SINT MAARTEN (PHILIPSBURG) - An Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) working session was held in The Hague, Netherlands, February 13-17, 2023. Two (2) representatives from the seven entities of the Dutch Kingdom were invited. St. Maarten was represented by Ms. Clara Reyes, Head of the Culture Department, and Marcellia Henry, Secretary General for UNESCO.
The working session aimed to reach a consensus on a joint nomination procedure for the Dutch Kingdom to nominate elements to UNESCO. During the session, the representatives got a better understanding of the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Convention and the requirements for nomination to the UNESCO international list. All participants gave updates on the ICH Convention implementation status in their territories, shared good practices, brainstormed strategies for bottlenecks encountered, and agreed on a joint nomination strategy.
The representatives agreed to pilot the joint nomination procedure and to nominate the Tambu, a musical genre and a dance found mainly in Curacao, Aruba, and Bonaire to the UNESCO international list. Each of the seven territories of the Dutch Kingdom will also have the opportunity to submit elements from their National ICH inventory for consideration to UNESCO ICH international list. Participants of the work session will continue to meet online and participate in additional training.
The Culture Department and the Sint Maarten National Commission for UNESCO plan to have St. Maarten's first ICH inventory launched in October 2019, updated this year with public/community help.
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