4. Cord and ironwood stake at tug-of-war ground & The rattan cord will be tugged back and forth through a ironwood stake' s hole. Rattan cord used in Hương Canh tug-of-war festival must be at least 45m in length and has a diameter of 3-4cm

9. Tug-of-war of Giáy ethnic minorities in Lào Cai province at Xuống đồng (starting a new crop festival)

2. Tug -of-war of the Việt people in Hữu Chấp village, Bắc Ninh Province: In preparing for the tug-of-war festival, the village chose wealthy young men and “unstained” families and divided them into two team: East and West

7. Tugging the cord back (in Hương Canh festival , the Việt people in Hương Canh village, Vĩnh Phúc Province)

New rice festival of the La Chí ethnic group (Lùng Vi village, Nà Khương commune, Quang Bình district, Hà Giang province)\nNà Khương commune is located 31 kilometers far from the southwestof Quang Bìnhdistrict center; Like many other ethnic groups in the Northern mountainous region of Vietnam, the La Chí in Nà Khương communecultivate wet rice and other crops in fertile terraced fields.\n

The various forms of traditional Tajik dances can be differentiated according to region, from Pamir state, to the mountainous region, Bukhra, Khatlon region in the south, Hissar valley, and northern Tajikistan. Huboni Khatlon is a traditional dance of the Khatlon region in southern Tajikistan, bordering Afghanistan. True to the title which means ‘Beautys of Khatlon’, the dance depicts young women living in Khatlon. The dancers wear beautiful traditional costumes called ‘chakan’, which is elaborately embroidered with the bright colors of spring flowers.\n\nCharacteristics:\n·Dance performed by dancers wearing chakan, a traditional costume decorated with colorful embroidery\n\nPerformed by Bazmoro Tajikistan National Dance Ensemble\nDirected by Qurbonali Kholov

Five pieces of bamboo are cut from a bamboo grown in the mountainous region and bored a hole on each five pieces of bamboo. A reed is put in each bamboo to make the pleasant sound. Those five pieces of bamboo are tied together and put in the hole of dried gourd. Then, the place met by bamboos with the dried gourd is covered with the bees wax to make air proof. The music melodies are made by blowing the mouth-hole of dried gourd and opening and shutting the finger holes on the bamboos alternatively.\n-13 inches of gourd flute in length\n-16 inches of dried gourd in height\n-9 inches of the longest bamboo piece in length\n-5.5 inches of the shortest bamboo piece in length

Hà Giang - one of the six provinces in the Northeast region of Vietnam has a diverse terrain and mountainous topography divided into 3 distinct regions: the rocky mountainous region includes Đồng Văn, Mèo Vạc, Yên Minh, Quản Bạ, Bắc Mê districts; the western region includes Xín Mần, Hoàng Su Phì districts; and the lowland region includes Vị Xuyên, Bắc Quang, Quang Bình districts and Hà Giang city. Residents in Hà Giang province belong to various ethnic groups such as the H’Mông, the Dao, the Tày, the Nùng, the LôLô, the Bố Y, the Pà Thẻn, the Giáy.

The traditional musical instruments of Myanmar were prominent throughout the nation’s history. The instruments were developed as early as the Pyu Era, Bagan Era and many were dominant features of music during the Innwa Era and Konbaung Era.\n\nWhile some of these instruments have been preserved and are used today, others have been lost to history.\nIn an attempt to preserve the traditional musical instruments of Myanmar, the Ministry of Culture displayed traditional instruments and distributed the books about the instruments during an exhibition in 1955. This research shows thirty-three kinds of instruments. Moreover, in a 2003 celebration of traditional instruments, the Ministry of Culture exhibited over two hundred traditional instruments at the national museum.\nWhile the instruments on display were representative of many regions and states, many instruments were not included.\nBecause of this lack of full representativeness, additional research through field studies is required. This project proposal addresses this need.\n\nTo create a preliminary basis towards developing a national ICH inventory of craftsmanship and performing arts of traditional musical instruments in Myanmar. To safeguard ICH related to the craftsmanship and performing arts of traditional musical instruments and to promote cultural diversity among multi- ethnic groups in Myanmar. To raise awareness of the Myanmar public on the importance of ICH. To expand networking and information sharing between Myanmar and Korea.

Intangible cultural heritage (ICH) is transnational in nature. It is necessary to spread the perception that ICH transcends geographical spaces and national borders, creating dynamic relations, connectedness, and continuity, which is why it is a timeless bearer of cultural diversity, the foundation of the heritage of humanity. However, as the modern structure of nation-state determines the boundaries of culture with national borders, forming the concept of “culture within the country”, subsequently led to the perception that the ownership of culture belongs to the state.\n\nThe concept of exclusive ownership of culture is often controversial in the UNESCO listing process, particularly in instances where cultural heritage and cultural domains have been shared for a long time by two or more nation-states. Such conflicts lead to excessive competition for nomination, overshadowing UNESCO’s fundamental purpose of contributing to peace and security in the world by promoting collaboration among nations, as well as the very spirit of the 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage that promotes international cooperation and assistance in the safeguarding of ICH as a matter of general interest to humanity.\n\nConsequently, UNESCO encourages multinational inscriptions of shared intangible cultural heritage to promote regional cooperation and international safeguarding activities, preventing conflicts among countries and coping with already existing ones. By emphasizing joint nominations of shared ICH, UNESCO revised its implementation guidelines three times to deal with conflicts between countries due to the cultural property rights. In addition, States Parties are encouraged to develop networks among relevant communities, experts, professional centres, and research institutes, particularly with regard to their ICH, to cooperate at the sub-regional and regional levels.\n\nAt the 13th Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage held in the Republic of Mauritius in November 2018, Traditional Korean Wrestling was inscribed on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity as the first joint designation by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and Republic of Korea. This milestone in the life of the Convention demonstrates that ICH contributes to the peace-building, reconciliation, mutual understanding, and solidarity among peoples. Indeed, only when acknowledging that shared cultural values are empowering characteristics of ICH, the true perspective of the unifying agent of the cultural diversity can be achieved, and that it is the cornerstone of reaching peace among nations.\n\nCountries in the Asia Pacific region are deeply connected by a long history of interactions, exchanges, flows of people, goods, and ideas that have shaped shared values, practices, and traditions. Having a balanced view, advocating for cultural diversity, and recognizing the commonalities among individuals, communities, and countries as a strength are virtuous tenets in the present time.\n\nIn this regard, APHEN-ICH Secretariat, ICHCAP, and UNESCO Bangkok Office are inviting the APHEN-ICH member institutes and public to this seminar under the theme of Diversity and Distinctiveness: Looking into the Shared ICH in the Asia-Pacific, to re-assess that while fragile, intangible cultural heritage is an important factor in maintaining cultural diversity, connecting bounds, and enhancing international dialogue and peace.

On 12 and 13 November 2020, ICHCAP and the ICH NGO Forum virtually held the 2020 ICH NGO Conference entitled “ICH and Resilience in Crisis.” The fifteen participants, including eleven selected presenters from ten countries around the world, discussed various cases and activities of each country applied under the Corona-era, and proposed solidarity for the resilience of ICH for a ‘New Normal.’\n\nSession 1: In the Vortex: COVID-19 Era, Roles of NGOs to Safeguard ICH\n\nSpecial Lecture 1: 'Resilience System Analysis' by Roberto Martinez Yllescas, Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in Mexico\n1. 'Uncovering the veil of immaterial cultural heritage towards and autonomous management of well-being as well as cultural and territorial preservation' by Carolina Bermúdez, Fundación Etnollano\n2. 'Holistic Development Model of Community-Based Intangible Cultural Heritage of Yuen Long District in Hong Kong of China' by Kai-kwong Choi, Life Encouraging Fund \n3. 'Indigenous Knowledge System as a vector in combating COVID-19' by Allington Ndlovu, Amagugu International Heritage Centre\n4. 'Enlivening Dyeing Tradition and ICH: The initiative of ARHI in North East of India' by Dibya Jyoti Borah, President, ARHI\n\nSession 2: Homo Ludens vs. Home Ludens: Changed Features COVID-19 Brought\n\n1. 'The Popular Reaction to COVID-19 from the Intangible Cultural Heritage among Member Cities of the ICCN' by Julio Nacher, ICCN Secretariat, Algemesi, Spain\n2. 'Innovation for Arts and Cultural Education Amid a Pandemic' by Jeff M. Poulin, Creative Generation\n3. 'Promoting Heritage Education through Intangible Cultural Heritage in the Kalasha Valleys of Pakistan' by Ghiasuddin Pir & Meeza Ubaid, THAAP\n4. 'Shifting to Online Activities: Digital Divide among the NGOs and ICH Communities in Korea' by Hanhee Hahm CICS\n\nSession 3: Consilience: Prototype vs. Archetype for Educational Source\n\nSpecial Lecture 2: 'Geographical imbalance: the challenge of getting a more balanced representation of accredited non-governmental organizations under the 2003 Convention' by Matti Hakamäki, Finnish Folk Music Institute\n1. 'Crafting a Post Covid-19 World: Building Greater Resilience in the Crafts Sector through Strengthening Ties with its Community’s Cultural System' by Joseph Lo, World Crafts Council International\n2. 'Arts and Influence: Untangling Corporate Engagement in the Cultural Sector' by Nicholas Pozek, Asian Legal Programs, Columbia University\n3. 'ICH in the South-Western Alps: Empowering Communities through Youth Education on Nature and Cultural Practices' by Alessio Re & Giulia Avanza, Santagata Foundation for the Economy of Culture\n\n

I met a group of nomads leading simple lives in Ushar village of mountainous Boysun. This is a recording of the music shepherds play on reed pipes while herding their sheep.

Uzbekistan in Central Asia is mostly grassland and desert, and much of its population is nomadic. However, there are also several oasis regions where people have settled into agricultural lifestyles. Uzbekistan used to be a strategic point in the Silk Road where the cultures of East and West met. There are several Kazakh and Tajik groups living in Uzbekistan and its borders are open to traders and nomads. Uzbeks love to sing and dance. Local folk performance groups called ensembles are a long standing tradition in Uzbekistan and lead all festivals and events. They compile and edit traditional folk songs and instrumental music to stage song and dance performances. The Boysun Festival is held annually in Boysun City, Southeastern Uzbekistan, and ensembles from all across the nation participate.\n\nTo hear the unadulterated versions of Uzbek folk songs, one has to ride a donkey into remote mountain villages. The mountains offer beautiful scenery and warm hospitality on top of humble folk songs. Boysun district in Uzbekistan is an example of such a mountainous region.\n\nA noteworthy characteristic of Uzbek folk songs is the large number of children’s songs. The children of Uzbekistan still sing as many children’s songs as we used to in the past. Another important genre of Uzbek folk music is the grand epic song sung by professional epic singers called bakhshi.

The southwestern provinces of Guangxi , Guizhou , and Yunnan make up a mountainous region with the greatest cultural diversity in China. The Zhuang people who live in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region enjoy singing shange in pairs or groups of five to six people. While majority of shange are about love between a man and a woman, some narrate epic tales. They can also be improvised in surprising ways to match the situation.\n\nThe Miao people, characterized by the unique hairstyles of the women, are scattered around Guangxi Province, Guizhou Province, and other parts of southwestern China. They have a unique singing technique that involves drawing out a single note as long as possible. Using this technique, they sing feige that sounds like flying birds and jiuge . The lusheng music played by men is also worth a listen.\n\nThe Kam (Dong) people live in Guizhou and are well known in China as the most vocally gifted tribe. Each village has several singing groups comprised of several dozen people, organized by gender and age. These groups sing dage , which are traditional polyphonic songs. The gulou and dage are such famous symbols of the Kam people and are used in tourism programs as well.\n\nAlthough there are many ethnic groups in Yunnan province, the Yi people are well known for their singing. Yi women sing songs with extremely high pitches to the accompaniment of yueqin played by the men. The Yi are also famous for their mass dances and singing parties during summer bonfire festival.

The northern mountainous regions are the residential land of the Kinh people and twenty-eight out of fifty-four ethnic minorities in Vietnam. This land has diverse forms of folk culture in general and folk music in particular. The CD, Folk Music of Some Ethnic Minorities in the Northern Mountainous Regions of Vietnam introduces some repertoires of folk music that were recorded in 1959 (tracks 1, 2, 5, and 7), in 1964 (tracks 10 and 15) and in 1970 (tracks 3, 4, 6, 8, 9, 11, 12, 13, 14, and 16) and performed by folk artists from minority ethnic groups, such as Thái, Tày, Nùng, Cao lan, Phù lá, Hmông, of the northern mountainous regions. Although the sound quality of the recordings isn’t that good, the materials will be valuable to history and art researchers and those who love folk music. The recordings allow listeners to compare folk art of a time that was almost isolated with the outside world with folk art of our time—the time of Internet.

ICH Courier is the quarterly magazine on ICH in the Asia-Pacific region issued by ICHCAP since 2009. Every issue has its own theme under the title of the Windows to ICH, and the theme of the Vol 28 is 'ICH and Sacred Cultural Spaces.'

2019 World Forum for Intangible Cultural Heritage

When we were young, we were told a lot of stories. Everyone hated the big, vicious, evil, and cunning animals. However, seen through grown-up eyes, there are no bad animals in the world. Animals personified in stories convey a message to the human world-that of peace and harmony. At a time when a message of peace is desperately needed, let’s enjoy some stories featuring various animals, from tigers to birds, rabbits, monkeys, and more.

ICH Courier is the quarterly magazine on ICH in the Asia-Pacific region issued by ICHCAP since 2009. Every issue has its own theme under the title of the Windows to ICH, and the theme of the Vol 26 is 'HEALING RITUALS AND INTANGIBLE CULTURAL HERITAGE.'