The Ukrainian “Program for the Protection of the Kobzar-Lyrnytsk Tradition” was officially included in the Register of Good Practices for the Protection of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of UNESCO. Such a decision approved during the UNESCO Intergovernmental Committee on Protection of Intangible Cultural Heritage.
“This achievement is especially important today, when our modern kobzars, like their ancestors during the time of the Cossacks, support the fighting spirit of Ukrainian defenders and inspire the fight for freedom and independence. Their music and words, as before, awaken faith and strength in people and unbreakable”, – noted the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine.
At the same time, the department drew attention to the purposeful attempts of Russian troops to destroy Ukrainian culture, in particular through the destruction of cultural institutions and the killing of artists. The Minister of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine, Mykola Tochytskyi, said that during the war with Russia, 133 Ukrainian artists died, six of whom were brothers of the Kobzar guilds who came to the defense of Ukraine.
“Nowadays, Russia, like the imperial and Stalinist regimes, is destroying everything related to Ukrainian culture, in particular the Kobzarstvo and the bearers of living heritage. But despite all attempts to deprive Ukrainians of their roots, our culture proves indomitable.” – emphasized Tochytskyi.
