Przemyt zabytków jako nadużycie statusu poczty dyplomatycznej

Artykuł dotyczy szczególnej sytuacji przemytu zabytków dokonywanego z wykorzystaniem poczty dyplomatycznej. Autor ukazuje charakterystykę polskich regulacji ustawowych dotyczących ograniczeń wywozu zabytków za granicę, jak również wskazuje na istniejące w tym zakresie uregulowania międzynarodowe. Ze względu na pojawiające się niekiedy przypadki przemytu dzieł sztuki dokonywanego z nadużyciem chronionego statusu poczty dyplomatycznej, artykuł krótko przedstawia status przesyłek ją stanowiących w myśl czterech konwencji kodyfikujących prawo dyplomatyczne, jak również w oparciu o projekt Komisji Prawa Międzynarodowego ONZ z 1989 roku. Wskazane są również możliwe sposoby przeciwdziałania komentowanemu zjawisku w świetle prawa międzynarodowego.

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This is an article on status of diplomatic bag and its abuses, especially those connected with smuggling of antiques. The rules on export of cultural property are included in Polish domestic regulations and in multilateral international conventions as well. Generally speaking they require the special certificates for transportation of valuable antiques abroad. For example, in Poland a proper certificates are issued by the Minister of Culture and National Heritage. Diplomatic and consular law has been codified in four conventions concluded within the United Nations. It means: the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, the 1963 Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, the 1969 New York Convention on Special Missions and 1975 Vienna Convention on Representation of States in their Relations with International Organizations of Universal Character. Each of these conventions contains the provisions regarding diplomatic or consular bag and the means of its transportation. Apart from the aforementioned sources of law there is another important document prepared by International Law Commission (ILC) which has been strictly dedicated to topic examined in this article. Unfortunately it has never become a law and remained in the form of 1989 ILC Draft articles on the status of the diplomatic courier and the diplomatic bag not accompanied by diplomatic courier. The basic rule determining the legal status of diplomatic bag is contained in art. 27 § 3 of 1961 Vienna Convention which stipulates: the diplomatic bag should not be opened or detained. However art. 35 § 3 of 1963 Convention on Consular relations allows the limited inspection of consular bag. To the contrary the 1989 ILC Draft Articles contains quite opposite regulation which in art. 28 § 1 expressly excludes any form of examination of diplomatic bag including examination through electronic or other technical devices. This article is supposed to present the possible means for fighting abuses of diplomatic bag according to the four codification conventions. It’s is also meant to prove that formula presented in art. 27 § 3 of 1961 Vienna Convention does not exclude the non-intrusive means of inspection of diplomatic bag.