SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Divided for seven decades, North and South Korea together won their first international recognition of Korean traditional wrestling yesterday.
The Koreas had earlier pushed separate bids for the sport’s UNESCO recognition before merging their applications amid an easing of tensions this year. Local media reports said South Korea had first proposed the joint bid during a leaders’ summit at a Korean border village in April.
Yesterday, the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, meeting in Port Louis, decided to inscribe traditional Korean wrestling on its list of “Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity” on the basis of an application by the two Koreas, UNESCO said in a release.
“The joint inscription marks a highly symbolic step on the road to inter-Korean reconciliation,” UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay said. “It reminds us of the peace-building power of cultural heritage, as a bridge between peoples.
