Urtasun calls for breaking Palestine’s “chain of silence” at Ministerial Conference: “We do not have to forget Gaza”

The Minister of Culture, Ernest Urtasun, claimed this Wednesday at the opening of the Ministerial Conference for Palestinian Culture that the international community “does not have the right to forget the genocide in Gaza” and has called for breaking the “chain of silence” on a conflict situation that is a “conscious attempt to erase the millennia-old splendor of Palestinian culture.”

“We do not have the right to forget the genocide of Gaza, nor the occupation, devastation and the bombs. There is no possible forgetting in the face of daily violence, repression, torture, displacement of the population and the use of hunger as a weapon of war. We do not have the right to turn the page or remain impassive in the face of the violation of human rights, international law and global norms of coexistence between states,” said the Spanish minister at the opening ceremony of the Ministerial Conference, which had place at the Prado Museum, before representatives from around thirty countries and international delegations, and among whom was the filmmaker Pedro Almodóvar.

Urtasun has defended that the cause of Palestine is “the cause of humanity” and has assured that the meeting responds to a “collective responsibility towards humanity” and a “moral mission” that transcends borders, ideologies and beliefs. The minister has warned that “no one can get used to the destruction” or the disappearance of Palestinian tangible and intangible heritage.

“No one can turn their face in the face of such crimes. We are witnessing a conscious attempt to erase the ancient splendor of the culture of Palestine, eradicate its memory and suspend its future, which is that of its people. And it has been intended that all of this also happens in silence and without witnesses,” he lamented.

During his speech, Urtasun evoked the evacuation of the art gallery’s works during the Civil War to protect them from bombings, an episode that he presented as an example of the value of safeguarding cultural heritage in times of war and a “message of hope in the face of hatred.”

The minister has stressed that the Government’s will is to expand support for Palestine by creating “a global space” that allows defining shared priorities, financing mechanisms and concrete actions for the recovery of the cultural sector and support for artists and professionals both in the occupied territories and in the diaspora.

“Today in Madrid we look reality in the eye, taking a step against silence, oblivion and desolation. We take a step towards a new hope, always in favor of peace,” he added.

For his part, the Deputy Director General of Culture of UNESCO, Nayef Al-Fayez, has called for a “firm” international commitment to protect and rebuild in a “sustainable” way the Palestinian cultural sector and has warned that Palestine is going through a “critical” situation.

“This Ministerial Conference takes place at the right time because the situation we are experiencing is critical. We have to send a clear message, the international commitment has to be firm. The State of Palestine has an entire cultural heritage in which the diversity of culture and creative industries is protected,” he stated.

In addition, he has warned that, according to the UNESCO evaluation, 76 percent of the 223 cultural properties identified in Gaza have been affected, with damages estimated at more than 183 million dollars. “Our goal is to see how we can work as a global community and help our friends in Palestine,” he said. “Culture does not only have to do with the identity of the past, but also with the future,” he concluded.

“GENOCIDE OF CULTURE”

On the other hand, the Minister of Culture of Palestine, Emad Hamdan, has denounced that the Israeli offensive on the Gaza Strip constitutes a “genocide of culture” and has demanded the support of the international community to protect and reconstruct the Palestinian cultural heritage, considering that preserving culture also means “preserving the future” of the Palestinian people.

Hamdan has called the conflict in Gaza “genocide”, while putting the death toll at more than 73,000, and has denounced the massive displacement of the population while 77 percent of the homes have been damaged.

He has also accused Israel of trying to “end the identity of Palestine” through the destruction of cultural heritage. “The Israeli occupation aims to attack all types of popular demonstrations and present them as if they were Israeli,” he criticized.

Despite this, the minister has defended that Palestinian culture continues to be “an important symbol to protect identity” and has vindicated the work of artists, filmmakers, musicians and writers who continue to carry out their work “despite the very difficult circumstances.” Furthermore, he stressed that culture plays an essential role for mental health, social cohesion and the reconstruction of dialogue after conflicts.

“Those who preserve their culture, preserve their future,” said the Palestinian minister who has advocated “building bridges” between Palestine and the rest of the world through joint projects in areas such as theater or literature to “support peace.”

One of the most notable absences from this event was that of the United Nations special rapporteur for the Occupied Palestinian Territories, Francesca Albanese, who sent a letter in which she stated that talking about the reconstruction of Gaza while the destruction on the ground continues “risks becoming a rhetorical and cynical alibi”, while demanding that Israel “be held accountable for this genocidal violence”.

“Gaza has been destroyed, its homes, its educational system, its culture. This devastation did not begin on October 7, it is the most recent and most brutal chapter of a suppression that has been taking place for a long time. What we see today is not damage that is being produced by chance, it is a deliberate dismantling of the capacity of a people to remember, to teach, to imagine and project themselves into the future,” he criticized.

“THE BOYCOTT IS NOT ENOUGH”

Finally, Palestinian filmmaker Basel Adra, winner of the Oscar for best documentary feature for ‘No Other Land’, has denounced that Israel is “destroying the geography” of the Palestinian territories through illegal settlements, which, he said, have destroyed caves and buildings built by their ancestors and have reduced the land available for agriculture and grazing.

Adra has assured that in the last three years “85 entire communities have been displaced by Israeli settlements” and has called on the international community for “concrete measures and actions.” In this sense, he thanked the initiative promoted by Spain, although he criticized the fact that products from Israeli settlements reach Spanish markets and considered that “even a boycott” of these products “is not enough.”

“I believe that the Spanish Government is allowing some of these settlements because the products produced there enter their markets and for us that is unacceptable. The boycott is not enough because there is a huge gap between the actions that are being taken internationally and the reality that we live on the ground,” he said.

Finally, he has asked to recognize Palestinian culture as “a human heritage” and increase support for Palestinian artists and cultural institutions, considering that investing in art also means doing so “in memory and in justice.”