CHALLENGES OF CULTURAL HERITAGE MANAGEMENT. ETHICAL AND LEGAL ISSUES IN EXAMPLE OF HUMAN SKELETAL REMAINS

As a country geographically situated on the intersection of Central Europe, South-eastern Europe, and the Mediterranean coast, Croatia inherits many cultures and social groups that once inhabited its area. The abundance of archaeological sites containing human remains and artifacts from various historical periods can be found all over Croatia. Museums and other public institutions funded by the Croatian government or local government are responsible for managing the cultural property and archaeological finds. The purpose of this paper is to determine the connection between cultural heritage manage-ment and the development of local society and to determine legal and ethical challenges of cultural heritage management in museums and other related public institutions in Croatia in order to propose new solutions for improving the possibilities of presentation of cultural legacy. To determine relations between cultural property management and local communities' development, we researched literature related to the management of specific cultural heritage sites in Europe. To detect current flaws of cultural property management in Croatia, which will lead to proposing new methods and possibilities, we researched the protection and presentation of human skeletal remains obtained from archaeological sites in museums and related institutions in Croatia. The research was conducted among the government or local government-funded museums and related archaeological-anthropological institutions in a questionnaire. Data obtained from the questionnaire aims to produce concrete proposals for improving cultural heritage management in museums and related public institutions (in possession of cultural property) in Croatia.