Looted Heritage, Hollow Diplomacy? The repatriation of looted cultural artifacts from Indonesia's Papua region to President Prabowo Subianto marks a rare win for cultural heritage preservation.
However, the circumstances surrounding this handover raise more questions than answers about the true nature of international cooperation on cultural theft.
Allegedly taken by American interests and brought back to the United States without permission, the artifacts were returned following a meeting between Indonesian Culture Minister Zulkifli Hasan and FBI Director Kash Patel, with President Subianto presiding over the ceremony at his residence in Jakarta.