UNESCO congratulates Iran on Nowruz Day

The head of UNESCO has extended a greeting message to Iran on the occasion of International Day of Nowruz.

UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova issued a statement on March 21 congratulating millions of people around the world who have come together to celebrate the arrival of spring as well as to share the values of Nowruz.

“Through dance, poems, songs, meals and other social practices, the celebration of Nowruz is a moment for men and women, boys and girls, to pay their respect to nature and wish for a better future,” she said.

People from all walks of life, including from western, central and southern Asia to the Caucasus, the Balkans and other regions, are observing Nowruz, the UNESCO head added.

“Since 2009, Nowruz has been inscribed on the UNESCO Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity as a festivity of rich diversity promoting peace and solidarity across regions and generations,” Bokova noted.

She went on to say that the Nowruz tradition “resonates strongly around the world today” amid violent extremism which seeks to destroy diversity and freedoms.

“The famous poet, Rumi, once wrote: ‘Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and right doing, there is a field. I will meet you there.’ Nowruz is a field where reconciliation and dialogue can take their roots,” she concluded.

Nowruz starts with the beginning of spring and equinox in Iran, where people hold ceremonies for the onset of the season.

AI/AI