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Human Rights Council Starts Interactive Dialogue with the Special Rapporteur in the Field of Cultural Rights
08 March 2022
The Human Rights Council this afternoon started an interactive dialogue with the Special Rapporteur in the field of cultural rights.
Alexandra Xanthaki, Special Rapporteur in the field of cultural rights, speaking about the war in Ukraine, said that the justification of any war must step away from rhetoric that denied the identity and the history of a nation. Any military or other action must be sensitive to the cultural and religious heritage as well as artistic capital present on the territory of the State, in all its diversity. Her work confirmed and reinforced the importance of cultures for the development of individuals and societies and the realisation of all human rights. Her mandate would therefore focus on the obligations that States had undertaken in international law on cultural rights. She intended to draw more attention to the rights of migrant artists, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex artists, artists with disabilities, and the cultural rights of marginalised communities.
In the interactive dialogue, speakers said promoting cultural rights through the inclusive participation of persons in vulnerable situations was vital. Women in particular were suffering from restrictions on their right to artistic expression. Culture represented soft power and needed to be freed in order to uphold cultural and civilizational identity. Cultural heritage was an integral part of civilization, and it was important to nurture the cultural heritage of all different groups of society. The shared cultural exchange between peoples across the globe was one of the deepest ways to foster peace and harmony, no matter the background of those involved. Some speakers said that indigenous culture and mechanisms should be taken into account when working to sustain the environment, as climate change was already eroding cultural identity for many indigenous groups. The Special Rapporteur had pointed to the need to ensure that cultural rights were upheld by ensuring the access to culture by marginalised groups, and that they could freely enjoy their social and cultural rights.
Speaking in the interactive dialogue were European Union, Norway (on behalf of the Nordic Baltic countries), Egypt, Cuba, Nepal, Israel, Fiji, Venezuela, France, Kenya and Malaysia.
The webcast of the Human Rights Council meetings can be found here. All meeting summaries can be found here. Documents and reports related to the Human Rights Council’s forty-ninth regular session can be found here.
The Council will next meet at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, 9 March, to hold the first part of its annual discussion on the rights of the child, on the theme of the rights of the child and family reunification – family reunification in the context of migration. It will resume its interactive dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on cultural rights at noon.
Interactive Dialogue with the Special Rapporteur in the Field of Cultural Rights
Documentation
The Council has before it the report of the Special Rapporteur in the field of cultural rights on cultural rights: capturing the state of art
Presentation of the Report
ALEXANDRA XANTHAKI, Special Rapporteur in the field of cultural rights, speaking about the war in Ukraine, said that the justification of any war must step away from rhetoric that denied the identity and the history of a nation. Any military or other action must be sensitive to the cultural and religious heritage as well as artistic capital present on the territory of the State, in all its diversity.
The Special Rapporteur said her work confirmed and reinforced the importance of cultures for the development of individuals and societies and the realisation of all human rights. Her mandate would focus on the obligations that States had undertaken in international law on cultural rights. The overarching principle of these obligations was that of ensuring substantive equality in the enjoyment of cultural rights for all, including through the adoption of positive actions. She intended to draw more attention to the rights of migrant artists, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex artists, and artists with disabilities. The cultural rights of marginalised communities also needed more attention. The notion of culture had been democratised recently, the Special Rapporteur said, viewed now not only as monuments belonging to elites but also as ways of life, practices and traditions in all their diversity, and various links with the environment. Disrespect of these elements of the identity of marginalised groups had had a lasting impact in these communities; many indigenous communities carried the scars of such disrespect.
In essence, the Special Rapporteur said she was eager to address cross sections of cultural rights with other rights, in other words their interdependence and indivisibility with other human rights. Ms. Xanthaki believed there was a need to further unpack the relationship of sustainable development and cultural rights; often development projects funded by international organizations and executed by transnational corporations did not prioritise spiritual and cultural rights of the persons and communities concerned. Turning to the tools she would use for her work, she explained that she intended to rely a lot on the cooperation of Member States and civil society to further reveal the real current needs in cultural rights and work towards improving the situation of these rights. She recognised that cultural rights had not been the focus of attention as much as other rights; hence States may require capacity building so that they had the means to fully implement their obligations, which her team was very eager to provide. In conclusion, Ms. Xanthaki underlined the important part of the mandate that consisted of conducting country visits as 14 such visits had already been conducted and she was looking forward to being invited by more States for State visits.
Interactive Dialogue
In the interactive dialogue, speakers said promoting cultural rights through the inclusive participation of persons in vulnerable situations was vital. The right to freedom of artistic expression included the opportunity to express opinions and belief through art. In some countries, cultural professionals were being denied the right to participate in public life, and blasphemy laws among others were being used to deny artistic expression. Women in particular were suffering from restrictions on their right to artistic expression. Culture represented soft power and needed to be freed in order to uphold cultural and civilizational identity. The pandemic had restricted the ability to enjoy artistic expression.
The Special Rapporteur should collaborate and work with other relevant mandate holders, as well as international bodies, and champion an exchange of experiences and good practices, some speakers said. A cultural exchange was vital in order to combat the neo-liberal paradigm and hegemony. Cultural heritage was an integral part of civilization, and it was important to nurture the cultural heritage of all different groups of society. Levels of barbarity could be judged through anti-Semitism, and it was important to recognise this. The shared cultural exchange between peoples across the globe was one of the deepest ways to foster peace and harmony, no matter the background of those involved. Indigenous culture and mechanisms should be taken into account when working to sustain the environment, as climate change was already eroding cultural identity for many indigenous groups. Climate change should be fought for the sake of culture, among all the other reasons.
Speakers said the Special Rapporteur had pointed to the need to ensure that cultural rights were upheld by ensuring the access to culture by marginalised groups, and that they could freely enjoy their social and cultural rights. The imposition of illegal, unilateral, and coercive measures had further weakened the enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights by the peoples of the South. Economic, social and cultural rights had not escaped from the general decline in human rights seen across the world, and these were fundamental principles that needed to be upheld, for the sake of humanity. Freedom of the press and access to free and quality information, as well as measures to access all knowledge were vital in this regard. The protection of traditional knowledge was equally important, and ethnic diversity was a source of strength for countries, helping to achieve economic and social development.
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