Social media users in China are urging the British Museum to return Chinese artifacts, which were taken following the theft of approximately 2,000 objects.
The demand became very popular on Weibo after an article in a nationalist newspaper that is controlled by the government.
The Global Times is asking the museum to return all Chinese cultural artifacts without asking for payment.
The Chinese government has not said anything about the problem yet.
The BBC has contacted the British Museum for a reply, but has not yet received a response.
The museum is feeling stressed because about 2,000 things were said to be gone, taken or harmed two weeks ago.
An employee lost their job when the news was first announced. Last week, the person in charge, Hartwig Fischer, said he will leave his position.
In this article, Global Times said that the famous museum did not do a good job of taking care of cultural items from other countries.
The British Museum has been found to have big problems with how they manage and protect cultural objects. This scandal has shown that the claim that foreign cultural objects are safer in the British Museum is not true anymore.
The British Museum has a really large collection of old Chinese things in the Western world. According to their website, they have around 23,000 Chinese items. These items range from really old times to now.
These include many valuable things like art, jewels, and pottery. One very famous artwork is a copy of a long piece of paper called “Advice for the Ladies in the Royal Court”. It is an amazing artwork that is very important in the history of Chinese art.
Chinese people online have been asking the British Museum for a while now to give back the things they took, because a lot of Chinese people are feeling very proud of their country.
But more people are talking about the editorial on the theft this time.
The hashtag “The British Museum please give back Chinese old things” was the most popular topic on Weibo’s search list until noon on Monday. This has been seen over five hundred million times.
“Give back the things to the person who originally owned them,” says a comment that has been appreciated by over 32,000 people.
“Now that the country has a lot of money and the people are powerful, it is time to bring our valuable things back to our home,” another top comment says.
Many people agree with Global Times’ request, but some people were not as impressed.
“Why not visit the UK to see our amazing things. Just talking on Weibo in China is too careful and embarrassing,” a message that over 10,000 people liked says.
The Global Times, a newspaper that strongly supports aggressive actions, has been at the forefront of publishing critical articles in English against Western countries. This has been especially true in recent years, as China’s relationship with the West has gotten worse.
It is uncertain if the Chinese government will do anything after receiving the requests.
But the feeling of asking the museum to give back objects is not only felt by China.
After hearing about the theft, other countries have also stated that they no longer believe the British Museum can keep their ancient artifacts safe.
The Greek government has asked again for the Parthenon Sculptures, also known as the Elgin Marbles, to be returned.
Greece’s Minister of Culture, Lina Mendoni, said that the safety concerns about the missing objects strengthen Greece’s ongoing request for the Elgin marbles to be returned permanently.
Nigerian officials have asked the museum to give back the Benin Bronzes that were taken from the Benin kingdom and are now in its possession.
Tim Loughton, a politician from the Conservative Party who leads a group in Parliament for museums, has described these requests as “opportunistic”.
He said to the BBC that instead of taking advantage, other countries should come together to help bring back objects.