诉讼在纳粹掠夺文物追索中的适应性扩展——兼论诉讼追索日本掠夺文物的可行性及策略

Adaptive Expansion of Litigation in the Pursuit of Nazi’s Plunder of Cultural Relics——Also on the Feasibility and Strategy of Pursuing Japan’s Plunder of Cultural Relics

欧美国家在司法实践的积累与探索中,通过适用豁免例外规则,对“国家行为原则”进行限制解释,积极援引有关国际公约精神和软法原则,以及附加诉讼时效起算规则的适用条件等方式,在一定程度上突破了诉讼适用于纳粹掠夺文物追索的局限性和制约因素。特殊诉讼时效规则的确立和返还法律阻碍的减少,进一步扩展了诉讼在此类案件中的适用性。由于历史原因和现实因素,中国通过诉讼追索日掠文物存在比纳粹掠夺文物追索更多的障碍,将诉讼途径主要用于追索被掠的私人文物,选择符合管辖条件的争议标的在美国提起此类诉讼,主张国际习惯法中战争罪诉讼时效规则的适用,以及建立并依托专业机构协助开展调查和证据搜集,是扩大诉讼在日掠文物追索中的适应性、提高胜诉概率的可能方式。

In the accumulation and exploration of judicial practice,European and American countries have established jurisdiction over the restitution claims of Nazi’s plunder of cultural relics through application of the exceptional rule of state immunity,made a restricted interpretation of“Act of State Doctrine”,cited related international conventions and soft law principles,and added application conditions for additional limitation rules,etc.,which,to a certain extent,breaks through the limitation and restriction factors applicable to the pursuit of Nazi’s plunder of cultural relics.Due to historical and practical reasons,there might be more obstacles for China to recover the cultural properties looted by Japan during the World War II through lawsuits.The following strategies may help to expand the adaptability of litigation in the recovery of looted cultural relics and improve the probability of success in such restitution claims,as using the litigation method mainly in the recovery of the private cultural property,filing a lawsuit in the jurisdictional court in the United States,claiming the application of the rule of prescription of war crimes in international customary law,establishing and relying on professional institutions to assist in investigation and evidence collection,etc.