The Norwegian Blue Shield Committee (BSN) in 2008 consisted of Anne Hustad (IFLA), Axel Mykleby (ICOMOS), Leif Pareli (ICOM) and Lars Jørgen Sandberg (ICA). Leif Pareli served as Chairman until October, when Axel Mykleby took over as Chairman elected until spring 2010. The committee had only one meeting during the year (October 13th) but had frequent contact by e-mail.

A soldiers’ handbook
An earlier project of producing a handbook for military personnel participating in international operations, dealing with topics such as defining cultural heritage, explaining the importance of protecting cultural heritage in war situations and giving an overview of relevant international conventions as well as national legislation, has been halted, pending an initiative from the Defence Ministry of including such topics in their own publications. The project may be reactivated if considered necessary.

National advisory committee
Since 2005, BSN has been calling for the establishment of a national advisory committee concerning cultural heritage, as proposed in the First Protocol of the Hague Convention. The Ministry of the Environment has indicated that this proposal would be considered as part of the current process of developing a strategy for implementing the Hague Convention. Blue Shield Norway will continue to advocate the establishment of such a committee and its offer to serve on the committee.

The founding of ANCBS
Leif Pareli continued in 2008 to participate in the international working group preparing the founding of ANCBS – The Association of National Committees of the Blue Shield. The working group had two meetings in 2008 and frequent contact by e-mail. ANCBS was founded in The Hague, The Netherlands, on December 9th, 2008, with the participation of eleven national committees, including Norway. As President of ANCBS was elected Karl von Habsburg from Austria, as Secretary Marjan Otter from the Netherlands, and as Treasurer Axel Mykleby from Norway. Other board members and deputy members came from France, The United States, The United Kingdom, Macedonia and Poland.

Finances
BSN has until now not had its own budget or resources; occasional expenses have been covered by the member organizations or by the Norwegian Archive, Library and Museum Authority (ABM-utvikling). However, in 2007 it was agreed that each of the member organizations should make an annual contribution of NOK 2000 towards covering such expenses. BSN will ask ICOM Norway for assistance in its fiscal matters.

Homepages
BSN purchased in 2008 the domain www.blueshield.no; however, for capacity reasons, BSN will continue to use the Blue Shield pages on the homepages of ICOM Norway.

Participation in Travel and Tourism Exhibition
BSN was invited to participate in the Norwegian Travel and Tourism Exhibition in January 2009, with UNESCO, ABM-u and ICOM Norway who last year had an information stand about illegal trade with cultural property. Several meetings were held during the autumn 2008 to prepare a leaflet to be handed out.

Status by the end of the year
The Committee will continue its pressure on government authorities for implementation of The Hague Convention, likewise the call for ratification of the Second Protocol and for a government initiative to create a national emergency plan for cultural heritage. Several of these issues were continued from earlier years and will probably continue to be on the agenda for the foreseeable future.

At the same time, the Committee realizes that the Blue Shield idea has a fragile basis and that knowledge about the Blue Shield idea – and goodwill towards its work – must be strengthened in the participating organizations in Norway. It is also important to strengthen Blue Shield work in an international context, first and foremost through the newly founded ANCBS; also direct and bilateral cooperation with existing national Blue Shield committees should be initiated wherever that might be useful.

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