Venezuela raises its voice in defense of heritage and cultural rights at MONDIACULT 2025

Published at: 30/09/2025 03:28 PM

This Tuesday, September 30, the Minister of Popular Power for Culture, Ernesto Villegas, highlighted the need to create an international instrument for the protection of the Tangible and Intangible Cultural Heritage of countries that are victims of unilateral coercive measures.

During his speech at the panel “Culture and Climate Action + Cultural Heritage and Crisis” of the III UNESCO World Conference on Cultural Policies and Sustainable Development (MONDIACULT) 2025, held in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, Villegas stressed that it is necessary to extend the 1954 Hague Convention to protect cultural assets in times of unconventional aggression.

“They have done a lot of damage to the peoples of the world in terms of heritage and cultural rights,” he said, denouncing the current siege that Venezuela is suffering with the deployment of U.S. warships in the Caribbean Sea.

At the same time, he denied the argument of the North American nation about the fight against drug trafficking, citing figures from the United Nations that indicate that 87% of the illegal drugs that enter the United States from South America move through the Pacific Ocean and not through the Caribbean Sea.

He recalled the irreparable damage to Iraq's cultural heritage, after being invaded by the United States, under the false accusation of possessing chemical weapons of mass destruction.

“If a military aggression by the United States against Venezuela takes place, cultural heritage will not be protected as was the cultural heritage of Iraq. I warn here about this imminent threat and call for reflection,” he said.

On the other hand, he reaffirmed the country's position against illegal trafficking in works of art, noting that Venezuela was recognized “for good practices in this area by UNESCO” when 197 pieces of its archaeological heritage were returned to Costa Rica in 2018. In addition, he recalled the repatriation of grandmother Kueka from Germany to Venezuela after years of struggle by the Pemon people.

He mentioned the donation from Belgium, by King Leopold, of art pieces from the Democratic Republic of the Congo to Venezuela in the 1950s. “Initially, these pieces were placed in the Museum of Natural Sciences next to objects of anthropological curiosities. We have transferred them to the Museum of Fine Arts to give them the treatment they deserve. In addition, we have offered the Democratic Republic of the Congo to restore that part of the cultural heritage that was plundered by colonialism,” he explained.

Regarding climate change, he highlighted that the Chuquisaca decree inspires the eco-socialist policy of the Bolivarian Government of Venezuela headed by President Nicolás Maduro.

He also invited people to follow and learn the details of the World Congress in Defense of Mother Earth, which will be held from October 8 to 10 in Caracas; this event has a theme that responds to part of the concerns about climate change raised by several countries participating in this panel.

He also showed those present a sculpture of the deity María Lionza “goddess of the mountains, of the waters, she is the spiritual component that our peoples develop around life in nature”. “I also claim that contribution because it is not only a matter of technicians, of experts, but it is also a matter fundamentally of the peoples who live in those ecosystems in harmony with nature,” he said.

Venezuela is participating in MONDIACULT 2025 as a sovereign State seeking to strengthen ties of cultural cooperation between member countries, promote the exchange of experiences and good practices, and promote joint projects that promote intercultural dialogue and diversity.

Mazo News Team