“SECURITY – A COMMON CAUSE” IX International Conference, Wrocław, 25 September 2008

The IX International Conference “Security – a Common Cause” was held in Wrocław on 25 September 2008 under the slogan of ”The police and the protection of cultural property in a new European reality”; the organiser was the Marshal’s Office of the Voivodeship of Lower Silesia and the Voivodeship Police Headquarters in Wrocław. The topic of the conference was the cooperation of the police force and the conservation office, the role of the administration of the Catholic Church in the protection of sacral monuments, the tasks and activity of the Centre for the Protection of Public Collections, the assorted parts played by the legal-penal protection of cultural property, and questions associated with the interpretation of legal regulations and definitions concerning the protection of historical monuments. One of the papers dealt with the cooperation between the National Heritage Board of Poland and the police force as regards the protection of archaeological heritage. The foreign guests acquainted the conference participants with various forms of activity relating to the protection of the cultural heritage in Italy, France and the German lands: Saxony, Hessen and Lower Saxony. The papers drew attention to the need for the education of society and improving its awareness about the protection of the cultural heritage as well as the necessity of furthering the close cooperation between the police force and the services dealing with the protection of historical monuments in countries represented at the meeting