The National Human Rights Council (CNDH) is taking part in the 15th edition of the Tan-Tan Moussem, themed "Hosting the Global Nomadic Culture," held from June 14 to 19, 2019, in the city of Tan-Tan, southern Morocco. For its participation in this year’s edition of the annual festival, the Council has chosen the theme "The Right to Culture."

CNDH’s participation in this edition of the festival is part of its efforts to promote cultural rights and preserve heritage, including Hassani heritage, which is recognized by the Constitution as a key component of national cultural identity. The event will feature the Republic of Mauritania as the guest of honor.

In this context, CNDH, in partnership with the For Tan-Tan Association and the Almouggar Foundation, will organize a symposium on "The Memory of Tan-Tan" on Sunday, June 16, 2019, at the city's media library. Additionally, a symposium titled "The Culture of the Beidane: Cultural Commonalities between Morocco and Mauritania" will be held on Tuesday, June 18, 2019, in collaboration with the Jodour Association for Heritage, Culture, and Science, along with the Almouggar Foundation.

The Council's participation program includes a permanent gallery featuring publications on the desert and Hassani culture, alongside some of CNDH’s publications and an anthology of Hassani music. Additionally, a photo gallery will be set up in the children’s space, capturing moments from the festival activities and highlighting the spontaneity and simplicity of its men, women, and children.

In celebration of Hassani poetic creativity, CNDH will set up a poetry tent on Wednesday, June 19, 2019, bringing together a group of distinguished Hassani poets.

It is worth noting that the Tan-Tan Moussem has been included since 2008 in the representative list of intangible cultural heritage established by the UNESCO’s Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage. This convention was adopted on October 17, 2003, and ratified by Morocco on July 6, 2006.

The said Convention defines intangible cultural heritage as “the practices, representations, expressions, knowledge, skills – as well as the instruments, objects, artefacts and cultural spaces associated therewith – that communities, groups and, in some cases, individuals recognize as part of their cultural heritage. This intangible cultural heritage, transmitted from generation to generation, is constantly recreated by communities and groups in response to their environment, their interaction with nature and their history, and provides them with a sense of identity and continuity, thus promoting respect for cultural diversity and human creativity.”

The Convention stipulates that each State Party “shall take the necessary measures to ensure the safeguarding of the intangible cultural heritage present in its territory” and “identify and define the various elements of the intangible cultural heritage present in its territory, with the participation of communities, groups and relevant non-governmental organizations.”