Knowledge of Cuban Light Rum Masters Declared Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO

Rabat, November 30 (RHC)-- The knowledge of the Cuban masters of light rum, knowledge that is transmitted from one generation to another of these experts, entered today in the UNESCO list of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

The Intergovernmental Committee for the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, in its third day of activities in this capital, endorsed in its seventeenth session Cuba's candidacy called "The Knowledge of the Masters of Cuban Light Rum", after two days of debates on the proposal.

The island's ambassador to UNESCO, Yahima Esquivel, highlighted the contribution of the centuries-old tradition to the Cuban identity, based on the use of oral, corporal and sensory expressions to transmit from one generation to another the system of knowledge of which the qualified specialists are the depositaries.

It is a process of social practice that takes place on a daily basis in factories or other spaces where teachers interact, who assume the social function of perpetuating knowledge that is neither written nor recipes, he stressed.

Regarding the values of the ancient tradition, he mentioned in the forum the solidarity, the collective contribution, the scientific rigor and the good practices governed by ethics and harmony with nature.

The candidacy arrived at the Committee with an unfavorable recommendation from the evaluating group, based on technical aspects of the file, which suggested returning it to the country, but members of the body composed of 24 Unesco member states - led by Brazil - yesterday promoted an on-site solution in the form of an amendment, based on the clarification of doubts by the Cuban delegation.

In that sense, Ambassador Esquivel answered questions, and most of the countries considered the concerns cleared and supported the status of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity of the knowledge of the masters of Cuban light rum.

Brazil highlighted the diversity that the island's proposal brings to Unesco's list, India called for putting the aspirations of a Third World people before technicalities and Morocco considered the explanations sufficient to clarify any doubts, while nations like Burkina Faso, Vietnam, Saudi Arabia, Panama, Paraguay, Ethiopia, Uzbekistan and Bangladesh, among others, expressed their support for the candidacy.

Several interventions by members of the Committee insisted that the file does not promote a product, but reflects the art of knowledge transmission between generations, which deserves to be safeguarded.

In a recent dialogue with Prensa Latina, members of the Movement of Cuban Light Rum Masters affirmed that tradition and accumulated knowledge make it possible to elaborate a unique product, labeled as the liquid flavor of what is Cuban. (Source:PL)

Over the past 160 years, exquisite blends have evolved again and again into refined products that arouse interest around the world, fruits of the work of eight generations of specialists, they said.

The first master, Juan Carlos González, commented that each generation leaves its creation in the barrels, which is taken up by the next.

For his part, master Asbel Morales assured that the ninth generation is already being prepared, which he described as a duty and an obligation.

Trust that Cuba will always be able to count on this know-how in light rum, he said.