A/RES/33/50 GA

142 General Assembly-Thirty-third Session Conscious of the importance of cultural develop- ment which, along with progress in the economic and social fields, should contribute to the improvement of living conditions and the well-being of nations and peoples in the process of establishing a new interna- tional economic order, as envisaged in the Declara- tion and the Programme of Action on the Establish- ment of a New International Economic Order,28 adopted during the sixth special session of the Gen- eral Assembly, in the Charter of Economic Rights and Duties of States29 and in the Declaration on Social Progress and Development,80 1. Welcomes with appreciation the work of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization in promoting the cause of the preserva- tion and further development of cultural values and in assisting co-operation among States in this respect; 2. Calls upon the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization to continue its activities in the field of the preservation and further development of cultural values and, in particular: (a) To collect information relevant thereto and carry out interdisciplinary research on the role and place of cultural values in contemporary society; (b) To encourage the international exchange of information on modern methods used in the preserva- tion and development of cultural values; ( c) To promote and assist international co-opera- tion among States and relevant international organiza- tions aiming at the preservation and further develop- ment of cultural values; (d) To include on a continuing basis the problem of the preservation and further development of cul- tural values in its medium-term and long-term plans. 84th plenary meeting 14 December 1978 33/50. Protection, restitution and return of cul- tural and artistic property as part of the preservation and further development of cultural values The General Assembly, Recalling its resolutions 3026 A (XXVII) of 18 De- cember 1972, 3148 (XXVIII) of 14 December 1973, 3187 (XXVIII) of 18 December 1973, 3391 (XXX) of 19 November 1975, 31/40 of 30 November 1976 and 32/18 of 11 November 1977, Taking note with appreciation of the report of the Director-General of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, 31 Noting with satisfaction the resolution adopted by the General Conference of the United Nations Educa- tional, Scientific and Cultural Organization at its twentieth session, held in Paris from 24 October to 28 November 1978, by which it approved the statutes of the Intergovernmental Committee for Promoting the Return of Cultural Property to its Countries of Origin or its Restitution in Case of Illicit Appropria- tion, 2s Resolutions 3201 (S-VI) and 3202 (S-VI). 29 Resolution 3281 (XXIX). 80 Resolution 2542 (XXIV). 81 See A/33/157. Taking into account the results of the meeting of the Committee of Experts held at Dakar in 1978 to study the mandate, means of action and working methods of the above-mentioned Intergovernmental Committee, Reaffirming that the restitution to a country of its objets d'art, monuments, museum pieces, manuscripts, documents and any other cultural or artistic treasures constitutes a step forward in the strengthening of in- ternational co-operation and the preservation and further development of cultural values, 1. Commends the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization for the work done in connexion with the restitution and return of cul- tural and artistic property; 2. Welcomes the establishment of the Intergovern- mental Committee for Promoting the Return of Cul- tural Property to its Countries of Origin or its Restitu- tion in Case of Illicit Appropriation; 3. Requests the United Nations Educational, Sci- entific and Cultural Organization to continue its val- uable efforts to find suitable solutions for the problems relating to the restitution and return of cultural and artistic property and urges Member States to co- operate with that organization in this field; 4. Invites Member States to take all possible steps for the restitution and return of cultural and artistic property, including manuscripts and docu- ments, through, inter alia, the establishment of bi- lateral arrangements; 5. Invites all Governments to accede to the Con- vention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property,82 adopted by the General Con- ference of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization on 14 November 1970; 6. Decides to include in the provisional agenda of its thirty-fifth session an item entitled "Preserva- tion and further development of cultural values, in- cluding the protection, restitution and return of cultural and artistic property". 84th plenary meeting 14 December 1978 33/51. International Covenants on Human Rights The General Assembly, Mindful that the International Covenants on Human Rights33 constitute the first all-embracing and legally binding international treaties in the field of human rights and, together with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,34 form the heart of the International Bill of Human Rights,35 Recalling its resolutions 31/86 of 13 December 1976 and 32/66 of 8 December 1977, Having noted the report of the Secretary-General on the status of the International Covenant on Eco- 82 United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Or- ganization, Records of the General Conference, Sixteenth Ses- sion, vol. 1, Resolutions, pp. 135-141. 83 Resolution 2200 (XXI), annex. 84 Resolution 217 A (III). 35 Human Rights: A Compilation of International Instru- ments (United Nations publication, Sales No. E.78.XIV.2), sect. A.

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