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9.7.12

Discussion on the Special procedure mandate in the field of cultural rights

On the 20th of June 2012 the NGO Platform on diversity and cultural rights hosted an event on the subject of cultural rights.
The main speaker of the side event was the Special Rapporteur in the Field of Cultural Rights, Ms Farida Shaheed.
As the first mandate holder, her job began with identifying cultural rights, based on the assumption that everyone has the right to take part in cultural life. This consists of three elements:  The right to access for culture, the right to participate in, and to contribute to culture. She highlighted the utmost importance of respecting cultural diversity and discussed her report –presented to the Human Rights Council also later that week – entitled “The right to enjoy the benefits of scientific progress and its applications”. The report is characterised by four main ideas: (i) access by everyone without discrimination to the benefits of science and its application; (ii) opportunities for all to contribute to scientific enterprise and possession of the necessary freedom to perform scientific research; (iii) participation of individuals and communities in the decision-making and the related right to information; and (iv) an enabling environment fostering the conservation, development and diffusion of science and technology. Another speaker, Mr Patrice Meyer-Bisch (University of Fribourg) emphasised that the link between the science and the culture is human creativity. The right to access to science includes the right to education, as the latter enables individuals to understand and participate in scientific life. Finally, Ms Rikki Holmaat, professor of the University of Fribourg, discussed women in the field of cultural rights, by reporting existing discrimination of women in access to cultural rights.
In the closing remarks the moderator, Claire de Lavernette, thanked the Special Rapporteur and expressed admiration for her work.

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