Subject: CINOA CONFERENCE & AGM June 2018

 

7 July 2018- CINOA had a very productive meeting for members on June 19^th, 2018 which was attended by representatives from dealer associations from 12 European and 2 American dealer associations as well as CINOA’s associate member, The International League of Antiquarian Booksellers (ILAB).

Most notably, it was agreed that CINOA, as the principal art and antique dealer federation, will continue to be proactive in order to help protect the trade from unnecessary financial and administrative obligations. The CINOA Secretariat will maintain its advocating as legislative issues that dealers are facing are getting more complex and this complexity is compounded by the increased velocity with which changes occur.

By building on the work outlined in the CINOA Campaign Report January-June 2018, CINOA will continue its outreach campaigns in order to educate and help ensure that new legislation will be well-balanced and not adversely affect art and antique dealers.

The CINOA Secretariat will continue to work with the EU, UNESCO and all law enforcement authorities regarding illicit trade in art and antiques. CINOA and its members fully condemn any actions taken by individuals or groups that damage the reputation of what is historically a long-standing trade. Through working with government and law enforcement agencies, CINOA feels that it can help develop appropriate measures to combat illicit trade. Our underlying intention is to do everything we can to support the rule of law and the protection of cultural property. CINOA, of course, supports the lawful prosecution of rogue traders and of individuals or groups involved in any art related conspiracies. Furthermore, at the same time, we will continue to caution the authorities against any unnecessary legislation, often a reaction to the actions of a few rogue dealers, which hurts the legitimate trade.

The CINOA Secretariat will persist in advocating for the need for a better analysis and statistics to know if, and to what extent, the art trade is a source for terrorism financing because there is no hard proof that there is a systematic link.

The CINOA Secretariat will also advocate for dealers regarding specific emerging legislation that targets art and antiquities dealers such as the need for a well-balanced EU legislation for the import of cultural goods. To this end, today we have again submitted an updated position paper and are in discussions with MEP’s and EU officials.

The CINOA Secretariat will continue to support the efforts being made to avoid the disproportionate new US Anti-Money Laundering legislation which is being considered. This new legislation which has been introduced in the US House Financial Services Committee, if it becomes a law, could place a significant financial and administrative burden on art and art dealers.

CINOA firmly believes that it is important for the trade to band together on issues where common positions are held. CINOA is actively seeking better lines of communication with other groups in the art and antique sector, such as auction houses, insurance companies, transporters, experts, collector groups, art professionals, etc. that share common advocacy goals. More information on our policy and position papers, are available on the CINOA website, www.CINOA.org, in the Perspectives section.

 

QUOTES from two representatives and CINOA’s president:

Eric Meletta, President Kunsthändlerverband Deutschland e.V. (KD) CINOA Board member:

 “We believe it is vital that CINOA continues to work with the Brussels to ensure that our concerns about the proposed legislation are heard.  Unfortunately, our organisation has very limited connections to MEPs in Brussel which is why we decided to offer additional sponsorship for CINOA’s advocacy efforts. We are convinced that more lobbying is required since the potential problems related to the new EU proposal on the import of Cultural Goods, Anti-Money laundering legislation and emerging legislation to combat illicit trade in Cultural Goods are not resolved.”

 

Francois Belfort, Managing Director, Syndicat National des Antiquaires (SNA) attended for the first time and gave his impressions:

“The CINOA AGM meetings 2018 in Italy offered a platform to hear the different perceptions and analysis of the more than a dozen different dealer associations. Market trends as well as opportunities were discussed with transparency. Key issues were discussed such as stronger involvement of professional associations against illicit traffic and stronger actions to help prevent trafficking in the countries with armed conflict. “Mr Belfort stated that “More visibility of the international association CINOA is a priority to make national associations and local art dealers more recognized.”. He added that he looks forward to working towards the issues discussed during the meeting and to attending the CINOA meetings again next year.

 

Clinton Howell, President of CINOA:

“CINOA is committed to working on behalf of the international dealer community. CINOA is also committed to working with the various governments represented by our constituents in creating fair and equitable laws that understand the burdens of small businesses. It is essential that a dialogue of law makers and CINOA members continue in order to create protections against undue burdens yet which contribute to the decrease of any and all illegal activity. This proposition was agreed to by all the delegates in attendance.”

 

 

For any further details contact:

Clinton Howell, President of CINOA: clintonrhowell@gmail.com

Erika Bochereau, Secretary General: erika@cinoa.org

 

For more information on CINOA: www. Cinoa.org

CINOA is the principal international confederation of art & antique dealer associations (www.cinoa.org). Established in 1935, CINOA is the global leader in representing the international art and antiques trade, setting benchmark standards for the industry including the world-wide adoption of The CINOA Code of Ethics. Affiliated dealers – from 19 EU dealer associations representing 13 Member States plus associations from the United States, South Africa, Australia and Russia– cover a wide array of specialties from antiquities to contemporary art.

CINOA actively campaigns on major issues affecting the industry, while working hard on improving standards further in the interests of best practice, transparency and consumer protection. No other industry body within the international art and antiques market offers such an extensive reach or one-stop access to the world’s first rank of trade professionals. CINOA responds proactively to dealers’ concerns and offers international support to the CINOA dealer associations. Members benefit from shared knowledge and an international network of experts on art, antiques and related matters.

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