Nairobi, Kenya - Spain's flamenco dance, the Mediterranean diet and Chinese acupuncture were all added to the UN's list of intangible cultural heritage on Tuesday.
The gastronomic meal of the French, a customary social practice for celebrating events such as births, weddings, and birthdays, was also adopted by UNESCO's Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage.
The UNESCO committee maintains a list of practices from around the world that contribute to spreading the knowledge of intangible cultural heritage and promoting awareness of its importance. The committee on Tuesday passed 50 of the 51 nominations presented for inclusion in the list of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Before Tuesday there were 166 elements from 77 countries on the list.
When Flamenco was announced as an addition to the list, rapturous shouts of Ole! echoed through the room from the Spanish delegation and representatives of other Spanish-speaking countries.
“I am very proud of Spaniards in the four or five regions. They have put us on the map,” said Spain's ambassador to Kenya, Nicolas Martin Cinto.
UNESCO also adopted Spain's human towers, built during annual festivities in Catalonian towns, and the chant of the Sybil performed in churches on Majorca. Also joining the list alongside acupuncture was traditional Chinese medicine technique called moxibustion.
The nomination of the Mediterranean diet came from Spain, Greece, Italy and Morocco.
In Italy, the farm lobby Coldiretti organised in Rome a “Maxispaghettata” to celebrate Tuesday's announcement.
The mayor of Rome, Gianni Alemanno, tasted the first dish of spaghetti with Italian tomatoes, basil and extra virgin olive oil. Tourists also joined in.
The confederation of Italian farmers said the UNESCO decision was a “victory of the quality, tradition and healthiness” of Italian agriculture. Another farm group, Confalgricoltura, welcomed the news and said the decision was of “priceless value for the image of our agriculture.”
Jacob ole Marion, the committee's president said it was unfortunate there were no nominations from African countries, despite the continents rich culture and heritage. He said African governments were not allocating enough resources to the preservation of their culture. - AP