Han Ximin

    ximhan@126.com

    MORE than 200 guests, including UNESCO officials and directors of the world’s top museums, will look into hot issues regarding the role of museums in a new era and heritage protection in war zones during a three-day forum, which begins in the city today.

    The UNESCO High-level Forum on Museums, the first forum that UNESCO has ever organized on museums, will also focus on promoting international cooperation between museums around the world and enhancing the capabilities of museums in tackling trafficking, counterfeiting and other illegal activities, a news conference was told yesterday.

    The directors and experts of the world’s most well-known museums who will be present include Khaled El Elnany, minister of antiquities of Egypt; Emily Rafferty, president emerita of the U.S. Metropolitan Museum of Art; Neal Spencer, chief curator of the British Museum; and Shan Jixiang, director of Palace Museum of China, according to the news conference.

    “It is a great opportunity for us to bring together experts from all over the world to discuss issues that concern all the museums in the future and put forward the mission of UNESCO and position on protection of museums,” said Francesco Bandarin, assistant director general of UNESCO Culture Sector.

    Bandarin said that he regarded having this meeting in China as very appropriate, because China is a very fast-growing society and the demand for museums is very strong.

    China now has more than 5,000 museums, private and public, and the number will double in the coming 10-20 years, he said.

    “Many cities in China want to build their identities through culture. To do that, Shenzhen is very advanced. We have entered into a situation that economic development in China allows private sectors to play their roles,” said Bandarin, adding that the forum, which is sponsored by the government and Shenzhen Zhizheng Art Museum, is a good example.

    “The private museums can strengthen the culture life at communities, and multiply the opportunities for culture enjoyment,” said Bandarin.

    The forum will also discuss UNESCO’s declaration on museums, which was adopted last year by its General Conference. It was the first document that UNESCO issued regarding museums in a modern world. The forum will also look into the cooperation between public and private museums.