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| INTERNATIONAL YEAR FOR PEOPLE OF AFRICAN DESCENT |
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On 18 December 2009, The United Nations General Assembly proclaimed 2011 as International Year for People of African Descent through its resolution A/RES/64/169, and invited its Member States, the Specialized Agencies of the United Nations System and the civil society to organize initiatives that could contribute to the success of the commemoration.
Celebrations commenced on the 1st of January 2011 and its major objectives were to strengthen the adoption of steps at the national level as well as regional and international cooperation to benefit people of African descent, for the full enjoyment of their rights and their full participation and integration in all aspects of society, as well as the promotion of a greater acknowledgement and respect to the diversity of their heritage and their culture.
The origin of this celebration goes back to the origin of the United Nations Organization itself. The Preamble of the Charter of the United Nations reaffirms the faith in the fundamental rights of men, in the dignity and worth of persons, in equal rights of men and women and of big and small nations; and the third objective calls for the development and encouragement of respect to human beings and the fundamental freedom of all, without distinctions because of race, sex, language or religion. Dedicating a year to people of African descent is also inspired in the Universal Declaration of Rights, which, in turn, proclaims that all human beings are born free and with equal rights and dignity, with no difference at all.
We should ask then why, sixty years after the United Nations Organization was created, we need to remind the world that all men and women on our planet are entitled to equal rights. After a bloody world war waged precisely under the visible pretext of an alleged racial superiority, it was only natural to create an organization and international juridical instruments that would endorse those rights and would norm their respect.
Yet, already in the 21st century and in spite of the efforts of the international community, there are still countless that are victims of discrimination because of race, sex, religious beliefs, xenophobia and other related forms of intolerance.
According to estimates, about 150 million people who identify themselves as persons of African descent live in Latin America and the Caribbean. Many more live in other parts of the African continent. Proclaiming 2011 as International Year for People of African Descent, the international community acknowledges that persons of African descent represent a significant segment of the society that for centuries has suffered humiliations and has historically been denied their rights, and it is therefore necessary to promote and protect their rights.
The celebration of the International Year for People of African Descent has been also a timely opportunity for the ratification of the objectives that encouraged the creation of The UNESCO Slave Route Project in 1994: to end the silence around the slave trade and all the actions that have terribly lacerated humanity and from all of which we must learn and disseminate our lessons preserving, at the same time, and also disseminating their rich history.
The UNESCO Regional Office for Culture in Latin America and the Caribbean co-sponsored a comprehensive plan of activities within the framework of this celebration.
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Year V, No. 8, January 2012 |
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Other issues |
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Publications and Documents |
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Universal Declaration of Human Rights |
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International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, 1966 |
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International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, 1966 |
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International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, 1965 |
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Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action, Austria, 1993 |
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Report of the World Conference, Durban, South Africa, 2001 |
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Durban Review Conference, Geneva, Switzerland, 2009 |
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If you do not have Internet access and would like to receive any of these texts, contact us and we will gladly e-mail them. |
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ACTIVITIES IMPLEMENTED BY THE UNESCO REGIONAL OFFICE FOR CULTURE IN LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN ON THE OCCASION OF THE INTERNATIONAL YEAR FOR PEOPLE OF AFRICAN DESCENT |
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Full Texts |
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15th WORKSHOP ON AFRO-AMERICAN SOCIAL AND CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY (
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The Office sponsored and contributed to this Workshop, celebrated at the Museo Casa de África (Museum of African Heritage) of the Office of the Historian of Havana on January 5 to 9, 2011. In 2011, the Workshop was especially dedicated to the international celebration and also a space for the Cuban Committee of the Slave Route to share with experts and specialists, both from the country and abroad, the results and findings of their most recent research projects.
In the opening ceremony, Dr. Alberto Granado Duque, Director of the Casa de África, especially acknowledged the work and the support (technical and material) provided by UNESCO to the institution through its Office in Havana. More... (
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ROUND TABLE "THE UNITED NATIONS IN CUBA AND THE INTERNATIONAL YEAR OF THE PEOPLE OF AFRICAN DESCENT" IN THE 20TH HAVANA INTERNATIONAL BOOK FAIR, CUBA 2011 (
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Event coordinated by the UNESCO Regional Office for Culture in Latin America and the Caribbean as part of the activities implemented by the System of the United Nations in Cuba in the XX International Book Fair Cuba 2011.
The panel was integrated by the Resident Coordinator of the System of the United Nations in Cuba and Representative of UNDP in Cuba and by the representatives of UNESCO, UNICEF, UNFPA and the Cuban Committee of the Slave Route.
Each speaker presented the topic of the people of African descent and the activities to be implemented during the International Year for People of African Descent from the perspective of each agency respectively. The Director of UNESCO Havana stated that both the celebration and the comprehensive program of activities organized by the Regional Office would be adequate spaces for the ratification of the objectives of the UNESCO Slave Route Project and to strengthen the ties existing between the Regional Office for Culture and the national Committees of the Region. More ... (
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SPECIAL TRIBUTE OF THE MUSEUM OF AFRICAN HERITAGE TO THE UNESCO REGIONAL OFFICE FOR CULTURE IN LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN (
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The Casa de África (Museum of African Heritage) of the Office of the Historian of Havana paid a special tribute to the UNESCO Regional Office for Culture in Latin America and the Caribbean on the 62nd anniversary of its establishment. The ceremony was held on February 16 at the Casa de África, in Old Havana.
Dr. Alberto Granado Duque, Director of the cultural institution, said that since its creation in 1986 strong cooperation ties have been established with the UNESCO Regional Office for Culture. He acknowledged in particular the cooperation and support provided by UNESCO through its Regional Office to the Workshop on Afro-American Social and Cultural Anthropology, held every year by the institution. More…
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WORKSHOP OF THE CUBAN COMMITTEE OF THE SLAVE ROUTE (
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A joint workshop of the UNESCO Regional Office for Culture in Latin America and the Caribbean and the Cuban Committee of the Slave Route took place on 22 and 23 February 2011 in the Casa de África (Museum of African Heritage) of the Office of the Historian of Havana and in places of memory in the westernmost province of Pinar del Río. A large number of members of the National Cuban Committee and its six Working Groups, as well as Olga Rufins, representing the UNESCO Havana Office participated in the workshop.
During the meeting, the work implemented since 2008 by the Committee was discussed and a number of actions were approved for the celebration in 2011 of the International Year for people of African Descent More…
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MEETING OF THE INTERNATIONAL SCIENTIFIC COMMITTEE OF THE UNESCO SLAVE ROUTE PROJECT (
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Held in Bogota, Colombia, from 28 February to 3 March 2011, with the participation of Herman van Hooff, Director of the Regional Office for Culture.
The agenda included the contribution to the UNESCO Slave Route Project aimed at the celebration of the International Year for people of African Descent.
The meeting endorsed and ratified the pertinence and validity of the Project, now by the comprehensive denomination: “The Slave Route: Resistance, Freedom and Heritage”. More…
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BOOK EL CACAO Y EL CHOCOLATE EN CUBA (CACAO AND CHOCOLATE IN CUBA) (
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The UNESCO Havana Office collaborated with the Fernando Ortiz Foundation to publish the book El Cacao y el Chocolate en Cuba (Cacao and Chocolate in Cuba), a compilation made by Dr. Niurka Núñez González of articles by various authors. The UNESCO Office also organized the presentation of the book in its premises on 15 March 2011, as part of the activities for the International Year for People of African Descent.
The book is in keeping with the Project “The Cacao Culture in Cuba: Safeguarding and Transmission”, within the regional project “The Cacao Route in Latin America and the Caribbean: Cultural Diversity Towards an Endogenous Development”.
The book explains the connections between The Cacao Route and The Slave Route, as well as the impact and legacy of Africans and their descendants in cacao management and the traditions associated to the crop. More…
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IV TRAVELLING CARIBBEAN FILM SHOWCASE (
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Since 2006, the UNESCO Havana Office is collaborating with the Travelling Caribbean Film Showcase within the Project The Cameras of Diversity. The IV Showcase was launched on March 16, 2011 in a ceremony in which the Director of the Havana Office participated. This year, the Showcase was dedicated to the Caribbean Diaspora within the International Year for People of African Descent taking into account the valuable contribution made by African peoples and cultures to the Caribbean nations.
An initiative of the Cuban Film Institute and of the Ministry of Culture of Cuba, the Showcase selects audiovisual materials in their original languages after a call for submissions open to all Member States for their dissemination in the region. The Showcase is also one of the Projects included in the Plan of Action of the Forum of Ministers of Culture and Officials in Charge of Cultural Policies of Latin America and the Caribbean. More…
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INTERNATIONAL FORUM: "THE CARIBBEAN DIASPORA: CHALLENGES OF A REALITY AND ITS IMAGES" (
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Forum of the IV Travelling Caribbean Film Showcase held in Saint Kitts & Nevis on May 9-11, 2011.
Organized in coordination with the Community Cohesion Foundation Inc. And the Ministry of Culture of Saint Kitts & Nevis, the Forum was a space for discussion, debate and reflection that favored the dialogue among Caribbean filmmakers on th realities and prospects for the production, exhibition and distribution of Caribbean cinema.
Among the topics discussed in the Forum were the Necessary exchange between the creators in the Diaspora and the cinematographic and audiovisual community of their countries. Diaspora filmmakers’ possible roles for the purpose of boosting the Caribbean cinema development;
Several Caribbean states and territories participated in the Forum, namely Aruba, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Cuba, Guadalupe, Haiti, Trinidad and Tobago. More…
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INTERNATIONAL COLLOQUIUM CULTURAL DIVERSITY IN THE CARIBBEAN (
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Event organized by the Center for Caribbean Studies of Casa de las Américas on May 16 to 20 2011 and sponsored by the UNESCO Regional Office for Culture in Latin America and the Caribbean. The opening address of the Colloquium was made by the Director of the UNESCO Office.
As part of the activities for the International Year for People of African Descent, the colloquium dedicated a special section to the topic “Inter-Caribbean Migrations and People of African Descent”, with the participation of well-known intellectuals from the region and experts in the topic. UNESCO had a special participation with the Panel “Cultural Diversity, people of African descent and endangered languages in America”. More…
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PANEL “CULTURAL DIVERSITY, PEOPLE OF AFRICAN DESCENT AND ENDANGERED LANGUAGES IN AMERICA” (
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In the International Year for People of African Descent, the UNESCO Regional Office for Culture in Latin America and the Caribbean was responsible for this panel in the International Colloquium Cultural Diversity in the Caribbean (Havana, 16-20 May 2011).
UNESCO Havana specialists Fernando Brugman, Tatiana Villegas and Olga Rufins were in the panel to present the most important Conventions promoted by UNESCO in the Culture Sector. They also discussed the Slave Route Project and its links with the International Year for People of African Descent. More…
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WORLD DAY OF CULTURAL DIVERSITY FOR DIALOGUE AND DEVELOPMENT DEDICATED TO THE INTERNATIONAL YEAR FOR PEOPLE OF AFRICAN DESCENT (
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The UNESCO Regional Office for Culture in Latin America and the Caribbean dedicated its comprehensive program of activities for the 21st of May to the International Year for People of African Descent. The celebrations were co-sponsored by the Ministry of Culture, the national Cuban Commission for UNESCO and the Cuban Association of the United Nations.
The central activity was a concert organized by the UNESCO Regional Office for Culture and the Office of the Historian of Havana in which the National Folk Company and the Compañía Yoruba Andabo made a special performance. More…
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SEMINAR “CUBA AND THE PEOPLES OF AFRICAN DESCENT IN AMERICA” (
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A special panel of the United Nations System in Cuba was held as part of the Seminar "Cuba and the Peoples of African Descent in America”. The panel was organized by the Ministry of Culture of Cuba and the Cuban Institute for Cultural Research “Juan Marinello.
With Rolando García, assistant representative of the UNFPA, as moderator, the panel was integrated by the Resident Coordinator of the United Nations System in Cuba, the representative of UNICEF, the Regional Coordinator of the Programme Gender, Race and Poverty of UN-Women Brazil and the Director of the UNESCO Office in Havana who stressed the value of the contributions made by the people of African descent to Cuban society and culture and warned about the threat against knowledge and experiences in other societies being destroyed by the predominance of other social and linguistic models.
Specialists from Brazil, Cuba, United States, Puerto Rico and Uruguay participated in the Seminar. More…
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AUDIOVISUAL ON THE INTERNATONAL YEAR FOR PEOPLE OF AFRICAN DESCENT (
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The UNESCO Regional Office for Culture in Latin America and the Caribbean, as part of the activities on the International Year for people of African Descent, facilitated making an audiovisual by the students of the International School of Film and Television of, San Antonio de los Baños, Cuba.
The audiovisual, available to all Member States through www.unesco.lacult.org, shows in a dynamic and original manner the vision of this international celebration from the viewpoint of young filmmakers from various parts of the world. More…
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FESTIVITIES FOR THE 500th ANNIVERSARY OF THE FOUNDATION OF BARACOA (
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The UNESCO Havana Office participated in the festivities for the 500th anniversary of the foundation of the Village of Nuestra Señora de la Asunción de Baracoa (Our Lady of the Assumption of Baracoa), the first village founded by the Spaniards in Cuba. The celebrations were carried out on 14 and 15 August 2011.
The Director of the UNESCO Havana Office participated in several activities within the Program, mostly related with the project “The Cacao Culture in Cuba, Safeguarding and Transmission”, and outlined the significant African cultural and spiritual heritage present in local culture of Baracoa, as well as in the traditions associated to the cacao culture. More…
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PEOPLE OF AFRICAN DESCENT, GUANABACOA-CUBA: PHOTOGRAPHS BY ROBERTO CHILE (
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Cuban remarkable photographer and filmmaker Roberto Chile published the book People of African Descent, Guanabacoa-Cuba, which includes 40 photographs taken between December 2010 and May 2011 in Guanabacoa (Havana), with texts written by Herman van Hooff, Director of the of the UNESCO Regional Office for Culture in Latin America and the Caribbean, and other personalities of culture.
The carefully edited book reveals in black and white short stories about the people of this unique town in Havana, a memorable gift by the artist in the International Year for people of African Descent.
The exhibition was presented in Madrid, Spain (5-30 June 2011); in Buenos Aires, Argentina (5-11 September2011); at the Fototeca de Cuba (23 September-2 October 2011), with the Director of the UNESCO Havana Office for the opening; and at the Casa Liceo Artístico Literario of Guanabacoa (20 October- 20 November 2011). More…
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ENCOUNTER OF FILMMAKERS FROM AFRICA, THE CARIBBEAN AND THE DIASPORAS AND AFRICAN CINEMA SHOWCASE (
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Held from 12 to 18 September 2011 in Havana as part of the IV Travelling Caribbean Film Showcase and dedicated to the International Year for People of African Descent. The UNESCO Havana Office collaborated in the organization of these events within the Project The Cameras of Diversity.
Filmmakers from over 25 countries from America, Africa and Europe participated in the event the Final Declaration of which acknowledges the support the Showcase has received from UNESCO, while, at the same time, it reaffirms the significance of the Cameras of Diversity suggesting its implementation in Africa and its strengthening in Brazil and the Caribbean. More…
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WORKSHOP "INTANGIBLE HERITAGE AND THE COMMUNITIES OF PEOPLE OF AFRICAN DSCENT IN LATIN AMERICA" (
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Organized in Havana from 20 to 22 September 2011 within the International Year for People of African Descent by the UNESCO Havana Office and the Center for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Latin America (CRESPIAL), with the Office of the Historian of Havana, the National Cuban Commission for UNESCO (CNCU) and the National Council for Cultural Heritage (CNPC).
The objective of the workshop was develop capacities and Exchange experiences on the application in Latin America of the 2003 UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, with an emphasis on the intangible cultural heritage of the communities of people of African descent. Experts from Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay participated in the workshop.
The Director of the UNESCO Havana Office highlighted the significance of the event and the debate propitiated in it, in tune with the strategy for training trainers promoted by the Organization to facilitate the application of the 2003 Convention. More…
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ORALIDAD 17 DEDICATED TO THE INTERNATIONAL YEAR FOR PEOPLE OF AFRICAN DESCENT (
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Oralidad no. 17 has been especially dedicated to contribute to the dissemination of national actions and to the promotion of regional and international cooperation for the benefit of people of African descent in the International Year for People of African Descent.
The issue was distributed during the sixth meeting of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage (Bali, Indonesia, 22-29 November 2011) as well as in the meeting of the Culture Sector in session during the UNESCO General Conference.
The UNESCO Havana Office has been publishing Oralidad since 1988, aimed at contributing to the safeguarding of the intangible cultural heritage in the region. UNESCO Offices in Brasilia, Montevideo and Quito made contributions to this issue as did the Section of Intangible Cultural Heritage at UNESCO. All the issues are available in the Portal of Culture of Latin America and the Caribbean (www.unesco.lacult.org). More…
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POSTER FOR THE INTERNATIONAL YEAR FOR PEOPLE OF AFRICAN DESCENT (
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The UNESCO Havana Office called for a contest to design a poster on the International Year for People of African Descent. A detail of the winning project illustrates the greeting card of the UNESCO Regional Office for Culture in Latin America and the Caribbean on the New Year. (
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EXTENSIVE COVERAGE IN THE PORTAL OF CULTURE OF LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN (
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In addition to the activities organized by the Regional Office, there was extensive coverage to all the other activities implemented in the Region on the International Year for People of African Descent through the Portal of Culture of Latin America and the Caribbean (www.unesco.lacult.org). (
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MEETING AT THE HIGHEST LEVEL TO CLOSE THE ACTIVITIES ON THE INTERNATIONAL YEAR FOR PEOPLE OF AFRICAN DESCENT, NEW YORK, 6 DECEMBER 2011 (
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In his address to the participants in the Meeting, H.E. Pedro Núñez Mosquera, Cuban Permanent Representative to the United Nations Organization, stated that the UNESCO Slave Route Project has been particularly important for Cuban society. Proof of this is the large number of multidisciplinary research and development projects being implemented, and the creation of the first museum dedicated to this topic in the continent.
He also mentioned some of the main actions promoted by the UNESCO Regional Office for Culture in Latin America and the Caribbean within the comprehensive program carried out in the country within the International Year for People of African Descent. More...
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16th WORKSHOP ON AFRO-AMERICAN SOCIAL AND CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY (
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Held at the Museum Casa de África (Museum of African Heritage) of the Office of the Historian of Havana on January 4 to 7, 2012.
At the request of the Organizing Committee, the Director of the UNESCO Havana Office delivered a master conference on the celebration in Cuba of the International Year for people of African Descent. More…
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