Cultural Heritage and the law

NDORO W., ABUNGU G., MUMMA A., 2009. Cultural Heritage and the law: Protecting Immovable Heritage in English-Speaking Countries of sub-Saharan Africa. Rome : ICCROM. 121 p. Coll. ICCROM Conservation Studies 8. ISBN 978-92-9077-213-2.

 

Abstact

This book on legal frameworks on immovable cultural heritage in English-speaking sub-Saharan Africa is an attempt to document and analyse the existing legal frameworks in the English-speaking African countries, addressing the history, development and contexts in which they were founded and used. the book provides an analysis of the current legal frameworks in the various countries and their origins. It addresses the fact that in the English-speaking countries of the continent there has been a replacement of the traditional customary regulatory practices with English Common law;however, for French, Portuguese and Spanish-speaking Africa, the Roman law has been applicable since the beginning of colonization. In the southern part of Africa Roman-Dutch laws were also implemented, given the historical events which initially brought the Dutch and later the English to this part of Africa.
Africa is recognized not only as the cradle of humankind, but also as a continent of great antiquity and civilization with many varied layers of history. It is a continent where heritage is embedded in movable and immovable, tangible and intangible heritage. African heritage is, therefore, not only admired and appreciated but is also lived and used. this fact is captured by nearly all the contributors to the book; it makes this heritage unique, requiring special attention. It is the continent where the tangible and the intangible are in many cases intertwined and, as such, there is often no straight dividing line between tangible or intangible, cultural or natural heritage. However, Africa is not a monolithic entity but a continent with regional and local diversity.

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