A new report focused on the Dutch Restitutions Commission, a government apparatus that manages restitution claims involving Nazi-looted art in the Netherlands, urges the panel to become “more empathic” and “less formalistic” in its handling of such claims, according to the New York Times. The newspaper reports that two members of the Dutch Restitutions Commission, including its chairman, resigned upon the release of the new assessment, which was executed by a committee appointed by the country’s culture minister.
The new report recommends that the Dutch Restitutions Commission abolish its “balance of interests” methods, which takes into account the concerns of both claimants and museums. The committee that created the report was headed by Jacob Kohnstamm, who works as a lawyer, and its research involved interviews with claimants, attorneys, restitution experts, museum leaders, and others.
“If it’s looted art and there’s an heir, the interests of the museum shouldn’t be … Read the rest