Debating heritage authenticity:kastomand development at the Vanuatu Cultural Centre

Abstract In October 2003, 28 cultural expressions from around the world were proclaimed Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity, complementing the adoption of the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage by UNESCO. This proclamation has been part of the broader remit of the international organisation to protect the world's cultural diversity from modernity and globalisation. Inherent in this is an underlying notion of cultural authenticity, implying that certain expressions, which are considered to be endangered and therefore in need of institutional protection, constitute 'original' and 'pure' manifestations of cultural identity. Taking forward debates on the safeguarding of intangible heritage, this paper examines cultural authenticity in the context of the Vanuatu Cultural Centre, the principal cultural organisation, museum and research institution of the Melanesian archipelago. The proclamation of the practice of sandroing (sand drawing) as a masterpiece of intangible heritage, and other heritage interventions taking place in Vanuatu and recorded during fieldwork in 2007, provide an interesting perspective for examining how global cultural initiatives are negotiated by local constituencies. Here, heritage preservation is coupled with calls for development, which invites new ways for thinking about authenticity not according to predefined criteria, but with respect to local understandings. Keywords: authenticityVanuatu Cultural CentreUNESCOcultural developmentheritage preservation Notes 1. 1. This is the 1972 Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage. Although it is not the first convention to address the protection of cultural heritage, since it was preceded by the Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict (ICOMOS Citation1954) and the Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Cultural Property (UNESCO Citation1970), the idea of a universal heritage of humanity has made it the most popular convention of UNESCO. Currently, it has been ratified by more than 200 member states. 2. The 1989 Recommendation on the Safeguarding of Traditional Culture and Folklore (UNESCO Citation1989), which was the first major attempt by UNESCO to address the preservation of traditional culture, was not warmly endorsed by member states (Aikawa Citation2004; Hafstein Citation2009). 3. These included the Living Human Treasures programme in 1993, the Red Book of Endangered Languages in 1993, the Traditional Music of the World, and the Proclamation of Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity in 1997 (Nas Citation2002, Aikawa Citation2004, Alivizatou Citation2007 for the Proclamation). 4. Matsuura and the Japanese government, which has a long history in the preservation of traditional and folk culture, have been instrumental in the development of the activities of UNESCO on the safeguarding of intangible heritage (Hafstein Citation2004). 5. Interestingly, later inscriptions on the Representative List have included more widespread and popular phenomena, like the tango, which was proposed by Argentina and Uruguay and joined the list in 2009. 6. Kastom, derived from the English word custom, is a word in the lingua franca of Vanuatu, Bislama. Today it is primarily used to refer to all those aspects of local culture that have been inherited from the ancestors and are usually associated with the pre-colonial past. 7. Felix Speiser (Citation1996 1923), Alfred Deacon (Citation1934) and John Layard (Citation1942) wrote some of the first ethnographies of Vanuatu and collected objects from the archipelago. 8. Bolton provides a detailed account of the programmes transmitted through the radio from the 1960s and the important role they played in raising awareness among local (and often remote) populations about the need to document and preserve local traditions (2003, p. 27–32). 9. Walter Lini (1942–1999) was an Anglican priest from the island of Pentecost who headed the Vanua'aku Pati in the years leading to national independence. 10. This term refers to the citizens of Vanuatu. 11. Kirk Huffman's video documentary To Learn Who We Are provides a detailed account of the 1985 Arts Festival. 12. Ralph Regenvanu was director of the Vanuatu Cultural Centre until 2006, when Marcelin Abong succeeded him. 13. This is an initiative of the Vanuatu Cultural Centre in collaboration with the Council of Chiefs to raise awareness towards the need for sustainable economic growth that relies on traditional use of resources rather than cash-based economic systems (see Huffman Citation2005). 14. Roi Mata is an important chiefly figure in the history and oral traditions of Vanuatu and a symbol of national identity.