BRICS Policy Center/PUC-Rio participates in the International Seminar on the Return of Cultural Property under the auspices of the Brazilian BRICS 2025 Presidency, organized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MRE) and the University of São Paulo (USP).

On November 11th and 12th, Professor Marcelo Cappucci represented BPC/PUC-Rio at the International Seminar on the Return of Cultural Property under the auspices of the Brazilian Presidency of BRICS 2025. These were days of exchanging experiences and debates on repatriation, restitution, and cultural justice.

The seminar debates brought together experts such as Didier Houénoudé (University of Abomey-Calavi, Benin), Pierre Losson (The Graduate Center – CUNY), Tatiana Carvalho Teixeira (Ministry of Foreign Affairs), Ciraj Rassool (University of the Western Cape), Wang Yunxia (Renmin University of China), Marco Antonio Nakata (Guimarães Rosa Institute), Hemasagar A. Naik (Archaeological Survey of India), and Bénédicte Savoy (Technische Universität Berlin). They highlighted the conceptual and political difference between “return” and “restitution,” discussed dimensions of legitimacy and ethics beyond strict legality, and emphasized that the return of cultural property should be understood as a matter of human rights, identity, and historical justice.

Participants also drew attention to operational challenges: the importance of the fate of cultural assets, the need for transparency in inventories, as highlighted by Karamina Puspitasari (Indonesian Heritage Agency) and Tonico Benites Avá Kaiowá (National Museum/UFRJ), and the relevance of multilateral actions that strengthen less favored countries. Finally, an informal expression of interest was noted from Tatiana Carvalho Teixeira (MRE) in holding a similar event at the BPC in 2026.