Lobby for Cyprus 19th July 2017

Discussing #TheIconHunter campaign to preserve cultural heritage

Tasoula Hadjitofi will discuss her experiences of war and injustice; her ongoing campaign to preserve cultural heritage worldwide and her tireless work to combat art trafficking. The event is also supported by the following speakers:-

Professor Mark Altaweel is a Reader in Near East Archaeology at University College London.He has been involved in a variety of research projects in the Middle East and has experience in investigating looted antiquities from the region. His work includes the social history of the ancient Near East and in presenting its importance in shaping world history and culture. He has been extensively interviewed about recent events in Syria and Iraq.

Dr Ara Sarafian is a historian specialising in late Ottoman and modern Armenian history. He is the director of the Gomidas Institute in London. In recent years he has worked as an academic activist with Turkish civil society organisations, professional bodies, and municipalities, to stop the destruction of Turkey’s diverse cultural heritage, to build bridges between communities and to reintegrate the history of Armenians into its broader regional context.

CHAIR
Nick Kounoupias is a specialist lawyer in intellectual property, fraud, cultural property and international justice law. Nick was the UK lawyer for the Church of Cyprus, tasked with recovering and repatriating mosaics and icons stolen from churches and monasteries in the occupied area of Cyprus.