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China has not yet decided whether to nominate Duanwu Festival (Dragon Boat Festival) for inclusion in UNESCO's intangible culture list, but should it do so, the presence on the list of a similar Korean festival occurring at the same time will not be an obstacle, Zhou Xiaopu, an official in charge of heritage applications at the Ministry of Culture said yesterday.

Zhou commented on reports that China's food industry association had proposed the festival for inclusion in UNESCO's Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity list.

Zhou added that her ministry had not received any such formal application concerning the festival yet.

"The festival has to be included on China's preparatory list first before it can be recommended to UNESCO as a candidate for the oral and intangible heritage masterpiece list," she said.

To be included on the preparatory list, the food industry association will have to submit documents supporting the application. These will then be examined and approved by a team of cultural experts, she said.

Falling on the fifth day of the fifth month in the lunar calendar, Duanwu Festival, is usually celebrated with boat races and the eating of zongzi, pyramid-shaped dumplings made of glutinous rice and wrapped in bamboo leaves.

South Korea's Gangneung Danoje Festival, occurring at the same time and rooted in Chinese culture, is celebrated with masked performances and traditional Korean games.

When the news that the Republic of Korea planned to nominate its Gangneung Danoje Festival for inclusion in the UNESCO list in 2005, many Chinese people thought China would lose its "patent" on the celebration.

The furore eventually disappeared, but the widespread interest in protecting traditional Chinese festivals remained. The festival has been the focus of such interest.

Wen Yangyang, deputy secretary-general of the China Food Industry Association, said the association had tabled a proposal in 2005 to the government urging that more traditional festivals be added to the state list of intangible cultural heritage.

Duanwu and five other traditional festivals, including Spring Festival and Mid-Autumn Festival, were added to the list last year.

"Last year, more than 10,000 people signed a banner calling for the festival to be recognized as part of the world's intangible heritage," Wen said.

The Ministry of Culture is reportedly ready to accept application documents for the preparatory list.

However, Zou Qishan, a ministry official, said China would not recommend the festival for inclusion on the UNESCO list this year, adding that it was still heartening to see such outpouring of caring about the country's intangible heritage.

UNESCO defines intangible cultural heritage as "the practices, representations, expressions, as well as the knowledge and skills, that communities, groups and, in some cases, individuals recognize as part of their cultural heritage."

(China Daily January 17, 2007)