UK Leader Will Return Elgin Marbles
The Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn says he will work to return the Parthenon sculptures to Greece if elected as British prime minster. Corbyn says the antiquities were “made in and belong to Greece†and that, on entering Downing Street, he would begin “constructive talks†with the Greek government to secure their repatriation. His comments, first made to the Greek newspaper Ta Nea, come days after Unesco called for talks between the two nations. Twelve countries, including for the first time France, backed Unesco’s stance. The United Nations agency said both sides need “to find a mutually acceptable solution to this long-term issueâ€. The fifth century BC statues have been housed in the British Museum since 1816 after they were removed from the Parthenon temple on the Acropolis in Athens by the Scottish nobleman Lord Elgin, the then Ottoman ambassador.
