At the inaugural meeting of the Consejo Suramericano de Culturas (CSC), comprising of ministers and culture delegates of UNASUR (Unión de Naciones Suramericanas), the Action Plan 2013-2014 was approved.

The Action Plan will revolve around five central themes: interculturalism, cultural industries and creative economy; cultural heritage defense; communication and culture, and arts.

According to the declaration, South American countries have been carrying out “a joint initiative directed towards safeguarding and promoting the right to creativity, cultural accessibility enjoyment of culture and artistic expression” in the region.

During a press conference held yesterday in Lima, the Peruvian Minister of Culture, Luis Peirano, and the Vice-Minister of Interculturalism, Pablo Vilca, highlighted that the CSC provides a space for integration, which is reflected in the recent project ‘Expreso Sur’ which aims to share festivities through the vision of South American children, and that will be funded by the Fondo de Iniciativas Comunes.

Audiovisual Bank
Another project that was approved is the Audiovisual Bank Content, which provides information on the region’s cultural production, with the intent to “create a database where countries of the region will find and share their cultural contents”, explained Vice-Minister Vilca.

It was also agreed to create a working group to define joint strategies to fight against the illicit trade of cultural goods.

Cultural goods
On the matter of the illicit trade of cultural goods, the Peruvian minister insisted that Unasur countries “are particularly affected…putting the memory of nations and the identity of peoples at risk”. 

During the second semester of this year an expert meeting will take place to debate on this issue, according to the declaration signed by ministers and delegates of the CSC, although the venue the meeting will take place was not established at the time.

The document’s objective is to establish common cultural policies for the member countries and “to avoid being a rhetorical declaration”, according to minister Peirano.

The CSC also promised to defend and guarantee the rights of indigenous, native and people of African descent.

“Peru, in its capacity at Acting Secretary of the CSC, acknowledges the importance of South American integration and understands that culture is the main axis of regional integration”, the Peruvian Minister added.

The member countries of Unasur are Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Surinam, Venezuela, Peru and Paraguay; with Paraguay being suspended since Fernando Lugo was dismissed from office in June 2012.

Summit in Bolivia
During the CSC meeting, organized by the Council’s temporary Secretariat Peru, it was also decided that a summit on decolonization and diasporas will take place on 12 October in Bolivia. This proposal was presented by Bolivia’s delegation, lead by the Vice Minister of Interculturalism, Ignacio Soqueré Tomichá. The declaration states that a working group would be established to analyze the concepts and definitions of “decolonization” and “diaspora”.

The document also stipulates that countries commit to the defense of indigenous communities and people of African descent, with the aim to eliminate any existing discrimination.