Sri Lanka and Portugal have agreed to establish a joint committee to study the repatriation of ancient artefacts taken from the island during the Portuguese colonial period.
The agreement was reached during a bilateral discussion between Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath and visiting Portuguese Foreign Minister Paulo Rangel at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Colombo.
Rangel noted that the proposal to return items of historical value was acceptable and confirmed that a joint committee would conduct a preliminary study. Both ministers also discussed activating existing cultural agreements to facilitate the process.
Additionally, the ministers addressed difficulties faced by Sri Lankans in obtaining Portuguese visas, which currently require travel to New Delhi. Vijitha Herath proposed a more accessible mechanism, which Rangel pledged to review.
Previously, the Netherlands commenced a programme to repatriate Sri Lankan artifacts that were taken by the Dutch during its colonial-era in Sri Lanka.
The Dutch government has adopted a policy of returning colonial-era artefacts to their countries of origin to foster reconciliation and solidarity. As part of this initiative, the Netherlands has reportedly launched a research programme and entered into an agreement with Sri Lankan authorities to conduct joint studies on colonial-era artefacts.
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