Among the most many decisions of the two-yearly General Conference of
UNESCO in Paris, which closed yesterday, were the following of special
importance to the cultural sector:

NEW UNIVERSAL DECLARATION ON CULTURAL DIVERSITY

On 2nd November 2001 the General Conference of the United Nations
Educational, Scientific & Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) adopted a major
new international ethical standard for cultural development and cultural
relations: the Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity. It is hoped
that this will eventually acquire as much recognition and moral force as
the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights.  Accompanied by an
Action Plan, the new Universal Declaration insists, amongst other
things, that cultural diversity is a key element in development widening
the range of options open to everyone: "it is one of the roots of
development, understood not simply in terms of economic growth, but also
as a means to achieve a more satisfactory intellectual, emotional, moral
and spiritual existence".

(For further information see the UNESCO Press Release, which also includes
the final text of the Universal Declaration as formally adopted, at:

        http://www.unesco.org/confgen/press_rel/021101_clt_diversity.shtml

NEW INTERNATIONAL TREATY TO PROTECT THE UNDERWATER HERITAGE FROM TREASURE
HUNTERS


On 2nd November the General Conference of UNESCO adopted a new
international treaty which aims to protect the underwater heritage, from
prehistoric shipwrecks to those of modern times, which is under grave
threat at the present time due to a combination of major advances in
underwater salvage and excavation technology and the very high financial
rewards that can be obtained for antiquities and other relics in both
the legal and illicit world markets.

These factors have led to an unprecedented scale of unauthorised
underwater exploration and recovery of artifacts from underwater sites of
great sensitivity, including for example official war graves, and the
uncontrolled activity of commercial salvage organisations has been an
especially serious problems for many coastal and island developing
countries with only very limited technical resources with which to protect
the underwater heritage.

This treaty has been under negotiation for more than four years among
expert groups including government representatives, archaeological and
historical experts, and commercial salvage interests, and following its
adoption it will be open to ratification or accession by all States.  It
will come into effect when 20 States have legally adopted the measure in
accordance with national treaty law procedures.

A UNESCO Press release of 29th October gives details: it is expected that
this will be updated very shortly to reflect the actual adoption of the
new Convention on 2 November, see:

        http://www.unesco.org/confgen/press_rel/291001_subaqua.shtml




Patrick Boylan

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