Nothing more than legal piracyDecember 12, 2011Dear Sir,To my mind, the Historic Wrecks Act of 2001 is not ‘a good and just law’. (Royal Gazette, Saturday December 10, Page 11). The treasure laws of Britain are ‘good and just laws’. As I understand them, and I am no expert on any of this, in Britain, any treasure found does belong to the State (Government), but on the treasure being turned over to the State, a fair market price (not set by the State [Government] conflict of interests) is set and paid to the finder of any treasure kept by the state. Those not kept for any reason are returned to the finder. In this way, the amateur finder is compensated for his/her good fortune and hard work perhaps over many years. I see nothing wrong with this system; it certainly makes plundering a site found less likely to happen and surely that is to the benefit of the State and the people? For a government/state to confiscate found treasure when the finder is honest and brings it to the attention of the authorities is nothing more than legal piracy and nothing less.As for shipwrecks themselves, if one is discovered by a casual diver or an amateur archaeologist, certainly they should report the find so proper excavations can be carried out, but unless the law allows the finder some recognition and financial reward for his/her diligence, there is every chance the site will be plundered. This is not only a fact today, but has been evident for thousands of years; without due compensation, historic sites and finds are plundered. For the government to take without reward is stealing. I for one would plunder if no reward was offered, but would happily turn over to the State and to the right professional archaeological team if compensated as in Great Britain for my find.MARK EMMERSONCity of Hamilton