2008 - Jan - Feb - Mar - Apr - May - Jun - Jul - Aug - Sep - Oct - Nov - Dec

2007 - Jan - Feb - Mar - Apr - May - Jun - Jul - Aug - Sep - Oct - Nov - Dec

27 October

• Sacred Music of the Vietnamese court: ‘Music of the gods’ preserved for posterity
  For centuries the sacred music of the Vietnamese court, Nha Nhac, has provided a means for communicating with and paying tribute to the gods and kings. Performed in the most important ceremonies of the court, it has passed on knowledge and philosophy on the universe in Vietnamese history. Rich in spiritual content, Nha Nhac was acknowledged by UNESCO as a Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity in 2003. Following the proclamation, UNESCO and the Japanese Funds-in-Trust supported the Hue Monuments Conservation Centre to implement a preservation project, the first to take into consideration all the required elements emphasized in the UNESCO 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage.
  UNESCO BANGKOK NEWSLETTER 16

24 October

• Accession by Barbados to the Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions (Paris, 20 October 2005)
  On 2 October 2008, Barbados deposited with the Director-General its instrument of accession to the Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions. In accordance with the terms of its Article 29, the aforementioned Convention will enter into force with respect to Barbados three months after the date of the deposit of its instrument, that is to say on 2 January 2009.

• Acceptance by Barbados of the Convention on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage (Paris, 2 November 2001)
  On 2 October 2008, Barbados deposited with the Director-General its instrument of acceptance of the Convention on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage. In accordance with the terms of its Article 27, the aforementioned Convention will enter into force three months after the date of deposit of the twentieth instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession with respect to those States that have deposited their respective instruments of ratification, acceptance, approval, or accession on or before that date. The instrument of acceptance by Barbados being the twentieth, the Convention will enter into force three months after the date of deposit of this instrument, that is to say on 2 January 2009 with respect to the following States: Barbados, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Croatia, Cuba, Ecuador, Lebanon, Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, Lithuania, Mexico, Montenegro, Nigeria, Panama, Paraguay, Portugal, Romania, Saint Lucia, Slovenia, Spain and Ukraine In accordance with Article 27, for any State that subsequently expresses its consent to be bound by it, the Convention shall enter into force three months after the date of deposit of its instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession.

• Accession by Barbados to the Second Protocol to the Hague Convention of 1954 for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict (The Hague, 26 March 1999)
  On 2 October 2008, Barbados deposited with the Director-General its instrument of accession to the Second Protocol to the Hague Convention of 1954 for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict. In accordance with the terms of its Article 43.2, the Protocol will enter into force with respect to Barbados three months after the deposit of the instrument of accession, that is to say on 2 January 2009.

• Accession by Barbados to the Protocol to the Hague Convention of 1954 for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict (La Haye, 14 mai 1954)
  On 2 October 2008, Barbados deposited with the Director-General its instrument of accession to the Protocol to the Hague Convention of 1954 for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict. In accordance with the terms of Article 10(b), the Protocol will enter into force with respect to Barbados three months after the deposit of the instrument of accession, that is to say on 2 January 2009.

16 October

• Operational Directives for the implementation of the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Heritage in Arabic
  The Operational Directives of the Convention were adopted by the General Assembly of the States Parties to the Convention at its second session, 16 to 19 June 2008.

• Call for Submissions – UNESCO Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions
  In its 2007 policy New Directions for the Arts, the Australian Government committed to ratify and give effect to the UNESCO Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions (the Convention). The Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts (the Department) is the lead agency in the ratification process for the Convention. The Department is seeking views from arts, culture, Indigenous, education and heritage organisations and other relevant stakeholders on the likely implications of Australia’s accession to the Convention. Your written submission is invited, in relation to:
  1. Significant policy, resourcing or infrastructure implications that would affect your activities under the Convention
  2. Opportunities created, or constraints imposed by, the Convention on your organisation’s (or your individual) ability to protect and promote the diversity of cultural expressions, and
  3. Any other significant implications of Australia’s accession to the Convention.
  Please see the attached Call for Submissions paper for further details. Wherever possible, submissions should be sent by email to jane.carter@environment.gov.au by 3 November 2008.

14 October

• Operational Directives for the implementation of the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Heritage
  The Operational Directives of the Convention were adopted by the General Assembly of the States Parties to the Convention at its second session, 16 to 19 June 2008: English | French | Spanish in preparation | Russian in preparation | Arabic in preparation | Chinese in preparation
  Table of Contents:
  • Chapter 1 - Safeguarding Intangible Cultural Heritage
    • 1.1 Inscription on the Urgent Safeguarding List
    • 1.2 Inscription on the Representative List
    • 1.3 Incorporation of items proclaimed “Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity” into the Representative List
    • 1.4 Programmes, projects and activities that best reflect the principles and objectives of the Convention
  • Chapter 2 - Intangible Cultural Heritage Fund and International Assistance
    • 2.1 Guidelines for the use of the resources of the Fund
    • 2.2 International assistance
  • Chapter 3 - Participation in the implementation of the Convention
    • 3.1 Participation of communities, groups and, where applicable, individuals, as well as experts, centres of expertise and research institutes
    • 3.2 Non-governmental organizations and the Convention
  • Chapter 4 - Reports by States Parties on the implementation of the Convention
    
    
• PDF (1.13 MB) The Intangible Heritage Messenger Nº10
  Recent months have seen a number of landmarks in the life of the 2003 Convention: the second session of the General Assembly adopted the Operational Directives; Lesotho’s ratification made it the 100th State Party; the Intangible Heritage Fund received its first voluntary contribution; the Convention acquired an emblem; and the Intangible Cultural Heritage section saw the departure of its chief, Rieks Smeets. At the closing ceremony of the General Assembly session, a number of delegations rose to acknowledge the efforts of the Secretariat and particularly the contributions of Rieks as the Convention’s first Secretary.

13 October

• Convention on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage will enter into force in January 2009
  Twenty States have now ratified the Convention on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage, which therefore will enter into force on 2 January 2009, three months after the deposit of the 20th instrument of acceptance. “This is a very important step in the history of the safeguarding of cultural heritage,” declared Koïchiro Matsuura, Director-General of UNESCO. “This represents an essential addition to UNESCO’s standard-setting apparatus. From now on, it will be possible to offer legal protection to the historical memory that is in underwater cultural heritage, thus curtailing the growing illicit trade by looters.”

------------------------ Newsletter Nº 33

10 October

• Acceptance by Barbados of the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage (Paris, 17 October 2003)
  On 2 October 2008, Barbados deposited with the Director-General its instrument of acceptance of the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage. In accordance with the terms of its Article 34, the aforementioned Convention will enter into force with respect to Barbados three months after the date of the deposit of its instrument, that is to say on 2 January 2009.

• Ratification by Slovenia of the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage (Paris, 17 October 2003)
  On 18 September 2008, Slovenia deposited with the Director-General its instrument of ratification of the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage. In accordance with the terms of its Article 34, the aforementioned Convention will enter into force with respect to Slovenia three months after the date of the deposit of this instrument, that is to say on 18 December 2008.

• Ratification by Slovenia of the Convention on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage (Paris, 2 November 2001)
  On 18 September 2008, Slovenia deposited with the Director-General its instrument of ratification of the Convention on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage. In accordance with the terms of its Article 27, the Convention will enter into force three months after twenty instruments of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession have been deposited. As of the above-mentioned date of deposit, nineteen instruments, including that of Slovenia, have been deposited.

7 October

• 112 candidates for inscription on the Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity
  By the deadline of 30 September, UNESCO had received a total of 112 applications from 37 States for the first ever inscription on the Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. After in depth examination of all the application files, the 24 elected members of the Intangible Cultural Heritage Committee will decide on their possible inscription which should be carried out in late 2009.