Beyond the transactional

For the final entry in our series of blog posts about the new Code of Ethics, Steph Scholten, director of the Hunterian, stresses the importance of ethical, people-centred return processes.

The UK’s museums are intimately linked with histories of colonialism, slavery and empire. The millions of items that we care for and exhibit are a record of the lives and cultures from peoples across the world and represent our interwoven histories over the centuries.

Ancestors, cultural, natural and scientific items in the collections are in part a legacy of past injustices that continue to impact the lives of people today. 

The new MA Code of Ethics expresses the aspiration that museums should play an important role in addressing questions of access, self-determination and self-representation of communities, peoples and nations, including taking “an open, proactive and positive approach to repatriation and restitution” and to “deal sensitively and promptly with [repatriation] requests whether from the UK or from abroad”.

Most times, but especially when considering returns from the colonial era, returns* are – or should be – beyond the transactional, with legal arguments taking a backseat to ethical considerations. In practice, almost all processes of return are different and should place proposed recipients at the centre of discussions.

It requires a high level of cultural sensitivity and openness to be able to navigate these processes successfully. This is something that we can and should learn as museum institutions and professionals, letting the new Code of Ethics concretely guide our practice.

*Return may also be called restitution or rematriation | repatriation

MA individual members and representatives for institutional members will have the opportunity to vote on the new Code of Ethics as part of the AGM agenda that will be distributed to members from 19 September. Voting will take place through an independent online voting provider.