EXAMINATION OF NOMINATIONS FOR INSCRIPTION ON THE REPRESENTATIVE LIST OF THE INTANGIBLE CULTURAL HERITAGE OF HUMANITY

Document ITH/15/10.COM/10.b+Add

Decision 10.COM 10

461.The Chairperson directed the attention of the room to Item 10.b: ‘Examination of nominations for inscription on the Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. The Chairperson advised the meeting that as per Document 10.b+Add, one nomination was withdrawn by the submitting State of Slovenia and therefore 34 files were to be examined. She noted that consistent with Decision 9.COM 13.c the Evaluation Body had recommended to refer files in cases when the file lacked the required information whether it be of technical or substantial nature. The Chairperson reminded that this option was proposed for application to other mechanisms as it currently was only applicable for the Representative List. In the same decision it had been emphasised that referral of a nomination should not be considered as a guarantee of future inscription of that element and that any future resubmission would have to demonstrate that inscription criteria were fully met. The Chairperson also recalled discussions on the referral option during previous sessions and in particular in Bali where it had been concluded that referring a file placed no obligation on a State, which could choose to resubmit or not a nomination at any future cycle therefore allowing the State to establish its own priorities for each cycle. Hence, a nomination could be submitted during the following cycle, that is, by 31 March of the year following the year of decision for possible inscription 18 months later, or during any other subsequent cycle. In any case, there would have to be a period of 18 months between the date of file submission and its examination by the Committee which was why referral decisions always say ‘invites the State Party to submit its nomination during a following cycle.’

462.The Chairperson reminded the Committee of the criteria that nominations need to satisfy for elements to be inscribed on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity and listed them.

463.The Chairperson moved to examination of individual files and gave the floor to the Chairperson of the Evaluation Body to share its findings on Afghanistan’s nomination.

464.The Chairperson of the Evaluation Body thanked the Chairperson and introduced the first nomination on Attan [draft decision 10.COM 10.b.1] submitted by Afghanistan for possible inscription on the Representative List.

465.The Evaluation Body considered that from the information in the nomination the submitting State did not demonstrate that any of five criteria were met. Concerning criterion R.1, the Body felt that additional information was necessary to better define the contours of the communities and groups concerned, as well as the social and cultural functions and significance of the element. Concerning criterion R.2, the Body felt the nomination described the expected consequences for Attan, but not the visibility of the intangible cultural heritage in general and therefore considered that this criterion was not satisfied as descriptions of previous, current and proposed safeguarding measures lacked clarity, consistency and specificity. Criterion R.3 was considered not satisfied as participation of communities and stakeholders in planning and implementation were not discussed in sufficient concrete terms, particularly concerning the consequences of inscription. The nomination included some consent letters but the process of involvement and participation by the communities concerned was not described, especially as the element had been insufficiently defined. The Body also concluded that criterion R.5 had not been met as the nomination did not demonstrate that inclusion of the element in a national inventory was in accordance with Articles 11 and 12 of the Convention.

466.The Evaluation Body, therefore, recommended referring this file to the State Party for additional information.

467.The Chairperson thanked the Chairperson of the Evaluation Body for its explanation of the different issues raised during evaluation of the file, saying that the Committee had not received any requests for debate on this nomination or amendment on the draft decision and asked the Committee to adopt the draft decision. There were no objections and therefore the Chairperson declared adopted Decision 10.COM 10.b.1 to refer the nomination of Attan to the State Party for additional information.

468.The Chairperson moved to the file submitted by Algeria, and gave the floor to the Chairperson of the Evaluation Body.

469.The Chairperson of the Evaluation Body thanked the Chairperson and presented the findings of the Evaluation Body on the nomination on Sbuâ, annual pilgrimage to the zawiya of Sidi El Hadj Belkacem in Gourara [draft decision 10.COM 10.b.2] submitted by Algeria for possible inscription on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

470.The Evaluation Body considered that the file demonstrated that all criteria were satisfied. Criterion R.1 was considered satisfied as knowledge and practices linked to the Sbuâ are transmitted from generation to generation, reaffirming a link within the Zenata communities and reinforcing their common identity and continuity. Concerning criterion R.2, the Body felt that the file demonstrated that inscription of the element could increase awareness of the capacity of intangible cultural heritage to contribute to peace and reconciliation and visibility of other elements in the region, thereby encouraging their safeguarding. With regard to criterion R.3, the Body felt the file demonstrated that proposed safeguarding measures were developed with the participation of communities in full awareness of possible involuntary consequences of inscription. For criterion R.4, the Body considered the file clearly described how members of the village communities of Gourara and the custodians of the mausoleums were involved in the entire process of nomination and gave their free, prior and informed consent to it. The Body felt that criterion R.5 was satisfied as the Gourara Sbuâ has been included on the national database of intangible cultural heritage since 2005, maintained and periodically updated by the National Centre for Prehistoric, Anthropological and Historical Research.

471.The Evaluation Body, therefore, recommended inscription of the element on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

472.The Chairperson said that no requests for debate on the nomination or amendment on the draft decision were received and asked the Committee to adopt the draft decision as a whole. There were no objections and therefore the Chairperson declared adopted Decision 10.COM 10.b.2 to inscribe Sbuâ, annual pilgrimage to the zawiya of Sidi El Hadj Belkacem in Gourara on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

[Applause]

473.The Chairperson congratulated Algeria and gave it the floor.

474.The delegation of Algeria thanked the Evaluation Body for its work and expressed its thanks to the members of the Committee for the inscription of the element. Algeria explained that Sbuâ comes from an Arabic term for the number seven indicating the seventh day of the birth of the Prophet Mohammed. It is a pilgrimage lasting seven days that celebrates renewal and tightening of social ties and not simply for populations in south-western Algeria but the whole population of Algeria as people come from all over the country to the Gourara region. The element involves other aspects of heritage such as dance, music and the upkeep of mausoleums.

475.The Chairperson thanked Algeria and offered her congratulations, before moving to the next file submitted by Andorra, Spain and France and gave the floor to the Chairperson of the Evaluation Body.

476.The Chairperson of the Evaluation Body introduced the nomination on Summer solstice fire festivals in the Pyrenees [draft decision 10.COM 10.b.3] jointly submitted by Andorra, Spain and France for possible inscription on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

477.The Evaluation Body considered the nomination met all criteria. Concerning criterion R.1 the Body felt that solstice fire festivals express social and family links, promoting benevolence and hospitality and strengthening the continuity, identity and belonging of the Pyrenees communities within the three submitting States. For criterion R.2 the Body felt that the inscription of the element would ensure the visibility of the intangible cultural heritage in general and raise awareness about its importance, testifying cultural diversity and guaranteeing sustainable diversity. With regard to criterion R.3, the Body considered the information in the file demonstrated that the nomination was developed through a long process involving all stakeholders primarily communities, with the elaboration of global as well as cross-cutting safeguarding measures. For criterion R.4, the Body found that the file showed that communities, groups and individuals were largely involved throughout the nomination process, and gave a wide range of attestations of their free, prior and informed consent. Concerning criterion R.5, the Body found that the nomination demonstrated that the element was included in the inventories of the three submitting States in conformity with Articles 11 and 12 of the Convention.

478.The Evaluation Body, therefore, recommended that this element be inscribed on the Representative List and that this multinational nomination be considered as exemplary.

479.The Chairperson confirmed the Committee had not received requests for debate on the nomination or amendments on the draft decision and asked the Committee to adopt the draft decision as a whole. There were no objections, and Decision 10.COM 10.b.3 to inscribe Summer solstice fire festivals in the Pyrenees on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity was adopted.

[Applause]

480.The Chairperson congratulated the three submitting States and gave the floor to Andorra.

481.The delegation of the Government of the Principality of Andorra thanked the Committee for inscribing the Summer solstice fire festivals on the Representative List, saying that this was the first element it had inscribed and was appreciative of the positive recommendation of the Evaluation Body. Andorra said it celebrated the inscription together with France and Spain and thanked those two countries for the confidence they had given to Andorra, and stated that cooperation between the three States had been exemplary at both the government and regional authority levels, and especially between the communities. Inscription of the element on the Representative List recognised the coherent cultural unity and the long exchanges among communities found in the Pyrenees, clearly illustrating that intangible cultural heritage is capable of weaving linkages between peoples, and the Principality of Andorra would further contribute to that by safeguarding this common heritage. The delegation of Andorra closed by asking the representatives of Spain and France and then Mr Juan Reguant, the coordinator of the nomination and representative of the communities, to take the floor.

482.The delegation of Spain, on behalf of the Ministry of Culture, Education and Sport of the Kingdom of Spain, expressed its gratitude to the Committee for its support and the Evaluation Body for its clear and positive report. Spain added that the communities of Spain from Catalonia and Aragon were very pleased as they saw that the Evaluation Body clearly recognised in the draft decision the wide participation of communities, groups and individuals, through a long collaboration process; on behalf of those communities as well, Spain thanked all concerned.

[Applause]

483.The delegation of France said it was proud to celebrate the inscription of a long tradition shared with its friends and neighbours in Andorra and Spain, thanking all who shared the tradition and all participants who had carried the project up to its inscription. France assured the meeting that they would guarantee the safeguarding of this centuries-old tradition and would perpetuate it for future generations.

[Applause]

484.Mr Juan Reguant, the coordinator of the nomination, on behalf of the 63 Pyrenees communities, thanked the Committee for the inscription and for having considered it as a model nomination. He said it was the result of an investment by all participating communities who, thanks to retransmission of the meeting, had been watching proceedings and were now celebrating the Convention as the nomination’s preparation enabled them to rediscover their shared heritage and build links among themselves to better know each other, encouraging them to embark on a shared and common future. He thanked the representatives of the States Parties, non-governmental organisations and other observers and Namibian volunteers on behalf of the bearers and practitioners of the Summer solstice fire festivals of the Pyrenees, and invited everyone to experience the practice one day.

[Applause]

485.The Chairperson congratulated the three States involved and thanked them for their invitation before moving to the next nomination, submitted by Argentina, where the floor was again given to the Chairperson of the Evaluation Body.

486.The Chairperson of the Evaluation Body introduced the next nomination on Filete porteño in Buenos Aires, a traditional painting technique [draft decision 10.COM 10.b.4] submitted by Argentina for inscription on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

487.The Evaluation Body considered the nomination file met all criteria. For criterion R.1, the Body felt that the painting technique represented a shared heritage of Buenos Aires’ inhabitants that was transmitted informally through apprenticeship and was undergoing a recent revival. Concerning criterion R.2, the Body considered that the file demonstrated that inscription of the element could contribute to the visibility of the intangible cultural heritage, to dialogue, mutual respect and cooperation between different generations, communities from different origins or sharing similar artistic expressions. With regard to criterion R.3, the Body felt the nomination also showed that safeguarding measures were proposed aiming at revitalizing the element and reducing risks related to the possible unintended consequences of its inscription on the list. Concerning criterion R.4, the Body believed the nomination also demonstrated that it had been elaborated by a team of experts and community members who gave their free, prior and informed consent. With regard to criterion R.5, The Body found that the nomination demonstrated the element had been included in 2006 in an inventory named Cultural Heritage of Buenos Aires following a process in accordance with Articles 11 and 12 of the Convention.

488.The Evaluation Body therefore recommended the inscription of the element on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

489.The Chairperson said that the Committee had not received any requests for debate nor amendments related to the file and asked the Committee to adopt the draft decision as a whole. Seeing no objection, the Chairperson declared adopted Decision 10.COM 10.b.4 to inscribe Filete porteño in Buenos Aires, a traditional painting technique on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. The Chairperson congratulated Argentina and gave it the floor.

[Applause]

490.The delegation of Argentina thanked the Committee for inscribing its first national element as the Tango had been submitted together with Uruguay. Argentina expressed its happiness in receiving the inscription because Filete was a traditional technique. The delegate of Argentina explained that workshops had been undertaken with communities and was very pleased for them because it was communities who were those to be thanked for preparing the nomination. The delegation considered the inscription was good news for Buenos Aires, the experts who had worked to submit the project, the Minister of Culture of Buenos Aires and the mayor of the city recently-elected President of Argentina. She was pleased to bring the good news back to Argentina to be shared with all those people and with the country in general and thanked all concerned for the recognition and trust.

[Applause]

491.The Chairperson thanked and congratulated Argentina before drawing the attention of the meeting to its conclusion for the day reminding that the Bureau would meet on the following day at 9 a.m. and asking the Vice-Chairpersons of Belgium, Brazil, Hungary, India and Tunisia to be on time. The Chairperson then gave the floor to the Secretary of the Convention for an announcement.

492.The Secretary issued a last reminder to delegates who had not yet registered to do so the following morning and informed the room of the activities taking place that evening: UNESCO-trained facilitators would be meeting immediately after the end of the session; and at 5.30 pm the NGOs would be hosting a Heritage Life symposium.

493.The Chairperson thanked the Secretary and declared the day’s session closed.

[Wednesday, 2 December 2015, morning session]

ITEM 10.b OF THE AGENDA (part 2):

EXAMINATION OF NOMINATIONS FOR INSCRIPTION ON THE REPRESENTATIVE LIST OF THE INTANGIBLE CULTURAL HERITAGE OF HUMANITY

Document ITH/15/10.COM/10.b+Add

Decision 10.COM 10

494.The Chairperson welcomed all participants to the morning session of the third day, informing the room that the Bureau had met that morning for the second time. She said that the Bureau was pleased with progress achieved thus far thanks to the working methods adopted to request a debate or amendment of a specific draft decision by members of the Committee, which proved to be efficient during the examination of nominations. She said that the Bureau had received eight amendments and requests for debate which would be examined by the Committee during the day. The Chairperson then gave the floor to the Secretary of the Convention for some announcements.

495.The Secretary informed delegates that an information session on the Convention’s global capacity-building strategy would be held for Electoral Group III: Latin American and Caribbean States, between 1.30 and 2.30 p.m. and that the Committee meeting was being widely followed on social media, including one well known celebrity figure from Colombia, Shakira, who had shared UNESCO’s post on the inscription of Traditional Vallenato music of the Greater Magdalena region with her 35 million followers.

[Applause]

496.The Chairperson reminded the Committee that the previous day a total of 10 nominations had been examined: six nominations for inscription on the Urgent Safeguarding List resulting in five inscriptions and one non-inscription, and four nominations for inscription on the Representative List which resulted in three inscriptions and one referral. The day’s programme required the examination of 30 nominations to the Representative List plus two requests for international assistance; of the 30 nominations, more time would be required for eight of the nominations for which the Committee had received requests for debate or amendment. The Chairperson recalled that, during the debate, submitting States could only respond to a question posed by a member of the Committee, and it was not to be seen as an opportunity to highlight information not contained in the file. She appealed to members of the Committee to pose specific questions to submitting States to allow them to respond precisely to questions. She highlighted the time constraint factor and asked submitting States to keep their statements as brief as possible. The next nomination was submitted by Armenia and the floor was given to the Chairperson of the Evaluation Body to present it.

497.The Chairperson of the Evaluation Body presented the nomination on Kochari, traditional group dance [draft decision 10.COM 10.b.5] submitted by Armenia for possible inscription on the Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

498.The Evaluation Body considered the information in the nomination file was insufficient to determine whether the criteria had been met. For criterion R.1, the Body felt that the nomination did not clearly identify the nature and scope of the element, outline of the communities and groups concerned nor the modes of transmission in families and dance ensembles. For criterion R.2, the Body considered the file focused on Kochari itself, its communities and national identity in the home and among the diaspora, rather than on the visibility of the intangible cultural heritage in general or on awareness of its importance. For criterion R.3, the Body found the ongoing and proposed activities were mainly oriented towards promotion and not enough on the potential unintended consequences of inscription and even less about the viability of the specific variants of Kochari. The Body judged criterion R.4 to have a top-down structure and that proof of participation and consent of communities was insufficient, especially as it was limited to representatives residing in the capital city. According to the Body, criterion R.5 lacked information on inclusion of the element in an inventory, in particular regarding the participation of communities in identification and definition of the element and regular updating of an inventory.

499.The Evaluation Body recommended referring this file to the State Party for additional information on all criteria.

500.The Chairperson thanked the Chairperson of the Evaluation Body, saying that the Secretariat had received an amendment by Greece on criterion R.1 and gave the floor to Greece to explain its amendment.

501.The delegation of Greece said that although the Evaluation Body’s recommendations were valuable it believed that in criterion R.1 at least, the file presented the merits of possible inscription. Greece felt that group dance is a culturally important marker of identity in Armenia being transmitted to younger generations through familial groups and gatherings and variety of formal and non-formal settings and organisations. Greece pointed out that in this collective expression of the community there were no restrictions of age or sex or social status and that all people in a given community or event participated in the dance. It was performed everywhere in Armenia during holidays, pilgrimages and any sort of festive occasion, as well as in urban and rural communities and Greece was sure that the requirements of the Convention had been fulfilled for criterion R.1 at least and proposed an amendment.

502.The Chairperson thanked Greece for its proposed amendment to criterion R.1 and opened the floor to the members of the Committee to comment.

503.The delegation of Brazil thanked the Evaluation Body for its evaluation, but suggested that from the descriptions provided it felt that the element might constitute intangible cultural heritage as defined in Article 2 of the Convention. Brazil supported the amendment presented by Greece and addressed a specific question to the submitting State concerning criterion R.1: ‘How is the nominated element presented in the practising communities and groups, as well as the forms of transmission within families and dance ensembles?’

504.The delegation of