage Currently Held Overseas would advise the Government on efforts to recover cultural objects taken out of the country.

It will be headed by the Buddhasasana, Religious and Cultural Affairs Ministry Additional Secretary (Cultural Promotion and Foreign Affairs). The initiative is being pursued under the 1970 UNESCO Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property, which provides mechanisms for states to seek the return of cultural property.

The Government said the committee would also facilitate continued direct discussions with the relevant Dutch committee on the restitution process.

The move builds on earlier recovery efforts. In 2023, six cultural objects held by the Rijksmuseum in the Netherlands were officially returned to Sri Lanka as the first phase of the restitution process. They included Lewke Disawa’s cannon, two large guns, two kastane swords with scabbards and a knife with a sheath. The kastane is a traditional Sri Lankan sword.