The publication of the "News Weekend" entitled "The Elgin Marbles must be returned to Athens immediately!" brought to light unknown letters from 1986 from the current British Prime Minister to the then Minister of Culture of Greece Melina Mercouri in which he seems to be in favour of the reunification of the Parthenon Sculptures. The documentary letters expose Boris Johnson who now refuses to enter into a dialogue with Greece over the return of the Marbles, while now claiming that Lord Elgin legally acquired them.
The "News" story reached the British press commenting on the British Prime Minister's inconsistency. Specifically, The Telegraph in an article entitled "Letters reveal Boris Johnson denounced the government for not returning the Elgin Marbles", refers to the letters from the then student Johnson to Melina Mercouri as revealing the completely different attitude he held when he was younger.
What the Telegraph reports
Specifically, in two letters he sent, which have come to light, he expressed himself as a young man passionately in favour of returning the marbles to Greece, blaming Lord Elgin for the "utter looting" that their transfer to Britain meant.
The previously unpublished letters were written in 1986.
The previously unpublished letters were written in 1986. At the time, the young Johnson was doing his undergraduate studies at Oxford University and was also President of the Oxford Union. In his letters he accused the British government of "sophistry and intransigence."
It is worth noting that Boris Johnson, then 21, claimed that the British government's policies were "unacceptable to cultured people" and expressed regret at the scandalous manipulations.
The "illegal" Elgin
The letters, which were revealed by the newspaper "Ta Nea", were written with Melina Mercouri as the final recipient, with the then young student unreservedly in favour of reunification. He claimed that Lord Elgin had moved without securing the legal permissions, which further "shook" the British government.
However, Prime Minister Boris Johnson now rejected Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis' immediate request for the return of the sculptures, claiming that they rightfully belong to the British Museum.
In an interview with Newspapers in March 2021, he said: "I understand the strong feelings of the Greek people - and especially the Prime Minister - on this issue. But the UK government has a firm long-standing position on the sculptures, which is that they were legally acquired by Lord Elgin in accordance with the laws of the time and have been legally owned by the trustees of the British Museum since their acquisition."
It is worth noting that in letters he wrote as a young student he pointed out that even the Turkish authorities "denied that the people who had sold these sculptures had any right to dispose of them. Johnson accused Lord Elgin of exploiting the "near anarchy" of the Ottoman Empire to remove them.
What Johnson claims
According to the newspaper, the letters were discovered in an Oxford library and their authenticity has been confirmed by an Oxford source and a person serving as an official of the Greek state at the time.
The revelation comes six months after the News republished an article by Boris Johnson in April 1986, in which he urged the British government to return the sculptures to Greece, claiming they had been illegally removed from the ancient temple in Athens.
Of course, British government sources claim that Johnson had written the article in a momentary burst of youthful enthusiasm, but later changed his mind. However, his wording in one of the letters makes sense: "I think the majority of students agree with me when I say that there is absolutely no reason why the Sculptures, the most important and beautiful treasures left to us by the ancient world, should not be returned immediately by the British Museum to their rightful home in Athens."
In any case, those in favour of the reunification and repatriation of the Sculptures claim that the fact that these letters have seen the light of day will put further pressure on the British government to reach an agreement with Greece, while also highlighting the hypocrisy of the British Prime Minister.
Source: in.gr
Contents of this article including associated images are belongs Cyprus Times
Views & opinions expressed are those of the author and/or Cyprus Times
Source
