Comments on: Diplomat tries to leave Iran with 6 tons of antiquties http://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/4007 History fetish? What history fetish? Wed, 08 Sep 2010 11:03:04 -0500 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: livius drusus http://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/4007/comment-page-1#comment-39588 livius drusus Sun, 22 Nov 2009 15:53:11 +0000 http://www.thehistoryblog.com/?p=4007#comment-39588 That just blows my mind. Clearly diplomatic immunity is a cover for many ills, which I'm pretty sure is not what it was created to do. It saddens me that the US ambassador didn't give the sculptures back instead of just keeping them for the staff club. Thank you for your sharing your experience. I'll definitely try to find out if there are any consequences for the Argentinean diplomat. That just blows my mind. Clearly diplomatic immunity is a cover for many ills, which I’m pretty sure is not what it was created to do. It saddens me that the US ambassador didn’t give the sculptures back instead of just keeping them for the staff club.

Thank you for your sharing your experience. I’ll definitely try to find out if there are any consequences for the Argentinean diplomat.

]]> By: Philip Coggan http://www.thehistoryblog.com/archives/4007/comment-page-1#comment-39572 Philip Coggan Sun, 22 Nov 2009 06:11:00 +0000 http://www.thehistoryblog.com/?p=4007#comment-39572 It might (if it's possible) be worth following up what the Argentinian foreign ministry does with their klepto dipo - sack him, or promote him and send him off on another mission. I once had the honour to serve in my own country's embassy in Burma. When I arrived the Burmese foreign ministry was holding 14 shipping crates of effects from the Counsellor of the Malaysian embassy. The Malaysians were refusing permission for the crates to be inspected, and the Burmese were refusing to clear them. They were still there when I left two years later. On my previous posting, in Bangladesh, the big thing was 'blackstone' - not the mercenaries, but Hindu/Buddhist sculptures from the Pala and Sena periods. The US staff club had a lovely collection. It seems someone at the US embassy had been buying them and shipping them back to home, where his partner was selling them. The ambassador eventually put a stop to it, and the final shipment ended up in the clubhouse. It might (if it’s possible) be worth following up what the Argentinian foreign ministry does with their klepto dipo – sack him, or promote him and send him off on another mission.

I once had the honour to serve in my own country’s embassy in Burma. When I arrived the Burmese foreign ministry was holding 14 shipping crates of effects from the Counsellor of the Malaysian embassy. The Malaysians were refusing permission for the crates to be inspected, and the Burmese were refusing to clear them. They were still there when I left two years later.

On my previous posting, in Bangladesh, the big thing was ‘blackstone’ – not the mercenaries, but Hindu/Buddhist sculptures from the Pala and Sena periods. The US staff club had a lovely collection. It seems someone at the US embassy had been buying them and shipping them back to home, where his partner was selling them. The ambassador eventually put a stop to it, and the final shipment ended up in the clubhouse.

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