Exhibitions
Australia
Commonwealth leaders propose cultural festival
Some countries have already seized the initiative
By Gareth Harris. Web only
Published online: 12 December 2011
Perth. A recent report commissioned by leaders of the 54 Commonwealth member states proposes that a biennial Commonwealth Cultural Festival be launched.
The document, “A Commonwealth of the People: Time for Urgent Reform”, published to mark a meeting of Commonwealth heads of government in October in Perth, Australia, says that such a project would “expose people to [the Commonwealth's] common identity and celebrate the diversity of cultures”. Interaction among Commonwealth artists is one of the project's aims.
The idea was first mooted at a Commonwealth meeting in 2009 when state leaders considered a proposal from the government of Pakistan about hosting such an event. Some Commonwealth countries have, however, already seized the initiative.
The Commonwealth Festival, a western Australian government-funded venture held in Perth, was staged alongside the Commonwealth heads of government meeting in October. According to Indian press reports, the city of Kolkata is also set to hold its own Commonwealth cultural festival next year.
Submit a comment
All comments are moderated. If you would like your comment to be approved, please use your real name, not a pseudonym. We ask for your email address in case we wish to contact you - it will not be
made public and we do not use it for any other purpose.
Want to write a longer comment to this article? Email letters@theartnewspaper.com