On January 15, a mammoth 750 kilograms of illegally imported dinosaur, mammal and reptile fossils seized by Australian side over the past two years were returned to the Chinese Government.

Minister for the Environment, Heritage and the Arts, the Hon Peter Garrett AM MP, officially handed the fossils back to His Excellency Mr. Zhang Junsai, Ambassador of the People's Republic of China, at a special ceremony in Canberra.

In his speech, Ambassador Zhang said, "On behalf of the Chinese Government, Ministry of Land and Resources and the Chinese Embassy, I would like to express our heartfelt thanks to the Australian Government for returning another 750 kilograms of fossils to the Chinese Government.

This is the third handover ceremony between Australia and China since 2004. Over the past few years, the Australian Government has in a number of operations seized a large amount of valuable Chinese fossils of dinosaurs, dinosaur eggs, ancient turtles, early elephants, fish and other marine life illegally exported from China, the most ancient pieces dating back to almost 450 million years ago.

In line with the Protection of Movable Cultural Heritage Act of Australia and the UNESCO Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export of Cultural Property, the Australian Government has done a commendable job in tracking down the fossils and returning every single piece of them to their rightful owners. The righteous act of the Australian Government has not only won appreciation from the Chinese Government and the international community, but also lived up to its reputation of a law-abiding nation in the world. The longstanding partnership between the Chinese and Australian government in cracking down on the illicit sales of movable natural and cultural heritage has indeed set an outstanding example of international cooperation in this field.

The seizure and handover of illegal fossils by the Australia government in recent years has sent out a clear and uncompromising message: Australia is by no means a haven for fossils and relics smugglers; such reckless risk-taking will not escape the punishment of law.

It is true that there is still a long way to go before we could ultimately eradicate illicit traffic of movable natural and cultural heritage in the world. But I can assure you that China is working very hard and seriously on the conservation of its natural and cultural heritage. The past few years have seen adoption of tougher legislation and strengthening of law enforcement by the Chinese Government in cracking down on fossil and relic smugglings. It is my firm belief that the joint efforts by our two countries will significantly help in achieving that end.

On behalf the Chinese government, I would like to present to the Australian government with a letter of thanks from the Ministry of Land and Resources of China and six pieces of fossil specimens from the Chinese government as a token of appreciation and friendship to the Australian government and people."

Mr Garrett said the Australian and Chinese Governments were working to protect some of the world's most significant cultural heritage objects.

The fossils were seized between 2004 and 2007 under the Australian Government's Protection of Movable Cultural Heritage Act 1986, in a number of joint operations by the Australian Federal Police and the Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts. The most recent seizure took place in November 2007.