Report for Ministerial Consideration:
An International Instrument on Cultural Diversity
from the Working Group on Cultural Diversity and Globalization
2001-2002

Mandate

At the Fourth Annual Ministerial of the International Network on Cultural Policy (INCP) meeting, held in Lucerne in September 2001, the Working Group on Cultural Diversity and Globalization, chaired by Canada, was given a two-year mandate to draft an International Instrument on Cultural Diversity (IICD) that would focus on the promotion and preservation of cultural diversity in the face of globalization. The Working Group, through the Special Policy Research Team (SPRT), led by Switzerland, was also mandated to undertake a study that would examine governance issues relating to an Instrument, including location and institutional context, dispute settlement and monitoring mechanisms and strategic implementation advice.

Documents

Having completed the first year of its mandate, the Working Group is presenting two documents for consideration by Ministers at the Fifth Annual meeting of the INCP in Cape Town.

1. An International Instrument on Cultural Diversity

This document begins with an introductory explanation of the purpose of each section of the actual Instrument text, followed by the actual draft text itself. The draft Instrument presented is a work in progress by the Working Group on Cultural Diversity and Globalization¹ with the assistance of an independent expert ². It is written as a stand-alone agreement, without reference to any particular institution or international organization. Any possible or eventual institutional arrangements are not being rules out by this approach. Its purpose is to serve as a code of conduct for all States that consider the preservation of distinct cultural expressions and cultural diversity an essential component of globalization. The sections related to governance should be read in the context of the Governance Study papers. It should be noted that the text provides two administrative and dispute settlement options for future discussion.

2. Strategic Options for the Governance Study

The purpose of the Strategic Options paper is to highlight the short, medium and long-term policy issues associated with IICD governance. All the issues examined here relate to where the IICD will eventually be located. The Governance Study recommendations are based on research found in Strategic Options for a New International Instrument on Cultural Diversity, which includes an Executive Summary and four Chapters ³.

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Issues For Discussion

• In what respects does the draft Instrument meet expectations? In what substantive areas does more work need to be done?
• One of the goals of an instrument is to go beyond declarations to create binding obligations. How close is the draft Instrument to ensuring the preservation and promotion of cultural diversity in its obligations? Do the obligations in this draft provide appropriate and sufficient basis to proceed?
• Should the development of the Instrument, in the short term, continue as a stand-alone approach?
• The draft is based on the proposition of a stand-alone agreement, but has references to other international organisations and obligations in such areas as human rights, cultural rights, intellectual property, sustainable development and international trade. Is the relationship between the obligations of the instrument and those of other international obligations handled effectively?
• Given the draft's references to broad international obligations outside the purview of Department's of culture participating in INCP discussions, should efforts be made to broaden the range of participants in discussion about the Instrument?

Next Steps

If you agree Ministers, the Working Group on Cultural Diversity and Globalization will use the second year of the mandate to further the thinking on the International Instrument on Cultural Diversity in 2002-2003 in order to provide a refined text for the 6th Annual Meeting. Issues to be examined during the coming year would include:

• Deepening the elaboration of the Instrument's rights and obligations regarding cultural policies in the context of globalization and technological change
• Elaborating the needs of developing countries, both in terms of obligations and international co-operation, within the Instrument text.
• Addressing the linkages to other agreements and institutions, which should be studied further to enable the Instrument to achieve its objectives.
• Ongoing advocacy and awareness raising on the importance of cultural diversity and the international instrument and the crossovers with other international agendas.

¹ All INCP members are invited to every meeting of the Working Group on Cultural Diversity and Globalization. The Working Group held two meetings in 2001-2002, with two follow-up Review Group meetings. The following INCP member countries have participated in one or more Working Group meetings this year (Canada, Colombia, Cuba, Finland, France, Greece, Jamaica, Poland, Norway, Mexico, Senegal, South Africa, Sweden, Switzerland).

² Thank you to Professor Ivan, Bernier from l'Université Laval for his work, dedication and patience.

³ The four Governance Study Chapters are : 'Comparison with Legal Instruments in Other Areas: Essential Features", "Evaluation of the Incorporation of the IICD within UNESCO", "The WTO and a New International Instrument on Cultural Diversity", "Implementation of an Independent International Instrument".

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