“The Parthenon Marbles should be returned to Greece” was the topic of a debate by Grade 11 pupils at a function hosted by SAHETI School recently to mark the launch of the South African Committee for the Reunification of the Parthenon Marbles. The event was organized on the initiative of Advocate George Bizos, a founder of the school, and also a member of the British Committee for the Reunification of the Parthenon Marbles.

The Marbles are sections of the frieze which originally adorned the Parthenon on the Acropolis in Athens. They were removed by Lord Elgin, British Ambassador to the Ottoman Empire between 1801 and 1810, whilst Greece was under Ottoman rule. He sold the Marbles to the British government in 1816, who in turn sold them to the British Museum, where they have been housed ever since. With the opening of the New Acropolis Museum in Athens, the movement for their return to Greece has gathered momentum.

The event attracted a wide audience that included academics, businessmen, legal professionals, politicians and members of the community. A highlight of the programme was the input of SAHETI’s senior debaters, with the proposition and opposition teams both providing convincing arguments for and against the reunification of the Marbles. The issues put forward included the lack of consultation and disenfranchisement of the Greeks, deprivation of cultural heritage, comparisons between the accessibility to the Marbles afforded by the British Museum and the new Acropolis Museum in Athens and acquisition and legal issues. The debate was followed by a Grade 9 pupil’s reading of Nadine Gordimer’s thought-provoking Preface to Christopher Hitchens’ The Parthenon Marbles: A Case for Reunification. The Nobel Laureate herself was present in the audience.

Advocate George Bizos delivered an enlightening address which included a history of the events leading to the Marbles being acquired by the British Museum. He indicated that there is a case to be made for challenging the legality of the Marbles’ original acquisition by Lord Elgin, a cause which he hoped to advance with the formation of the South African Committee for the Reunification for the Parthenon Marbles.

Advocate Bizos’ views were echoed by His Excellency the High Commissioner to the Republic of Pakistan, Mr Ashraf Qureshi, who highlighted other cases of removal of cultural artefacts from different countries. In the case of Pakistan, certain cases were under discussion at UNESCO for restitution. He offered words of encouragement to the newly-formed committee in their endeavours.

ADDRESS BY ADV GEORGE BIZOS AT THE INAUGURAL MEETING TO FORM THE SOUTH AFRICAN COMMITTEE FOR THE RESTITUTION OF THE PARTHENON MARBLES