The destruction of the Bamiyan Buddhas raises a fundamental issue - of national sovereignty. It may be argued, after all, that since the Buddhas were situated in Afghanistan, its rulers have the right to do as they wished with them. Clearly, the outrage felt by the world at the fate of the Bamiyan Buddhas implies a widespread belief that these monuments are part of a cultural heritage of humankind as a whole. Should the notion of national sovereignty be abandoned altogether?