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Combating the illicit trafficking of cultural property.
Heritage and international security

July 28 and 29, 2026

Cultural heritage is collective memory.

Cultural heritageconstitutesonly humanity's irreplaceable memory. Its systematic looting represents not amaterial loss, butalso theidentitydeliberate destruction of therootsof entire communities. Faced with a criminal economy that operates with increasing sophistication, invisibility, and transnational reach, fragmented responses are insufficient.  

Latin America and West Africa constitute a key geostrategic space. They are regions of origin of archaeological, ethnographic, and artistic heritage of immense value, and are transit territories used by hybrid logistics networks and contexts where institutional weaknesses can be exploited by criminal organizations.  

This course proposes a qualitative leap: moving from ad hoc reactions to an integrated response architecture that combines operational intelligence, judicial cooperation, cultural diplomacy, and cutting-edge technological tools. It proposes addressing the phenomenon as a multidimensional threat, integrating security, human rights, multi-level governance, and traceability technologies.  

Director
Francisco Aznar Vallejo,
President of the International Center for Heritage Conservation Foundation (CICOP).

Rapporteur
Ramiro Rosón Mesa,
PhD in Law from the Carlos III University of Madrid and Master in Cultural Heritage Management from the University of La Laguna.

The course is taught in person or can be followed live online.
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Jose Segura Clavell-2

José Segura Clavell

José Segura Clavell. Director General of Casa África. Doctor of Chemical Sciences, Professor of Thermodynamics at the Official School of Nautical Studies of Tenerife and Professor of Applied Physics at the University of La Laguna.
Photo by Ramiro Rosón (3)

Ramiro Rosón Mesa

Doctor of Law from the Carlos III University of Madrid and Master in Cultural Heritage Management.
Francisco Aznar Vallejo

Francisco Aznar Vallejo

President of the International Center for Heritage Conservation Foundation (CICOP). Professor of Methodology and Didactics of the Arts at the University of La Laguna.
Mohamed Joudat

Mohamed Joudat

Professor of Arts and Humanities at Mohammed V University in Rabat. He chairs the International Organization for the Protection of Heritage in Casablanca.
Alesia Koush

Alesia Koush

Holder of the UNESCO Chair on Illicit Trafficking of Cultural Property and Cultural Rights, University of Siena-CAMNES of Ancient Mediterranean and Near Eastern Studies.
Jesus Prieto de Pedro

Jesus Prieto de Pedro

Professor Emeritus of Administrative Law at the UNED (National University of Distance Education). Holder of the Andrés Bello Chair of Cultural Rights. He has served as the Government's expert to UNESCO.
Joaquín Moscoso Novillo

Joaquín Moscoso Novillo

Doctor of Jurisprudence. International consultant on cultural legislation. Former Undersecretary of Cultural Heritage and former Director of the Institute of Cultural Heritage of Ecuador.

Course program:
Combating the illicit trafficking of cultural property. Heritage and international security

Conference. Heritage and cultural property as a matter of international security and human rights

Revitalization of democracy and human rights
Tuesday, July 28, 2026 |
10:00 - 10:45
Anchieta House
Mohamed Joudat. Professor of Letters and Human Sciences at Mohammed V University in Rabat. He is the President of the International Organization for the Protection of Heritage in Casablanca.

Round table discussion. Can the protection of cultural heritage be considered an essential element of human security in the 21st century?

Revitalization of democracy and human rights
Tuesday, July 28, 2026 |
10:45 - 11:20
Anchieta House
Mohamed Joudat, Professor of Arts and Humanities at Mohammed V University in Rabat. Joaquín Moscoso Novillo, Doctor of Jurisprudence, International Consultant on Cultural Legislation. Jesús Prieto de Pedro, Emeritus Professor of Administrative Law at UNED (National University of Distance Education), Holder of the Andrés Bello Chair of Cultural Rights. Alesia Koush, Holder of the UNESCO Chair on Illicit Trafficking in Cultural Property and Cultural Rights, University of Siena-CAMNES of Ancient Mediterranean and Near Eastern Studies. Moderator: Ramiro Rosón Mesa, Doctor of Law from Carlos III University of Madrid and Master in Cultural Heritage Management.

Conference. The dignity of reparations for African countries

Revitalization of democracy and human rights
Tuesday, July 28, 2026 |
11:20 - 11:40
Anchieta House
José Segura Clavell. Director General of Casa África. Doctor of Chemical Sciences, Professor of Thermodynamics at the Official School of Nautical Studies of Tenerife and Professor of Applied Physics at the University of La Laguna.

Conference. Institutional frameworks and public policies on cultural heritage: the Latin American experience in the face of the illicit trafficking of cultural property

Revitalization of democracy and human rights
Tuesday, July 28, 2026 |
12:00 - 12:45
Anchieta House
Joaquín Moscoso Novillo. Doctor of Jurisprudence. International consultant on cultural legislation. Former Undersecretary of Cultural Heritage and former Director of the Institute of Cultural Heritage of Ecuador.

Round table. What heritage management models allow for the effective reconciliation of conservation, social participation, sustainable development and protection in relation to the illicit trafficking of heritage?

Revitalization of democracy and human rights
Tuesday, July 28, 2026 |
12:45 - 13:30
Anchieta House
Mohamed Joudat, Professor of Arts and Humanities at Mohammed V University in Rabat. Joaquín Moscoso Novillo, Doctor of Jurisprudence, International Consultant on Cultural Legislation. Jesús Prieto de Pedro, Emeritus Professor of Administrative Law at UNED (National University of Distance Education), Holder of the Andrés Bello Chair of Cultural Rights. Alesia Koush, Holder of the UNESCO Chair on Illicit Trafficking in Cultural Property and Cultural Rights, University of Siena-CAMNES of Ancient Mediterranean and Near Eastern Studies. Moderator: Ramiro Rosón Mesa, Doctor of Law from Carlos III University of Madrid and Master in Cultural Heritage Management.

Conference. A turning point against the plundering and illicit trafficking of underwater cultural heritage. The case of Nuestra Señora de las Mercedes

Revitalization of democracy and human rights
Wednesday, July 29, 2026 |
10:00 - 10:45
Anchieta House
Jesús Prieto de Pedro. Professor Emeritus of Administrative Law at the UNED (National University of Distance Education). Holder of the Andrés Bello Chair of Cultural Rights. He has served as the Government's expert to UNESCO.

Round table discussion. Can the law become a truly preventative tool against the plundering and illicit trafficking of cultural heritage, or does it continue to act primarily reactively?

Revitalization of democracy and human rights
Wednesday, July 29, 2026 |
10:45 - 11:30
Anchieta House
Mohamed Joudat, Professor of Arts and Humanities at Mohammed V University in Rabat. Joaquín Moscoso Novillo, Doctor of Jurisprudence, International Consultant on Cultural Legislation. Jesús Prieto de Pedro, Emeritus Professor of Administrative Law at UNED (National University of Distance Education), Holder of the Andrés Bello Chair of Cultural Rights. Alesia Koush, Holder of the UNESCO Chair on Illicit Trafficking in Cultural Property and Cultural Rights, University of Siena-CAMNES of Ancient Mediterranean and Near Eastern Studies. Moderator: Ramiro Rosón Mesa, Doctor of Law from Carlos III University of Madrid and Master in Cultural Heritage Management.

Conference. Human rights implications of the illicit trafficking of cultural property: legal challenges and grassroots approaches

Revitalization of democracy and human rights
Wednesday, July 29, 2026 |
12:00 - 12:45
Anchieta House
Alesia Koush. Holder of the UNESCO Chair on Illicit Trafficking of Cultural Property and Cultural Rights, University of Siena-CAMNES Centre for Studies of the Ancient Mediterranean and the Near East.

Round table. On the right to justice: communities, human rights and the limits of the international legal framework in the face of illicit trafficking of cultural property

Revitalization of democracy and human rights
Wednesday, July 29, 2026 |
12:45 - 13:30
Anchieta House
Mohamed Joudat, Professor of Arts and Humanities at Mohammed V University in Rabat. Joaquín Moscoso Novillo, Doctor of Jurisprudence, International Consultant on Cultural Legislation. Jesús Prieto de Pedro, Emeritus Professor of Administrative Law at UNED (National University of Distance Education), Holder of the Andrés Bello Chair of Cultural Rights. Alesia Koush, Holder of the UNESCO Chair on Illicit Trafficking in Cultural Property and Cultural Rights, University of Siena-CAMNES of Ancient Mediterranean and Near Eastern Studies. Moderator: Ramiro Rosón Mesa, Doctor of Law from Carlos III University of Madrid and Master in Cultural Heritage Management.