The Committee,
- Having examined document ITH/18/13.COM/7.b,
- Recalling Chapter V of the Operational Directives and its Decisions 4.COM 14.05 and 11.COM 9.b.1,
- Expresses its thanks to France for submitting, on time, its second report on the status of the element ‘Cantu in paghjella, a secular and liturgical oral tradition of Corsica’, inscribed in 2009 on the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding;
- Takes note of the continued efforts undertaken by France to safeguard the element, and in particular to enhance its transmission to the younger generation, as well as to proceed with its documentation and inventorying, ensuring the necessary support from national and regional authorities;
- Invites the State Party to pursue the transmission of the element in local schools, enhancing a positive association between mastering paghjella and learning the Corsican language, to pay attention to safeguarding the diversity of its repertoire, particularly regarding the threats caused by its use for commercial and tourism purposes, and to support the community’s interest in exchanging with practitioners of other forms of polyphonic singing in the region;
- Notes the State Party’s plan to create a sound library, with a call for contributions within the communities to collect archives and testimonies held by families;
- Encourages the State Party to enhance institutionalized learning and traditional modes of transmission and broaden the promotion and awareness-raising measures;
- Requests that the Secretariat inform the State Party at least nine months prior to the deadline of 15 December 2021 about the required submission of its next report on the status of this element.