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UNESCO high-level panel at UN Headquarters advocates for protection of artists during crises
Writers and artists enriched the discussion, sharing testimonials on the escalating threats they face amid shrinking civic space, armed conflicts and other crises. They appealed to the international community for a comprehensive and coordinated response for the protection of artists and cultural professionals in emergency situations.
“UNESCO’s report raises alarm that artists and culture professionals are in need of greater attention and protection”, stated Eliot Minchenberg, Director of UNESCO New York Office and UNESCO Representative to the UN in New York. Recalling , the first Resolution to exclusively address the protection of cultural heritage during conflicts, he called for international recognition of artists and cultural professionals as a group in need of specific attention during emergencies.
Andreas Løvold, Deputy Permanent Representative and Chargé d'affaires at the Permanent Mission of Norway to the UN, invited UN Member States and other partners to join Norway in supporting the UNESCO-Aschberg Programme for Artists and Cultural Professionals. Created in 1956 and redesigned in 2017 to actively support artistic freedom, the Programme has accompanied governments and civil society organizations from across regions to advance policy frameworks, advocacy, research and capacity-building in favor of free expression as well as social and economic rights of artists. In turn, Gianluca Greco, Deputy Permanent Representative of Italy to the UN, announced that a United Nations Group of Friends of Culture would soon be launched “to provide a platform bringing together Member States’ voices on culture and its contribution to sustainable development.” The recent high-level momentum contributes to the implementation of the MONDIACULT 2022 Declaration which affirmed culture as a public good.
Julie Trébault, Managing Director of and moderator of the panel discussion, said “There is no place in our future for ambivalence or indifference toward the status of artists and cultural professionals. We must be more active, more accountable, more responsible. We must act and meet creatives where they are at. Simply put, we need action, and now.”
Zarifa Adiba, violist and conductor of Zohra, the first women orchestra in Afghanistan, read an original fictional piece against the background music she composed together with her Afghan friends currently in exile in different countries. “Just imagine – you live in a society where, because you play viola, piano, Rubab, you risk your life… every note you play on your instrument, you risk your life”.
Alexandra Xanthaki, UN Special Rapporteur in the field of Cultural Rights, expressed concern over the growing number of cases of artists and culture workers at risk and noted that existing supportive mechanisms are few and far between. She hoped the event could lead to specific and coherent actions to protect artistic freedom.
Deeyah Khan, filmmaker and UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador for Artistic Freedom and Creativity, said “In times of pain, in times of struggle, that is exactly when we need art the most because it helps us stay alive, process our pain, deal with our trauma". She added "Art is not a luxury. It is a basic human necessity."
Dina Mengestu, an Ethiopian-American novelist and journalist, said “vulnerability, exile and persecution should not be the price for creating and sustaining our cultural heritage, for making sure art lives as a daily practice and not as a memory of one.”
“From the moment art is made, it becomes historical and has to be preserved”, noted DJ Switch, a Nigerian songwriter, musician and producer. She also performed one of her songs during which participants had the opportunity to visit the UNESCO exhibition “Culture under Attack: Safeguarding Heritage in Emergency”.
Organized as part of the , the event reinforced the participants’ collective commitment to defending creative voices and ensuring that artistic freedom is upheld even in the most challenging circumstances.
Access the recording of the event (in English) on .
