Pre-Forum regional meetings:

Human Rights � Cultural Rights: The right to take part in cultural life

64. Sa�l Sosnowski, director of International Programs and of the Latin American Studies of the University of Maryland, started by stating that there is not only one definition of culture. He indicated that the current interest in cultural rights and diversity by organizations such as the World Bank and the Inter-American Development Bank shows the limited achievements of economic and social programmes that have not included culture in their design. Furthermore, he set the question on the framework of the thematic of cultural rights and their limits as well as the obligations integral to all rights.

65. Dr Sosnowski underlined that �to live in a society demands the acceptance of certain principles of co-existence�, which brings an ethical dimension to all norms of human interaction. Furthermore, the flow of conflicts based on difference of faith or ethnicity brings culture to a central place in the processes of defining the features of identity.

66. Nevertheless, this displays further problems such as the rights of the individual and the collective in relation with each other, and of ethics as a basis of international legal agreements, considered as universal when not shared by everyone, as well as the sometimes contradictory position of human rights and protection of local cultures. �In terms of cultural policies we must question to which extent we can and must defend all that protected under �cultural diversity� and what is the role that the State needs to play�.

67. When referring to the rights of the consumer, Dr Sosnowski stressed the need to define cultural consumption and therefore, what is meant by culture. He affirmed that a code of conduct of cultural consumer should exist to prevent, among other things, culture to become commercialised, and that the cultural demand should guarantee real options including access to regional cultures and cultural diversity. He underlined that respects grows from the fact that culture itself is a social construct that varies according to socio-political and economic conditions. The lack of ability to recognise the wide range of options leads easily to conflicts.

68. Globalisation and migratory movements as such not only contribute to the unification of many cultural movements, but also create and transform cultural practices into new forms that contribute to the richness of the diversity. Imperial conducts have changed in nature and are not necessarily linked to physical intervention; accordingly the cultural dimension has acquired an even greater importance. �It is there where the autonomy, diversity, possible dialogue and exchange with other culture is debated.� Cultural rights form an essential vehicle in acknowledging the importance of culture to the well-being and economic prosperity.

69. Dr Sosnowski underlined that a pre-condition to talk about cultural rights is to acknowledge the validity and rule of human rights. When this validity is taken as a norm within the framework of the international community and its legal premises based on agreements between states, one of the questions Dr Sosnowski raised was where the limit of intervention in violations of cultural rights is situated. He stated that cultural diversity and its expressions should be respected as long as other forms of cultural expressions and fundamental freedoms are respected.

70. As conclusion, Dr Sosnowski suggested a list of concrete actions:

� Formulation of a code of conduct and rights of cultural consumer
� Concerning media, the State has a regulatory and facilitating function in order to control and reduce monopolies in favour of alternative programming (especially in television)
� To address diversity as part of general cultural programmes.
� To include programmes on cultural diversity (the programmes should not be exclusively on that)
� The material produced on cultural rights is to be explicitly linked to human rights and both to a culture that fosters democracy
� Cultural rights and diversity should be incorporated in educational programmes
� Knowledge on cultural diversity among the adult population should be promoted, both in multicultural and heterogeneous societies and regions
� Design of education material that promote knowledge on local cultural diversity (in Mercosur as in other regions)
� This knowledge should be linked to the defence of human rights, especially concerning those subjugated to marginalisation and poverty � the struggle for cultural diversity should not mask inequality.
� Cultural rights and diversity should offer protection to indigenous people as well as to migrants
� Cultural diversity and cultural rights should be incorporated formally into State politics.

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