International Network for Cultural
Diversity
Newsletter 13
August 2001
Heritage must be in the air this month -
all of our stories address heritage issues one way or the other. Please send us
your stories about culture and globalization for inclusion in our newsletter.
At the end of the newsletter you will find
the updated agenda with speakers for our conference in Lucerne - it is shaping
up to be a historic conference, with substantial representation from every
continent.
A Mexican hotel built in the thirties and
decorated by some of Mexico's best known mural artists is slated for demolition
by the American big-box store Costco.
According to the Civilians' Council for the Arts of Morelos, the
historic building has already been damaged since its purchase by Costco.
Cultural groups across Mexico are rallying in protest, but at present the
historic hotel is still set to be destroyed to make way for a supermarket.
Mexican artists and exiles from the Spanish
civil war collectively created many of the murals in the hotel, which represent
Mexico's history and its Spanish heritage. Famous Mexican architects Felix
Candela and Jesús Marti designed some of the hotel's structures. Specialists
have also identified archeological remains on the site dating back to 1,400 BC.
In June, the Director of the National Institute
of Fine Arts wrote to the president of the municipality of Cuernevaca which
houses the hotel, testifying that the hotel contains works of cultural and
historic value and that its destruction would contravene Mexico's federal law
protecting monuments. Nonetheless, the National Institute of Archeology and
Anthropology denied the importance of the site, and city has issued a
demolition permit.
Local and national cultural figures have
rallied to the defence of the Casino de la Selva. After fruitless meetings with
Costco and municipal leaders in late July, cultural figures formed a Civil
Society Front for the Protection of the Casino. An impressive list of cultural
representatives and organizations signed a strongly worded letter to the
President of the Municipality of Cuernavaca, the Governor of the State of
Morelos, and President Vicente Fox. They are demanding the immediate
cancellation of the demolition permit and the redevelopment of the historic
site according to the will of the citizens of Cuernavaca.
Those organizing to save the Casino will be
very glad of assistance from culturally concerned groups and individuals around
the world. They are particularly concerned to find some legal help within the
United States itself. To find out more or to get involved, please have a look
at www.reforma.com/cultural and contact (in English or Spanish) Rafael Segovia,
Coordinator of the CCCAM, at artual@intertepoz.com
The increasingly tense stand-off between
communities wishing to preserve and develop their cultural assets, and
corporations or governments looking to profit from development, was brought
into sharp relief by the tragic death of a young artist in Brussels on Monday,
July 30. Igor, a Ukrainian performer and installation artist, died when he
jumped from the window of his burning building early on Monday morning. The
fire was declared an arson by police.
Igor had been living at the Ilot Soleil, an
unoccupied building refurbished into a performance and living space for
artists. The owners of the building, who were waiting for a permit to demolish
it in order to build a multi-screen cinema and shopping complex , wanted to
evict the artists. But the local council and shopkeepers were on the artists'
side, dreading another big commercial development, and they denied the eviction
permit.
In many parts of Europe, the need for
affordable rehearsal and studio space has merged with the movement to
revitalise abandoned buildings in city centres. Corporations buy heritage
buildings and wait for years to obtain demolition permits. In the meantime,
artists and activists occupy them and open alternative cultural centres.
The squat on the Rue de Rivoli in Paris has
received thousands of visitors - in fact, according to a government estimate, it
is the third most visited cultural site in France, and may be officially
recognized by the French government as a cultural centre. In Brussels, there
are a number of artist-run occupations which host exhibits, concerts and
performances and provide housing and
work space for artists. In Geneva, the squat Usine is the largest
alternative arts venue in the city, hosting everything from a cinema to an
architecture studio.
These artists are drawing attention to the
need for cities and local councils to consider what makes a city, and a
culture, vibrant. While there is increasing recognition of the contribution of
cultural workers to the economy, the day-to-day struggles of artists are often
ignored. These artists are working to preserve both their creative freedom and
the historic buildings of their cities.
For more information about occupied
buildings in Europe, visit:
http://www.manosolo.net/neteurs/jdn-display.php?num=157
http://www.usine.ch/index.html
The 5th Council of Europe Conference of
Ministers responsible for the Cultural Heritage, held in Portoro in April 2001,
provided an opportunity to take stock of the Council's achievements in this
field and look ahead to its tasks over the coming years. The Council of
Europe's 2002 programme of activity in
the field of cultural and natural heritage will draw on the guidelines laid
down at the conference. It is based on recognition of the fact that culture and
the cultural and natural heritage are both a means of asserting identity and
differences in response to the dangers of uniformity inherent in globalization,
and a vital factor in sustainable development for Europe as a whole.
Areas of activity will include working
together to establish ethical principles and common policies and standards;
disseminating those principles; providing on-the-spot advice for new member
states wishing to implement integrated, cross-sectoral heritage policies; and
awareness-raising and training to promote intercultural dialogue and mutual
understanding between the different communities.
For more information, please contact Daniel
Thérond at the Council of Europe, daniel.therond@coe.int or see
http://culture.coe.fr/Infocentre/txt/eng/econfer5.htm "
INTERNATIONAL NETWORK FOR CULTURAL
DIVERSITY
SECOND ANNUAL CONFERENCE:
TOWARDS A GLOBAL CULTURAL PACT
LUCERNE
SWITZERLAND
21-23 SEPTEMBER 2001
DRAFT August 3
FRIDAY, 21 SEPTEMBER
1000 - 1700 Meeting
of INCD Steering Committee
1800 Registration
Opens
1900 - 2200 Welcoming
Remarks
Hans
Lehmann, President of Suisseculture, Switzerland
Megan
Williams, National Director of the Canadian Conference of the Arts, Secretariat
of the INCD
Noreen
Tomassi, President, Arts International
Garry
Neil, Coordinator of the International Network for Cultural Diversity (INCD)
Dinner
(modest admission may be charged)
Dance
Performance by the Shidaa Cultural Company from Ghana
SATURDAY, 22 SEPTEMBER
0900 - 1100 KEYNOTE
DIALOGUE
"Cultural
diversity: an antidote to globalization."
The
keynote dialogue will involve two or three artists discussing key issues such
as the local, national and international scope of inclusiveness and the role of
governments, business and the artist in promoting diversity.
Moderator: RH
Thomson, actor, broadcaster and playwright, Canada
Speakers: Mohan
Agashe, India, Actor, theatre director, now
Director of the Film and Television Institute
Irma
Pietrasanta, Mexico, independent video producer, organizer
Katarina
Marinaki, Greece, scriptwriter, President of scriptwriters guild of Greece and
president of European scriptwriters' guild
Japan
Mthembu, South Africa, stage and screen actor, General Secretary of Performing
Arts Workers Equity (PAWE)
participant
from the USA to be determined
1100 - 1130 Nutrition
Break
1130 - 1300 NEW
INTERNATIONAL INSTRUMENT FOR CULTURAL DIVERSITY (NIICD):
Act
1: Building the Instrument
International
law expert Ivan Bernier will present the concept of a new international
instrument for cultural diversity, a survey of existing international
commitments and preliminary ideas of what kind of instrument can be effective
in preserving sovereignty and encouraging states to promote cultural diversity.
A panel of respondents from around the world, representing different regions
and communities, will comment on the proposal.
Moderator: James
Early, USA, Director, Cultural Studies and Communication, Smithsonian Institute
Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage, Steering Committee member, INCD
Speakers: Ivan
Bernier, Canada
Professor
of International law, Université Laval, and consultant to the International
Network for Cultural Policy (INCP) on the NIICD
Burama
Sagnia, Senegal
Coordinator,
African Itinerant College for Culture and Development
Hyungjin
Kim, Korea,
Coalition
for Diversity in Moving Images
Yvon
Thiec, Belgium
Representative
of Eurocinéma
Christine
von Weizsacker, Director of the Biodiversity and Biotechnology Program,
Ecoropa, Germany
Shalini
Venturelli, USA, Associate Professor, American University
Wilton
Littlechild, Founder of the International Organization of Indigenous Resource
Development, Canada
1300 - 1430 Lunch
1430 - 1600 REGIONAL
WORKSHOPS
In
small regional working groups, delegates will discuss the elements of the
instrument and their ideas about how it will be negotiated and
administered. This includes the role of
the INCD and other NGOs in developing the instrument and the need to enlist
government allies. Steering Committee
members will moderate , and rapporteurs will include a report on the discussion
in their remarks for the next session.
Western and Eastern Europe:
Moderator: Alexander Cacavas, Scriptwriters
Guild of Greece
Speakers:
1 Peter Curman - Sweden, Swedish Joint Committee of Literary and Artistic
Professionals
(KLYS)
2 Nina Obuljen - Croatia, Culturelink
3 Aziz Zeria - England, Northern Arts
Rapporteur:
Luciana Castellina, President, Italia
Cinema, representative of the Valencia Forum
East Asia and South East Asia:
Moderator: Dick Letts, Executive Director,
Music Council of Australia
Speakers
1 Atul Kumar - Director, The Company
Theatre, India
2. Ajarn Sulak Sivaraksa, author and
director of the Santi Prachadamma Institute, Thailand
3 Gihwan Yang, Coalition for Diversity in
Moving Images, Korea
Rapporteur:
Ong Keng Sen - Singapore, Theatre Director
Americas:
Moderator: Mireille Gagné, Canada,
Director, Canadian Music Centre
1 Sandra Perez, USA, General Director,
Association of Hispanic Arts
2 Carmen Romero, Chile, performer
3 Errol Williams, Bermuda, independent
film-maker
Rapporteur: Jose Luis Aguirre, Bolivia ,
Radio and Television Development Service,
Catholic University of Bolivia
Africa and the Middle East.
Moderator:
Japan Mthembu, South Africa, General
Secretary of Performing Arts Workers Equity (PAWE)
1 Richard
Assemian, Côte d'Ivoire, President, Association des Jeunes pour la Culture
Africaine
2 Viriato Tamele, Coordinator, Coalition
for Economic Justice, Mozambique
3 Dr Ahmed Nawar, Egypt, Head of the
Ministry of Culture's Sector for Fine Arts, artist and
professor
Rapporteur: Pinkie Mseleku, Film Commissioner for the West Cape, South Africa
1600 - 1630 Nutrition
Break
1630 - 1830 NIICD
Act 2: The Parameters of the Instrument.
The
speakers will report back on the regional workshops then engage in a detailed
discussion of the challenges to cultural diversity encountered in different
regions and sectors, the means which have been found to promote cultural
diversity, and the ways that cultural diversity could best be encouraged
through an international covenant.
Discussion will be introduced and summarized by international
lawyer Peter Grant.
Moderator: Peter Grant, Canada, member of
the Sectoral Advisory Group on International Trade,
international lawyer with McCarthy Tetrault
Speakers:
Pinkie Mseleku, South Africa, Film
Commissioner for the West Cape
Jose Luis Aguirre, Bolivia , Radio and
Television Development Service,
Catholic University of Bolivia
Ong Keng Sen, Singapore, Theatre Director
Luciana Castellina, Italy, President,
Italia Cinema, representative of the Valencia Forum
Pierre Curzi, Vice-president, Coalition for
Cultural Diversity
SUNDAY, 23 SEPTEMBER
0900 - 1030 NIICD
Act 3: Part of the Solution, or Part of the Problem?
A
discussion with and about UNESCO, WTO, INCP and other intergovernmental
institutions. What is their role, if any, in the NIICD?
Moderator: Dick Letts, Australia, Music
Council of Australia
Speakers:
Bernard Kuiten, Counsellor, External
Relations Division, World Trade Organization (WTO)
Katérina Stenou, Director of Cultural
Policy, UNESCO
David Streiff, Director, Federal Bureau of
Culture, Switzerland
Vera Boltho, Cultural Policy and Action
Department, Council of Europe, France
Claude Boucher, Counsellor of the General
Secretary, la Francophonie
1100 - 1130 Nutrition
Break
1130 - 1230 Moderated
Discussion: Declaration to the Ministers
Participants
will discuss the draft of a statement to the ministers on the Question of a new
instrument for cultural diversity.
Moderators:
James Early and RH Thomson
1230 - 1400 Lunch
reception with the Ministers of Culture
1400 - 1630 INCD
BUSINESS MEETING
- By-laws
- Election
of Steering Committee
- Membership
- Finances
- Communication
1630 - 1700 Nutrition
Break
1700 - 1800 NIICD,
Act 4
Synthesis,
decisions and direction to the Steering Committee about the New Instrument
MONDAY, 24 SEPTEMBER
Steering
Committee to meet with Ministers of Culture for
1 ½ to 2 hours