US embassy cable - 05LIMA1272

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 LIMA 001272 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR WHA/AND, WHA/PDA (SLEBENS/BBANKS), WHA/PD 
(JCAVANAUGH/KSCHINNERER), ECA/P/C (MKOUROUPAS) 
DEPT PASS TO USTR 
 
E.O.12958: N/A 
TAGS: OIIP, ECON, KIPR, PE 
SUBJECT: FTA and culture: Peruvian response 
 
1.  Summary: In July 2004, a group of renowned Peruvian 
artists and intellectuals, led by congresswoman Elvira de la 
Puente, created the Peruvian Coalition for Cultural 
Diversity to defend, promote, and protect Peruvian cultural 
industries and patrimony.  The Coalition sent President 
Toledo a letter demanding the insertion of a "cultural 
exemption" in the U.S.-Andean Free Trade Agreement (FTA) 
text, which would prevent Peruvian cultural products from 
being considered conventional commercial goods or services. 
The coalition wants to preserve Peru's cultural diversity in 
the face of the U.S.-Andean FTA.  If these concerns are not 
taken into consideration, the Coalition can be expected to 
raise its concerns publicly, possibly beginning a campaign 
against the FTA.  End Summary. 
 
2.  Background: The Peruvian Coalition follows the 
guidelines of the International Network for Cultural 
Diversity (INCD), a worldwide network of artists and 
cultural groups dedicated to countering the perceived 
adverse effects of economic globalization on culture.  One 
hundred eighty-seven delegates from 36 countries throughout 
Latin America, Europe, Africa, and Asia are members of INCD. 
As pressure grows to include more cultural sectors in free 
trade agreements, cultural groups around the world are 
uniting to create a new international instrument to preserve 
cultural diversity.  To support this, the INCD has drafted a 
"Convention on the Protection of Diversity of Cultural 
Contents and Artistic Expressions" to provide a legal 
foundation for government measures that support cultural 
diversity and encourage governments to use that authority 
domestically. UNESCO has sent this document to the World 
Trade Organization (WTO) for its information.  The final 
document will be discussed during the next UNESCO Convention 
in Paris in October 2005. 
 
3. According to the Coalition, cultural products are 
composed of goods and services with intellectual, artistic 
and educational contents, and artistic expressions that 
reflect the identities, experiences and values of a 
community.  Films, music, literature, theater, and other 
forms of arts are considered "cultural products."  The 
Coalition cites the disproportionate relationship in size, 
development, and competitiveness between Peruvian and U.S. 
cultural industries and demands special benefits to 
guarantee their existence in the local market. 
 
 
4. The Peruvian Coalition supports the following INCD 
principles: 
--Cultural policies must not be subject to international 
trade agreements; 
--Cultural goods and services are not mere economic 
commodities; 
--Cultural diversity must be protected from globalization 
challenges; 
--All nations must preserve the sovereign right to promote 
and enhance cultural diversity; 
--All nations must protect indigenous and national cultural 
institutions and at the same time, increase international 
trade of cultural products and other forms of artistic 
expression; and 
--Civil society should be fully engaged in FTA negotiation 
processes. 
 
5. Although the Peruvian cultural and intellectual community 
is generally in favor of the U.S.-Andean FTA, they agree 
that cultural industries should be protected.  They also 
believe that cultural products and services should be 
separated from free and open market systems. Similar groups 
have been created in other Latin-American countries with 
Colombia, known for their protection of cultural products, 
taking the strongest stance on the issue. On November 9, 
2004, Convenio Andres Bello, a Colombian institution, the 
Peruvian National Institute of Culture, the Institute for 
Peruvian Studies, and the Peruvian Ministry of Education 
organized a conference in Lima entitled "FTA: Culture, 
Diversity, and Facts."  Peruvian Vice Minister of Foreign 
Affairs, Alvaro Diaz, and Herman Rey, advisor to the 
government of Colombia participated in the conference.  Diaz 
indicated that the Peruvian Coalition's concerns had been 
taken into account and that Peru was negotiating for the 
insertion of a "cultural exemption" clause in the FTA text. 
Daily El Comercio November 7, 2004, edition (center-right 
influential leading daily, circulation 65,200) published an 
article supporting the proposal to protect cultural 
industries from the FTA. 
 
6. Recently, GOP MFA official, Benjamin Chavez, Head 
Peruvian negotiator for the Andean FTA's Cross-Border 
Services table, revealed to PAS that he is working with 
members of the Peruvian Coalition on the "cultural 
exemption" text for the FTA.  This would allow for the 
establishment of preferential economic policies for cultural 
industries, including government support for the audiovisual 
industry (film, television, and music). Mr. Chavez stated 
that the text being discussed has broader implications than 
the one approved in the FTA agreement with Chile, which 
allows the government to implement special economic 
advantages for Chilean cultural industries that do not fall 
under the FTA rules and guidelines. 
 
7.  The issue of Andean FTA and culture has received 
increased press coverage recently.  Daily El Comercio ran an 
article on the FTA and potential implications for the 
Peruvian film industry on February 28.  On March 15, 2005, 
the same newspaper published a similar article, calling the 
cultural industries of the Andean countries "David" against 
the U.S., "Goliath". 
 
8.  Comment: While the Peruvian Cultural Coalition has not 
made any public statements in recent months, it appears 
ready to become vocal and publish commentaries if the FTA 
does not include the proposed "cultural exemption" text. 
Embassy Lima will closely monitor the Coalition and its FTA- 
related initiatives. End comment. 
 
STRUBLE