REAL CONGO NATION
ALWAYS LOOKING FOR INSPIRATION, BECAUSE WITHOUT INSPIRATION, THERE'S NO STORY.
For the traces of a story to have value, there must be in it the essence of the positive traces that guide intellectuals and non-intellectuals alike along paths of light, and if not to all, at least to the vast majority, its message must fill them and inspire them to start writing their own without fear of falling, even if they don't know how to take the first step.
Because when you take the first step in search of what you want, you take the second with more confidence, the third without fear, and from then on, you become unstoppable.
THERE IS NO STORY THAT ENLIGHTENS HUMANITY WITHOUT A HUGE EFFORT BEHIND IT,
BECAUSE STORIES DON'T BUILD THEMSELVES.
HISTORY BUILDS ITSELF
Julio Manguero
OUR HISTORY
The Congo Real association was born in Geneva in 2020, from the joint idea of a dance teacher and two students, in the wake of the Congo Real project, born in Cuba in 1998, with the aim of promoting Afro-Cuban folklore and ensuring the safeguarding and transmission of its cultural expressions and traditional knowledge. The Congo Real association is a project that forms part of the action plan for peace and reconciliation between peoples launched in recent years by the United Nations through various initiatives aimed at promoting cultural differences, encouraging intercultural exchange and dialogue, and protecting cultural expressions and traditional knowledge.
These initiatives include
the inclusion of Cuban rumba on UNESCO's list of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2016,
the official launch of the International Year of Indigenous Languages by UNESCO in 2019,
the International Decade for People of African Descent (2015-2024),
The "Slave Route: Resistance, Freedom, Heritage" project launched by UNESCO in 1994.
The "Memory of the World" project, launched by UNESCO in 1992.
All the recommendations contained in the Special Rapporteur's various reports in the field of cultural rights, notably on: defenders of cultural rights (2020), memory processes (2014), the writing and teaching of history (2013), the right of access to and enjoyment of cultural heritage (2011),
The mandate of the World Intellectual Property Organization's Intergovernmental Committee on Intellectual Property and Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge and Folklore.
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The focus is on intangible cultural heritage:
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"Cultural heritage is not limited to monuments and collections of objects, but also includes traditions or living expressions inherited from our ancestors and passed on to our descendants, such as oral traditions, performing arts, social practices, rituals and festive events, knowledge and practices relating to nature and the universe, or the knowledge and skills needed for traditional craftsmanship. Although fragile, intangible cultural heritage is an important factor in maintaining cultural diversity in the face of increasing globalization. Insight into the intangible cultural heritage of different communities is useful for intercultural dialogue, and encourages respect for other ways of life.
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The importance of intangible cultural heritage lies not so much in the cultural manifestation itself as in the wealth of knowledge and skills it passes on from one generation to the next. This transmission of knowledge has a relevant social and economic value for minority and majority social groups within a state, and is as important for developing as for developed countries".
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Focus sur l'Année internationale des langues autochtones :
"The United Nations General Assembly has proclaimed 2019 as the International Years of Indigenous Languages (resolution 71/178) in order to draw the attention of the international community to the serious threats to indigenous languages, as well as to the importance of these languages for sustainable development, reconciliation, good governance and peace building.
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Indigenous languages are important for development, good governance, peace-building and reconciliation Indigenous languages represent complex systems of knowledge created and accumulated over thousands of years. Local languages are cultural treasures, expressions of diversity, and essential resources for understanding the environment and making the most of it for the benefit of local populations and humanity as a whole. They promote and foster local cultural characteristics, customs and values. Each indigenous language constitutes a unique system and framework for understanding the world. The vocabulary developed revolves around themes of particular ecological, economic or socio-cultural importance. Knowledge is often delimited or rendered in precise terms that are not always easy to transfer from one language to another. Thus, the extinction of an indigenous language can mean the loss of essential knowledge that could be exploited for the betterment of humanity and sustainable development.
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Consequently, the loss of a language has disastrous effects on the indigenous cultures concerned, as well as on cultural diversity on a global scale. Unique ways of knowing and understanding the world risk disappearing forever. The dangers threatening languages vary from community to community and from place to place, but they all represent considerable challenges for indigenous peoples, whether in terms of assimilation, forced displacement, education, illiteracy, migration or any other form of discrimination that could lead to the disappearance of a culture or language".
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Focusing on the duty to remember
The cultural memory embodied in literature, architecture, the audiovisual and visual arts makes a significant contribution to understanding historical trauma, and is a source of testimony that is passed down from generation to generation.
If you want to become what you really want to be and achieve great things in life, you have to erase forever from your memory what you were in the past, because the past is the equivalent of something dead that you can no longer revive to bring it into the present, the only thing you can bring from the past into the present are the ghosts of what has been, and from there, start living in fear or illusion, but with zero percent realism.
Because to achieve great things in life, you need to have emotional control over yourself, and it's important to talk to yourself so that the memory of the past, even if it was prosperous or not, doesn't disturb the reality of the present, because if yesterday I was prosperous or not, that's part of the memory of my past, but not of me, I'm me, I am present and from the past I only bring to reality all the experience I have lived so that it can illuminate my path in all aspects of my life, which is part of the memory of my past, but not of me, I am me, I'm present, and from the past I simply bring to reality all the experience I've lived, so that it can illuminate my path in all aspects of my life, so that with intelligence I can confront the opportunities that, due to lack of maturity, I wasn't able to realize.
The past is a dead time that only brings memories, and the future is a phantom illusion that guarantees nothing to anyone. It's the present, the true reality of life, which, depending on the lucidity and maturity with which I've faced it, will be guaranteed to me.
It will have guaranteed you a fortune commensurate with your actions.
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FOR A STORY TO EXIST, THERE HAVE TO BE FACTS,
AND ONLY YOUR FINGERPRINTS WILL MARK THE FACTS OF YOUR STORY.
Julio Manguero
SAMBE
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RIRE
The message of cultural events speaks without opening our mouths, and even more so when the traces of their transmission cross borders.
Traditional and cultural expressions are manifestations that mark a people's identity, the essence of their knowledge. They are roots that are preserved thanks to oral transmission, passed down from generation to generation by elders and their many years of conservation.
The protection of traditional and cultural expressions is of great importance, so that instead of seeing entire villages disappear, we give life to their inhabitants, because they are not only the heart and soul that keep cultural heritage and identities alive, but also the cradle of doctors, farmers, writers, lawyers and intellectuals, etc. in the villages.
Thanks to the symbol of identity, to cultural expression, they have been able to develop and grow as human beings, to live integrated lives in society,
and consciously put all their knowledge at the service of humanity.
Cultural expressions, identities that mark not only peoples,
but nations as well.
Love and passion for traditional knowledge and cultural expressions
are not negotiated, they are of the people, they are not negotiated,
they are protected.