By Mbali Vilakati
Mbabane – It is important for people to respect culture and traditions belonging to other groups of people.
This was said by Lutsango Lwaka Ngwane Secretary Joyce Gama. She said this yesterday (Tuesday, May 21, 2024).
Yesterday was a day when the world was celebrating cultural diversity.
The day is formally known as the World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development, sometimes abbreviated World Day for Cultural Diversity Speaking on Eswatini TV about the importance of culture, Gama said, “Your tradition is your nationality, your nationality is your pride. It is important for human beings to respect different cultures because they define who we are, as human beings.”
In order to ensure that respect for different cultures was in place, Gama is of the view that there is a need to educate one another on culture and tradition. This would be done for everyone to get the opportunity of being involved with other cultures, thus growing relations, according to the former radio personality.
Gama further said it is the pride of Emaswati to follow their traditions and culture just like other nationalities had their own traditions. She encouraged countries not to look down on others or also try to imitate each other but learn from each other.
According to Wikipedia, the World Day for Cultural Diversity is a United Nations (UN) sanctioned observance day for the promotion of diversity and intercultural dialogue, which began in 2002, and it is celebrated on May 21.The Millennium Development Goals issued by the United Nations in 2000 did not mention culture as an aspect or facilitator of development.
Since then, some UN agencies, especially the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), have worked to encourage cultural diversity as an integral part of development.
UNESCO’s Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity in November 2001 called for measures to protect the world’s cultural diversity from the risk of globalisation.
This document described cultural diversity as the “common heritage of humanity” and set out actions that member states could take to promote it. It was the first international instrument enshrining the value of cultural diversity and intercultural dialogue and led to further international efforts to promote diversity as a shared goal.
One such effort was UN Resolution A/RES/57/249, proclaimed unanimously by the United Nations General Assembly on December 20, 2002, naming May 21 as the World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development.
Through the Universal Declaration and other activities, UNESCO has promoted a new interpretation of culture. While cultural diversity was previously understood in terms of preserving established cultural material, the latest interpretation emphasises an ongoing process of interaction and dialogue. On the 2009 World Day for Cultural Diversity, UNESCO’s Director-General Kōichirō Matsuura specified that the organisation “believes that cultures are not monolithic but interdependent, resulting from mutual exchanges and borrowings.”
