CUMANANA L-ENG

OCTOBER 2025 EDITION

NUMBER L

Cumanana V IRT UA L B ULLE T IN OF PER U VIAN CU LTU R E F OR AF R ICA

MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF PERU

EDITION DEDICATED TO THE 16TH EDITION OF THE PERU–AFRICA FRIENDSHIP DAY OPENING SPEECH OF THE 16TH EDITION OF THE PERU–AFRICA FRIENDSHIP DAY

EXPANDING AFRICANNESS

RECIPE GOAT STEW WITH BEANS

ISSN: 3084-7583 (online)

CONTENTS 4

Opening Speech of the 16th Edition of the Peru–Africa Friendship Day

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Opening Speech of the 16th Edition of the Peru–Africa Friendship Day on behalf of the African Embassies resident in Peru

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The African Diaspora in Colonial Peru: Historical Roots of the Peru–Africa Friendship

Ambassador Félix Denegri Boza, Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs

Ahmed Bakr, Ambassador of Egypt to Peru

Raúl Eduardo Flores Rojas

.

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The Cumanana in the Afro-Peruvian Town of Yapatera: Identity and Memory Projected toward Cultural Industries and Tourism

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The Visibility of the Afro-Peruvian People through Cultural Policies

Samanta Hilda Calle Ruiz & Rosa Isabel Castillo Távora

Alicia del Pilar Quevedo Canales, Ministry of Culture of Peru

SPECIAL SECTION: EXPANDING AFRICANNESS

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Napoleonic Afro-Americans: Idealistic Agents?

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From the Andes to the Maghreb: The Literature of Clorinda Matto de Turner and Assia Djebar as a Mirror of Societies in Transformation

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The Afro-Peruvian Legacy in the Hatajo de Negritos and Pallitas

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“Like Love, Truth Is Inclusive”: The Histories by Kerry James Marshall

Ambassador in the Diplomatic Service of the Republic, Jorge Alejandro Raffo Carbajal

First Secretary in the Diplomatic Service of the Republic, Amparo María Melchor Castro

Second Secretary in the Diplomatic Service of the Republic, Verónica Miyagusuku Ríos

Second Secretary in the Diplomatic Service of the Republic, Jimy Trujillo Chuquihuaccha

RECIPE

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Goat Stew with Beans

INTRODUCTION

Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs of Peru and representatives of African embassies attending the 16th Peru–Africa Friendship Day. Source: Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Peru

O

n Monday, October 20, 2025, the Inca Garcilaso Cultural Center of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs hosted the 16th edition of the Peru–Africa Friendship Day (DAPA in Spanish), a commemoration that reaffirmed Peru’s commitment to strengthening bonds of friendship and cooperation with the nations of the African continent.

The event also served to underscore the cultural dimension of the birregional relationship. In this context, a commemorative philatelic series was unveiled to mark the anniversaries of diplomatic relations with Senegal, Angola, and Tanzania, symbolizing mutual appreciation for shared history and cultural diversity.

The ceremony was presided over by Vice Minister Félix Denegri Boza and by Ambassador Ahmed Hamdi Bakr Mohamed of the Arab Republic of Egypt, who represented the African embassies accredited in the country. The event was co-organized with the diplomatic missions of Algeria, Egypt, Morocco, South Africa, and Angola, and was attended by distinguished authorities, including Members of Congress Heidi Juárez and Víctor Flores, Vice Minister of Interculturality Percy Barranzuela, as well as the Ambassadors of Belgium, Romania, Russia, Guatemala, Japan, Cuba, Panama, and other friendly nations.

During his address, Ambassador Ahmed Hamdi Bakr Mohamed stressed that Africa and Latin America share common challenges, including the need to diversify their economies, reduce dependence on raw materials, and invest in education, technology, and value-added production.

The day included a cultural and gastronomic exhibition that allowed the audience to enjoy Afro-Peruvian and Arab dances, musical performances, and a tasting of typical dishes from Peru and the participating African countries. The African embassies and the Ministry of Culture presented decorative tables that reflected the richness and diversity of the African continent, In his opening speech, Ambassador Denegri fostering a valuable space for intercultural exchange. emphasized Peru’s steadfast commitment to strengthening ties of friendship and cooperation with Among the most notable artistic performances were African countries, underscoring that 2025 marks the festejo, alcatraz, zapateo criollo, and a recital of first year of implementation of the Ministry of Foreign décimas by maestro Octavio Santa Cruz, all of which Affairs’ Strategic Plan for Africa 2024–2030. He highlighted the African influence on Peru’s cultural also highlighted progress in the political-diplomatic identity. sphere, such as the political consultation meetings held with Ghana and Angola, and announced that similar mechanisms are planned with South Africa and Egypt.

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ARTICLE 1

OPENING SPEECH OF THE 16TH EDITION OF THE PERU–AFRICA FRIENDSHIP DAY

Ambassador Félix Denegri Boza, Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs

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t is an honor to preside, on behalf of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, over the inauguration of the sixteenth edition of the Peru–Africa Friendship Day, an occasion on which we celebrate the historical, cultural, and cooperative ties that unite Peru with the African continent.

The year 2025 marks an important milestone in our relations with Africa. We are concluding the first year of implementation of the Strategic Plan for Africa 2024–2030, which guides Peru’s foreign policy toward a more active, structured, and long-term relationship with African countries.

We have achieved significant progress. In September, we held the First Political Consultations Meeting with Ghana, and in July, the First Meeting with Angola, which resulted in the signing of a Visa Waiver Agreement for Diplomatic and Official Passports.

We also commemorated the 40th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations with Angola, an occasion in which we renewed our commitment to continue strengthening bilateral cooperation.

We are also preparing new meetings of the political consultation mechanisms with South Africa and Egypt, strategic partners with whom we share a common vision of sustainable development, technical cooperation, and the joint response to major global challenges.

Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs of Peru, Ambassador Félix Denegri Boza Source: Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Peru

Finally, I wish to highlight tomorrow’s launch of the commemorative philatelic series marking the anniversaries of diplomatic relations with Angola, Senegal, and Tanzania, produced in collaboration with Servicios Postales del Perú, as a tangible symbol of our brotherhood with the African continent.

Ladies and gentlemen,

I extend my gratitude to the embassies of Algeria, Egypt, and Morocco accredited in Lima, co-hosts of this edition of the Peru–Africa Friendship Day, as well as to the concurrent diplomatic representations In the cultural and academic fields, we have of Angola, South Africa, Nigeria, Equatorial Guinea, consolidated the magazine Cumanana, which this and Sudan, who honor us with their presence today. month reaches its 50th edition. Published in Spanish, English, Portuguese, and French, it has become a With the firm conviction that the future of Peru– reference space on Africa and the Afro-descendant Africa relations is a promising one, I declare open the 16th edition of the Peru–Africa Friendship Day and diaspora. invite everyone to enjoy the cultural and gastronomic This year, we also present three new publications: activities we have prepared for this joyful celebration.

Peru and Africa in Images of the Nineteen Hundreds, Peru–Namibia: A Vision of Politics and International Thank you very much.

Cooperation, and When Two Worlds Embrace. These works highlight the historical, cultural, and diplomatic ties that unite Peru with the African continent and rescue the shared memory that binds us together.

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ARTICLE 2

OPENING SPEECH OF THE 16TH EDITION OF THE PERU–AFRICA FRIENDSHIP DAY ON BEHALF OF THE AFRICAN EMBASSIES RESIDENT IN PERU Ahmed Bakr, Ambassador of Egypt to Peru

Ambassador of Egypt to Peru at the 16th Peru–Africa Friendship Day Source: Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Peru

It is a true honor to address you on this meaningful occasion celebrating the Peru–Africa Friendship Day. This gathering is an opportunity to reaffirm the deep historical, cultural, and human bonds that unite Egypt with Africa, and to look together toward a future of shared cooperation and development.

Egypt is an integral part of Africa—not only because of its geography but also because of its history, culture, and common destiny. From the birth of our civilization on the banks of the Nile to our current efforts for continental integration, Egypt has always been connected to the heart of Africa. Our historical and cultural heritage is an inseparable part of African identity, a living testimony to the creativity, strength, and continuity of the African spirit throughout the centuries.

As an Egyptian, I am proud to represent a country that is not only a bridge between Africa and the Arab world but also an essential part of the African continent.

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Egypt depends on the Nile River for 98% of its water—a river that rises in the mountains of East Africa and flows through eleven countries before reaching the Mediterranean. This sacred water, source of life and civilization, reminds us that our existence is intertwined with that of our African brothers and sisters. For this reason, Egypt has always sought to maintain relations of cooperation and understanding with the Nile Basin countries, based on equity and shared responsibility.

Since the time of Ancient Egypt, our country has been connected to the rest of the continent through bonds of kinship, trade, culture, and knowledge.

Queen Hatshepsut, one of the most remarkable figures in our history, strengthened trade with Africa through her celebrated expedition to the Land of Punt—likely located in the region of the Horn of Africa. That mission brought to Egypt valuable goods such as gold, ebony, myrrh, and incense, but above all, it laid the foundation for the first diplomatic and commercial relations on the continent, based on peaceful cooperation.

These ties did not fade with time. In the twentieth century, Egypt played a key role in the African independence movements, providing political, logistical, and educational support to numerous countries that were fighting to free themselves from colonialism.

Agenda 2063, the African Union’s great strategic vision aimed at building a prosperous, integrated, and peaceful Africa. This agenda includes concrete goals such as the development of a Pan-African railway network, the increase of intra-African trade, gender equality, and sustainable industrialization.

And Africa moves forward…

Today, our continent is the youngest in the world, with more than 60% of its population under the age of 25. Its total population exceeds 1.4 billion people and is projected to reach 2.5 billion by 2050. This growth represents enormous human potential, an expanding market, and a source of innovation and creativity that will transform the world. Egypt, for instance, has the second-largest GDP in Africa, reflecting the economic strength and development potential that characterize our region.

My friends, development does not depend solely on the natural resources we possess, but also on investment in human capital. Both Africa and Latin America share a common challenge: to diversify their economies, reduce their dependence on raw material exports, and invest in education, technology, and value-added production. If Africa and Latin America work together, they can cease to be dependent regions and become engines of global growth and innovation.

Gamal Abdel Nasser Source: Wikipedia

President Gamal Abdel Nasser was one of the driving forces behind the creation of the Organization of African Unity (OAU), founded in 1963 with the purpose Both continents possess: of promoting the unity, solidarity, and independence • Unprecedented cultural and natural wealth. of African peoples. Today, that legacy continues through the African Union (AU), established in 2002 • Young and dynamic markets. as the successor to the Organization of African Unity, which brought together African nations from 1963 • Strategic resources essential to the global economy, to 2002. Egypt had the honor of presiding over the such as lithium, copper, cobalt, and natural gas. organization in 2019, a decisive year in the institutional reform process of the African Union, which sought to strengthen its role in conflict mediation and the promotion of sustainable development.

Egypt is also a founding member of important African regional organizations such as the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), which brings together 21 countries and seeks to integrate African markets; and it is an active participant in the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), an initiative created to promote industrialization, food security, and digital connectivity across the continent.

Through these platforms, Egypt works alongside its African brothers and sisters to achieve the goals of

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Great Museum of Giza

Source: Explorandomagazine

Our challenge is to transform that wealth into well-being, to prevent brain drain, and to create opportunities for our people. Self-sufficiency does not mean isolation, but intelligent cooperation. It means building an interconnected and fair economy, where Africa and Latin America are seen not only as resource providers, but as key players of the 21st century.

Likewise, Egypt celebrates the recent election of former Minister of Tourism and Antiquities, Dr. Khaled El-Enany, as Director-General of UNESCO, becoming the first Egyptian to hold this important position. This appointment is an honor not only for Egypt but for all of Africa, reaffirming our commitment to education, science, and the protection of the cultural heritage of humanity.

And this year, Egypt is also proud to share with you Finally, I wish to highlight Egypt’s role in the pursuit of three events that reflect the cultural, historical, and peace, through its mediation in the joint negotiations national dynamism of our country. that led to the ceasefire between Hamas and the State of Israel — a hopeful step aimed at alleviating First, the inauguration of the Grand Egyptian suffering and promoting stability in the region and Museum in Giza, to be held on November 1st, which the world. will be the largest museum in the world dedicated to a single civilization. This monumental project, This is the Egypt of today: proud of its history, located next to the Pyramids, will house more than committed to its continent, and optimistic about the one hundred thousand artifacts from Ancient Egypt, future. including the complete collection of Tutankhamun’s treasure. It will be an extraordinary and fascinating Let us continue strengthening our ties, sharing space in every respect, one that not only preserves knowledge, and celebrating what unites us — the our millenary legacy but also opens its doors to the friendship, dignity, and determination of our people. world as a symbol of pride, knowledge, and dialogue Thank you very much, and Happy Peru–Africa among cultures.

Friendship Day!

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ARTICLE 3

THE AFRICAN DIASPORA IN COLONIAL PERU: HISTORICAL ROOTS OF THE PERU–AFRICA FRIENDSHIP Raúl Eduardo Flores Rojas

led by Francisco Pizarro in 1528, and their presence became consolidated in the 16th and 17th centuries to meet the demand for labor in key sectors such as agriculture.

According to historical records, the transatlantic slave trade to colonial Peru was mainly supplied by populations from African kingdoms such as Oyo, Dahomey, and other West African states, where prisoners of war or tribute captives were sold to European intermediaries. These individuals, often captured in internal conflicts or through preexisting trade networks, were transported under inhumane conditions across the Atlantic Ocean, arriving at ports such as Cartagena de Indias or directly at Callao, from where they were distributed to Lima, Trujillo, Arequipa, and other regions of the viceroyalty. Works such as El esclavo africano en el Perú colonial (1524–1650) by Frederick Bowser document how, by the mid-17th century, the African slave population in Peru had grown significantly, representing a substantial portion of the labor force in sugar plantations and in the production of goods for export. In the same vein, it is noted that “by the mid-seventeenth century, there were already more African diaspora Source: France24 than 40,000, of whom around 20,000 were in the city of Lima” (Haro Hidalgo, 2019), which shows the 1. Introduction demographic weight reached by this population in the The African diaspora represents one of the most viceroyalty. This massive importation clearly reflected significant and at the same time one of the most the consolidation of a racial caste system in which painful chapters in modern history, driven by the Africans and their descendants were considered the transatlantic slave trade that dispersed millions of property of their owners, perpetuating inequalities people of African origin across the world between the that endured for centuries.

15th and 19th centuries. This phenomenon, whose origin dates back to European colonial expansion, The importance of this topic lies in how the legacy involved the capture and forced transportation of of the African diaspora has shaped the multicultural individuals from various regions of West and Central identity of contemporary Peru. Thus, even though Africa to the Americas, where they were subjected their numerical presence was smaller compared to to slavery to sustain economies based on labor that of the Indigenous populations, the contribution exploitation. In the context of the Viceroyalty of Peru, of Africans goes beyond quantity, for their role established in 1542 as one of the nerve centers of as cultural mediators is key to understanding the the Spanish Empire in South America, the arrival of national culture (Arrelucea Barrantes & Cosamalón enslaved Africans began discreetly during the 16th Aguilar, 2015). In religion, for example, a syncretism century but rapidly intensified as an integral part of between African beliefs and imposed Catholicism this Atlantic trade. The first African slaves arrived can be observed, giving rise to practices such as the with the conquering expeditions, such as the one veneration of saints with Afro influences.

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In gastronomy, African ingredients and techniques contributed to emblematic dishes, while in speech and daily behavior, linguistic traces reflecting this heritage can still be perceived. By 1700, Lima already displayed a strong Afro-descendant presence, with contributions in music, dance, and folklore that have defined Afro-Peruvianness as a pillar of national identity. As noted, “by the eighteenth century, there were among Afro-Peruvians prominent architects and musicians […] Excluded from the university, medicine, politics, and the clergy, Afro-Peruvians nevertheless created public and prestigious positions within and outside the communities composed of people of African descent” (O’Toole, 2017, p. 149).

This multiculturalism not only enriches Peru’s heritage but also serves as a foundation for current cultural diplomacy, fostering ties with African nations through the mutual recognition of shared histories of resistance and emancipation.

In this sense, the Peru–Africa Friendship Day emerges as a symbolic bridge to revalue this heritage within the framework of modern diplomacy.

Established in 1986 following the tragic death of Samora Machel, President of Mozambique and an emblematic leader of the African anti-colonial struggle, this date commemorates the emancipatory efforts of the African continent and promotes awareness of the historical relations between Peru and Africa. Celebrated annually on October 19, this commemoration seeks to disseminate the influence and contributions of the African community to Peru’s history, traditions, and customs, strengthening diplomatic ties with African countries. Over the years, it has included cultural activities highlighting the Afro presence in Peru, recalling the deep intercultural bonds that unite us, forged despite colonial adversity. This celebration not only honors the past but also encourages cooperation initiatives in areas such as education, art, and sustainable development, aligning with global efforts to include Afro-descendant communities.

The African diaspora in colonial Peru represents more than a painful chapter of slavery; it also embodies the deep roots of an intercultural friendship that, through the Friendship Day, can revitalize modern cultural diplomacy between Peru and Africa. By exploring historical and cultural aspects, this article aims to contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of how the colonial past informs current international relations, promoting an inclusive diplomacy that celebrates diversity as a driving force for friendship and collaboration.

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2. The Arrival of Enslaved Africans to the Viceroyalty of Peru (16th–17th Centuries) The arrival of enslaved Africans to the Viceroyalty of Peru during the 16th and 17th centuries represents a chapter of great importance in the colonial history of South America, marked by the exploitation of Africans. This period saw the consolidation of the transatlantic slave trade as an economic pillar, during which thousands of Africans were forcibly transported to supply the demand for labor in a region devastated by conquest and epidemics. The historical context of this diaspora is framed within the Spanish imperial expansion which, following the conquest of Tawantinsuyo in 1532, required a resilient labor force to exploit resources such as the silver of Potosí and the coastal plantations. Although the initial numbers were modest, the flow grew exponentially, inevitably integrating Africans into a society stratified by racial castes.

Samora Machel, former president of Mozambique Source: Mail & Guardian

African Routes and Origins The slave trade routes to the Viceroyalty of Peru were part of the vast transatlantic system dominated by the Spanish, who monopolized the traffic through the asiento system—contracts between the Spanish Crown and private entities (Newson & Minchin, 2007).

Unlike destinations such as Brazil or the Caribbean, where the Portuguese and Dutch played direct roles, the flow toward Peru was indirect, mediated through intermediate ports in the Caribbean and Panama.

Africans departed mainly from ports in West and Central Africa, crossing the Atlantic on brutal journeys that lasted six to eight weeks, known as the “Middle Passage,” during which mortality could reach 15– 20% due to disease, overcrowding, and malnutrition (Newson & Minchin, 2007).

Once in Europe, they were redistributed from Seville or Lisbon to the Americas via Cartagena de Indias, Veracruz, or Portobelo, where slave fairs were held.

From there, they crossed the Isthmus of Panama on mules or ships to the port of Callao, or even to Arica for the southern mines.

as soldiers, interpreters, or servants, facilitating the conquest. Restall (2000) also notes that at least 30 armed Africans accompanied Pizarro, playing crucial roles in battles and explorations. Thus, by 1540, with the establishment of the viceroyalty, King Charles V authorized limited imports of up to twelve slaves per settler, but the demand surged following Manco Inca’s rebellion (1536–1544) and the shortage of native labor (Hemming, 1970). In the 17th century, with the boom of the Potosí mines, dealings with Genoese and Portuguese merchants increased the flow, turning Peru into a secondary but significant destination in the Atlantic trade. This route transported not only bodies but also cultures—Bantu languages, Yoruba religions, and Mandinga traditions that would merge on Peruvian soil, laying the foundations for a resilient diaspora.

Conditions of Slavery and Roles in Colonial Society Black slavery in Peru Source: Enterarse

The African origins of these enslaved individuals were diverse, reflecting the dynamics of internal captures in Africa and the preferences of Spanish buyers. Predominant regions included Upper Guinea (encompassing Senegambia and Sierra Leone), where ethnic groups such as the Wolof, Mandinka, and Fulani were captured in wars or raids, coinciding with the finding that “the founding generations in the Caribbean, Mexico, and Peru overwhelmingly came from Upper Guinea—the ‘Rivers of Guinea’ appear prominently in records, suggesting the coast of present-day Guinea-Bissau” (Borucki, Eltis, & Wheat, 2015, p. 445). Angola and the Congo became main sources in the 17th century due to Portuguese control, providing Bantu groups such as the Kongo and Angolan peoples; to a lesser extent, the Bight of Biafra and the Yoruba region (present-day Nigeria and Benin), with groups such as the Igbo and Yoruba.

These bozales—a term used for newly arrived and non-acculturated slaves—were valued for their supposed physical strength, while the ladinos, those already acculturated in previous stages, were preferred for domestic work.

The conditions of slavery in the Viceroyalty of Peru were extremely oppressive, characterized by physical and psychological exploitation that varied according to the geographic and economic context. In the mines of Potosí and Huancavelica, African slaves faced hellish labor: they descended into deep tunnels, exposed to toxic fumes, collapses, and workdays of 12 to 16 hours. Although the mita supplied most of the indigenous labor, Africans—considered more resistant—were employed in specialized roles such as foremen or in foundries. On coastal estates such as those in Cañete or Chincha, dedicated to cotton, sugar, and vineyards, enslaved people performed intense agricultural labor—plowing, planting, and harvesting under the scorching sun, supervised by overseers wielding whips.

In cities like Lima, urban slavery predominated, with Africans serving as domestics, artisans, or street vendors. Enslaved women worked as cooks, laundresses, or ironers, while men were employed as butlers, coachmen, and cooks (Aguirre, 1993). However, the general conditions included malnutrition, precarious housing in peripheral settlements, and a low life expectancy, rarely exceeding forty years. Colonial legislation such as the Leyes de Indias sought to regulate treatment, The beginning of this diaspora in Peru was discreet and but in practice, it was ignored: slaves were treated directly linked to the conquest expeditions. Francisco as property, sold at public auctions, and branded Pizarro, in his 1526–1527 incursion, already included with hot irons. As Aguirre (1993) explains, “Masters Africans among his crew, with two Africans—Juan constantly insisted on the slave’s condition as an García and Miguel Ruiz—participating in the capture ‘object’ and sought to deny their humanity, at least of Atahualpa in Cajamarca in 1532 (Restall, 2000). with regard to their property rights.”

These first Africans, often free or semi-free, served

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In the face of this oppression, Africans developed forms of resistance that challenged the colonial order. One of the most notable was cimarronaje: individual or collective escapes to palenques, fortified communities in remote areas such as the yungas or the highlands. These cimarrones, often armed, raided estates and caravans, creating autonomous economies based on subsistence agriculture and barter. Another form of resistance was the cofradías, Afro-descendant religious brotherhoods under the protection of the Catholic Church that served as networks of mutual support. O’Toole (2017) notes that “Africans and their descendants also joined Catholic brotherhoods, both urban and rural, with others who shared their origins, such as those from GuineaBissau who participated actively in the Brotherhood of San Nicolás de Tolentino in Trujillo.” Grouped by ethnic origin, these organizations arranged funerals, festivals, and savings for manumissions, preserving African traditions syncretized with Catholicism, including dances and rituals. In sum, although slavery defined their roles as dehumanized labor, Africans forged collective agency that influenced viceregal social dynamics.

By the mid-16th century, the numbers were low— around 5,000, concentrated in Lima and Potosí— but they increased in the 17th century with the mining boom, peaking between 1610 and 1640. This forced migration offset the Indigenous demographic decline—from millions to hundreds of thousands due to disease and exploitation—integrating Africans as an intermediate stratum in the racial hierarchy: below Spaniards and tributary Indigenous people, but above in terms of specialized skills.

Socially, Africans integrated through processes of mestizaje and acculturation, contributing to a castebased society where terms such as “negro,” “mulato,” and “zambo” defined hierarchies. As O’Toole (2017) states, “by the 1640s, [Africans and their descendants] made up approximately 40 percent of the population in coastal cities such as Lima and Trujillo.” This presence fostered mixed unions, giving rise to a free class of pardos and morenos who, by the 17th century, dominated artisanal trades and colonial militias. Furthermore, as Arrelucea and Cosamalón (2015) highlight, “the contribution and presence of Africans and Afro-descendants are not limited to the colonial period nor to sources identifying them under ethnic categories. Their contribution can be seen in their role as cultural intermediaries, where they demonstrated great creativity and vitality in articulating their own practices and values with those of the groups with whom they interacted.

Blacks in Peru

This capacity for syncretism strengthened the formation of a multicultural Peruvian identity.

However, integration was evidently unequal: discriminated against by laws prohibiting access to public office or the possession of weapons, many sought manumission—buying freedom through savings or inheritance. This impact endured, shaping a multicultural Peruvian identity, though marginalized until the 20th century.

Demographic and Social Impact

3. Cultural Influence of the African Diaspora in Peru

The demographic impact of the arrival of enslaved Africans in the Viceroyalty of Peru was significant, though modest compared to other Atlantic destinations, altering the population composition and social structure. According to Mori Julca (2018), “In the first years of the Spanish invasion, there were around 50 Black people. By 1550, there were 3,000; by 1590, 20,000 in Lima and Callao; by 1614, they represented 40% of Lima’s population; and by 1791, 60%,” reflecting a growth that compensated for the Indigenous demographic collapse (pp. 141–142).

The African community, which arrived in the Viceroyalty of Peru between the 16th and 17th centuries as enslaved labor, not only transformed the colonial economy but also left a profound legacy in the cultural identity of the country. Despite the oppression and prohibitions imposed by Spanish authorities, Africans and their descendants adapted their traditions, fusing them with Indigenous and European elements to create unique expressions that endure to this day. This influence is especially evident in music, dance, religion, and gastronomy,

Source: Mundo Negro

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enriching Peru’s cultural diversity and strengthening improvised objects, preserving the African essence. the historical ties between Peru and Africa.

Artists such as Nicomedes Santa Cruz revitalized Afro-Peruvian Music: Rhythms and Fusions these rhythms through works like Cumanana, a poetic-musical genre in quatrains that combines Afro-Peruvian music represents one of the most humor and competition, fusing Spanish décimas with vibrant fusions of the African diaspora in Peru, born African rhythms. In his poem A cocachos aprendí, from resilience in the face of colonial restrictions. Santa Cruz reflects cultural adaptation: “A cocachos During the viceregal period, Spanish authorities aprendí / que el negro es un ser humano / que tiene banned the use of traditional African drums— alma y corazón / y que sufre como yo” (Santa Cruz, considered symbols of rebellion and paganism— 1960). Similarly, the tondero and zamacueca combine which forced enslaved Africans to improvise with zapateo with Indigenous influences, creating a sonic everyday objects. Thus emerged the cajón peruano, tapestry that transcends borders. Today, the cajón is a simple wooden box played with the hands, which recognized worldwide in the music of artists such as became the emblematic percussion instrument of Susana Baca, who uses it to blend landó with jazz, this tradition. This adaptation not only preserved demonstrating the vitality of these rhythms. These African rhythms but also integrated them with fusions not only enriched Peruvian music but also Spanish and Andean melodies, creating hybrid genres symbolize Peru–Africa friendship, recalling shared that capture the essence of cultural resistance. roots in the diaspora.

One of the most representative genres is the festejo, a joyful and dynamic rhythm that evokes celebration and freedom. Characterized by strong percussion and energetic body movements, the festejo is danced with zapateo and often features lyrics narrating everyday life or struggles against oppression. In regions such as Chincha and El Carmen, the festejo is accompanied by the guitarra criolla and the quijada de burro—an instrument made from an animal’s jawbone that produces rattling sounds—fusing African and local influences. Another key genre is the landó, slower and more melancholic, with roots in the African lundú, expressing nostalgia for the homeland. The Zapateo The landó is distinguished by its syncopated rhythm Source: The Babel Flute and poetic lyrics, often performed with cajón and Traditions and Cultural Expressions zapateo, and has evolved to include fusions with vals Beyond music, the African diaspora infused Peruvian criollo. traditions with cultural expressions that merged The zapateo is not merely rhythmic accompaniment— African elements with colonial Catholicism and it is an intangible cultural heritage in itself, functioning Indigenous worldviews, creating an intangible legacy as both dance and instrument, maintaining traditional of resilience and syncretism. Afro-Peruvian dances, patterns while allowing for artistic improvisation for instance, are living manifestations of this influence, (Chocano Paredes & Rospigliosi Navarrete, 2016). It is such as the yunsa, celebrated in February during the central to many Afro-Peruvian musical expressions, cotton harvest in El Carmen, which includes acrobatic such as contrapunto de zapateo, where dancers dances, huachihualo music, and community rituals compete in rhythmic duels combining precision around a felled tree symbolizing renewal and cultural and creativity. According to descriptions from the continuity. Other dances, such as the alcatraz, inga, Smithsonian Folklife Festival (2015), these rhythms and son de los diablos, incorporate festive and erotic manifested in dances like the atajo de negritos, movements that evoke African traditions adapted to a Christmas dance from the south-central coast colonial contexts. (especially in Ica), where participants dance and sing in honor of the Christ Child, recalling enslaved In the religious sphere, the fusion is evident in the agricultural labor through costumes and songs. cofradías—brotherhoods of enslaved Africans that This tradition illustrates how the ban on drums led combined African rituals with Catholicism. to innovations such as the use of the body and

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These organizations preserved ancestral cults under Christian façades, as in the veneration of the Señor de los Milagros, whose origin dates back to around 1650 when an Angolan enslaved man painted the image that later became a national symbol (Chocano Paredes & Rospigliosi Navarrete, 2016). The annual procession in Lima includes chants with African reminiscences and purple garments, reflecting an African-Andean cyclical temporality integrated with Christian linearity. Saint Martin de Porres, the first Afro-descendant saint in the Americas, exemplifies this fusion: as a Dominican friar, he used AfricanAndean healing practices, combining coca leaves with Catholic prayers. These practices, analyzed by Tavera (2022), show how Africans acted as catalysts uniting European, Andean, and African cultures through shared offerings and libations.

Africa, Europe, and the Americas, generating a new syncretic palate” (p. 24). Thus, these elements not only nourished the body but also strengthened community bonds, preserving oral memory and rituals. This intangible legacy, invisible yet profound, highlights how the African diaspora enriched Peru’s diversity, promoting values of coexistence that today inspire cultural diplomacy.

The influence of the African community has evolved to integrate into Peru’s national identity, persisting through preservation efforts that connect the colonial past with the present. Today, these traditions remain alive in regions such as Piura, Chincha, and Cañete, where Afro-descendant communities organize festivals and workshops to pass dances and music on to new generations. In the contemporary sphere, Afro-Peruvian music has fused with global genres, as in La nueva música afroperuana, where artists like Araceli Poma combine Afro-Andean rhythms with jazz from New York. Susana Baca, with albums such as Eco de Sombras, and Eva Ayllón, the “Queen of the landó,” have brought these sounds to the world, winning awards such as the Latin Grammy and collaborating with international figures. The Día de la Cultura Afroperuana (June 4) further promotes visibility.

As Arrelucea and Cosamalón (2015) note, these legacies transcended their own borders and gave rise to a new world, rich in cultural expressions that go beyond music, arts, sports, and gastronomy. This evolution not only preserves the legacy but revalues it through cultural diplomacy, as seen in the Peru– Africa Friendship Day, fostering exchanges that recognize shared roots and combat discrimination.

Thus, the African diaspora continues to shape the nation, inspiring enduring friendship.

Nicomedes Santa Cruz Source: Wikipedia

Afro-Peruvian gastronomy is also part of this intangible legacy, with dishes prepared by enslaved cooks in colonial kitchens who blended African techniques with local ingredients. Examples include anticuchos, tacu tacu, carapulcra, and sangrecita, which introduced methods such as frying and browning, transforming Peruvian cuisine. Among desserts, turrón de Doña Pepa and ranfañote stand out, associated with religious festivities. As Chocano and Rospigliosi (2016) state in Patrimonio Cultural Inmaterial Afroperuano, this culinary tradition “reflects the ability of Afro-Peruvian populations to combine gastronomic cultural elements from

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4.The Peru–Africa Friendship Day: Revaluing the Legacy in Modern Cultural Diplomacy Traditions and Cultural Expressions The Peru–Africa Friendship Day represents a symbolic bridge between the colonial past and contemporary relations. It was established by Supreme Decree No. 0020-86-RE in 1986, following the tragic death of Mozambican President Samora Machel in a plane crash on October 19 of that year. Machel, regarded as the father of Mozambique’s independence, symbolized Africa’s struggle for emancipation against colonialism and apartheid, inspiring leaders such as Nelson Mandela and Julius Nyerere.

His passing prompted the Peruvian government, under the presidency of Alan García, to create this annual commemoration to honor not only Machel but all the protagonists of Africa’s decolonization movement, which between the 1950s and 1970s liberated more than 50 nations from European domination.

The meaning of this day transcends historical homage: it seeks to highlight the deep ties between Peru and Africa, forged during the colonial era with the arrival of thousands of enslaved Africans to the Viceroyalty of Peru. These connections were manifested in enduring cultural contributions, such as Afro-Peruvian music and syncretic religious traditions. In the context of cultural diplomacy, the day emphasizes the recognition of the African legacy within Peruvian identity, promoting the inclusion of the Afro-Peruvian community, which represents around 3.6% of the population according to the 2017 census. Since its creation, it has been celebrated every October 19 with events organized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MRE), involving African embassies accredited in Lima, such as those of Algeria, Egypt, Morocco, and South Africa. Thus, this date not only commemorates African emancipation but also invites reflection on how a past marked by slavery can be transformed into a foundation for international solidarity, fostering mutual respect and cooperation in a globalized world. In essence, the Peru–Africa Friendship Day serves as a reminder that shared history can nurture future alliances, revaluing the African contribution to Peru’s cultural diversity and positioning Peru as a proactive actor in South– South dialogue.

Application in Cultural Diplomacy In modern cultural diplomacy, the Peru–Africa Friendship Day has become a strategic platform to strengthen bilateral and multilateral ties between Peru and the African continent, integrating Africa’s historical legacy into contemporary initiatives that promote cooperation and exchange. Since its eleventh edition in 2020—adapted to a virtual format due to the pandemic—up to its fifteenth in 2024, the celebrations have evolved into hybrid events combining protocolary acts with artistic, gastronomic, and educational expressions organized by the Peruvian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in collaboration with African embassies. For instance, in the 11th edition, Brazil was featured as the guest country, recognizing its shared African heritage, and included documentary exhibitions on Peru– Africa diplomatic relations. These activities not only

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commemorate the past but also activate the AfroPeruvian legacy to advance diplomatic agendas, such as the opening of new Peruvian missions in Africa, in addition to the existing embassies in Kenya, Algeria, Egypt, Ghana, Morocco, and South Africa.

Foreign Affairs

Source: Servicios al ciudadano

A central focus is the use of culture as a diplomatic tool. In 2023, the 14th edition included the African Film Festival (October 23–27), featuring films exploring themes of identity, migration, and resilience, engaging Peruvian audiences and encouraging dialogue on racism and inclusion. Events such as these incorporate traditional African dances, music with instruments like the djembe, and tastings of dishes such as jollof rice and injera, fused with AfroPeruvian elements such as the cajón and zapateo.

In 2024, the 15th edition featured delegations from Angola, Algeria, Egypt, Morocco, and South Africa, and included a video mapping presentation at the Magic Water Circuit projecting images of the African diaspora in Peru, symbolizing cultural integration.

Peruvian-African Friendship Day Source: Foreign Affairs

These initiatives revalue the Afro-Peruvian legacy by positioning it as a diplomatic asset, promoting artistic exchanges that strengthen economic and political ties. For example, visits from Angolan delegations in 2024 and 2025 reinforced cooperation in areas such as mining and education, while the visit of a Ghanaian delegation in 2025 emphasized potential partnerships in trade and cultural tourism, as noted

by Peruvian Ambassador to Ghana, Ambassador Rosa Gómez.

This practical application of cultural diplomacy extends beyond annual events, inspiring long-term programs such as scholarships for African students in Peruvian universities and workshops on Afro-Peruvian history in diplomatic academies. By revaluing the legacy of the African diaspora—from its influence on Creole gastronomy to religious traditions such as devotion to the Señor de los Milagros—Peru positions its foreign policy as inclusive and multicultural. This approach fosters cooperation in international forums such as the African Union and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC), where issues such as climate change and sustainable development are addressed through a shared historical lens.

Bilateral Relations: Peru and Africa in Images of the Nineteen Hundreds (2025) by the Ministry highlight how Afro-Peruvian cultural heritage can enrich these alliances, promoting educational and cultural exchanges that transcend the colonial past toward a future of South–South solidarity. These actions, anchored in the commemoration of the Friendship Day, expand Peru’s diplomatic presence in the continent, emphasizing the strengthening of trade and cooperation, as evidenced by growing exchanges with Africa.

In the long term, the shared history of the diaspora can drive sustainable partnerships in areas such as economic development and the fight against global challenges, including climate change and racial equity.

The Directorate of Africa of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, responsible for evaluating international commitments, positions Peru to deepen relations established since 1985 with nations such as Angola, extending collaborations to forums such as the African Union and CELAC. In this way, the Friendship Day is consolidated as a mechanism to transform historical legacy into enduring diplomatic tools, contributing to a more inclusive global integration.

Future Prospects

5. Conclusion

The legacy of the African diaspora in colonial Peru provides a historical foundation to strengthen diplomatic relations with Africa in the medium and long term, integrating this shared heritage into strategies for bilateral and multilateral cooperation. In the medium term, initiatives such as the appointment of Peru’s first ambassador to Angola in February 2025 and the first Peru–Angola Political Consultations in July of this year illustrate how acknowledging historical links facilitates concrete advances in trade, mining, and education.

Events such as the IV Meet the Team in June 2025, promoting dialogue with African countries, reinforce this trend, as does the relaunch of the bilateral agenda with South Africa in trade, mining, and Antarctic science. Publications such as Immortalizing

The African diaspora in colonial Peru, far from being merely an episode of oppression, constitutes the historical foundation of a deep and resilient intercultural relationship that today sustains the Peru–Africa friendship. Throughout this article, it has been shown that, since their forced arrival during the 16th and 17th centuries, Africans and their descendants were not only key components of the viceregal economy but also dynamic cultural agents whose influence permeated Peruvian music, gastronomy, religiosity, and society as a whole. As Arrelucea Barrantes and Cosamalón Aguilar (2015) aptly note, their role as “cultural intermediaries” was vital to the formation of national identity—a syncretism that transcended the barriers of slavery to create a living and vibrant heritage.

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This legacy, palpable in the rhythm of the cajón, the devotion to the Señor de los Milagros, or the flavor of criollo cuisine, provides a solid foundation for contemporary relations. The Peru–Africa Friendship Day, established in 1986, thus emerges not as a mere commemoration but as a strategic catalyst that transforms this shared heritage into a tool of modern cultural diplomacy. The annual editions of this celebration—with their festivals, academic exchanges, and gastronomic exhibitions—are tangible proof that the past can serve as a bridge toward future cooperation. Following O’Toole (2017), it is essential to acknowledge that, despite historical exclusion, Afro-descendant communities created spaces of prestige and contribution that make today’s dialogue with African nations uniquely significant.

For this reason, it is imperative that this date transcend the protocolary sphere and become a driving force for expanding diplomatic, cultural, educational, and economic exchanges. The recent opening of new embassies and the initiation of political consultation meetings, such as those with Angola and Ghana, are encouraging steps that must multiply. History shows us that diversity—even when forged in contexts of adversity—is an inexhaustible source of strength and innovation. Looking toward the future of Peru–Africa relations with optimism means recognizing that within the richness of our multicultural heritage lies the seed of a deeper friendship, closer collaboration, and a shared future in which diversity is not merely tolerated but celebrated as the most powerful bond of unity.

-Chocano Paredes, R., & Rospigliosi Navarrete, S. (2016). Patrimonio cultural inmaterial afroperuano.

Ministerio de Cultura. https://www.gob.pe/ institucion/cultura/informes-publicaciones/1376patrimonio-cultural-inmaterial-afroperuano -Hemming, J. (1970). The conquest of the Incas.

Harcourt.

-Haro Hidalgo, Víctor Hugo. (2019). Esclavitud Africana en el Perú: Precio de los Esclavos 1650 - 1820.

Revista Escuela de Historia, 18(2), 00. Recuperado en 02 de octubre de 2025, de https://www.scielo. org.ar/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S166990412019000200003&lng=es&tl ng=es -Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores del Perú. (2024, 22 de octubre). Embajadora del Perú en Ghana destaca las relaciones bilaterales en Día de la Amistad Peruano-Africano [Nota informativa]. https:// www.gob.pe/institucion/rree/noticias/1044487embajadora-del-peru-en-ghana-destaca-lasrelaciones-bilaterales-en-dia-de-la-amistadperuano-africano -Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores. (2025, 27 de enero). Cancillería presenta el libro “Inmortalizando relaciones bilaterales: Perú y África en imágenes del novecientos”. gob.pe. https://www.gob.pe/ institucion/rree/noticias/1098251-cancilleriapresenta-el-libro-inmortalizando-rela cionesbilaterales-peru-y-africa-en-imagenes-delnovecientos -Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores del Perú. (2020).

XI Día de la Amistad Peruano-Africana. https://www. gob.pe/institucion/rree/campanas/2216-xi-dia-dela-amistad-peruano-africana

REFERENCES

-Aguirre, C. (1993). Agentes de su propia libertad: Los esclavos de Lima y la desintegración de la esclavitud, 1821-1854. Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú, -Mori Julca, N. (2018). Los afrodescendientes del Fondo Editorial. https://repositorio.pucp.edu.pe/ Perú: Historia, aportes y participación en el desarrollo items/440b058c-e497-45ef-b4af-db2cefbf841a del país. Ministerio de Educación. https://repositorio.

-Arrelucea Barrantes, M., & Cosamalón Aguilar, minedu.gob.pe/handle/20.500.12799/7183 J. A. (2015). La presencia afrodescendiente en el Perú: Siglos XVI-XX. Ministerio de Cultura. https:// centroderecursos.cultura.pe/sites/default/files/rb/ pdf/La-presencia-afrodescendiente.pdf

-Newson, L. A., & Minchin, S. (Eds.). (2007). From Capture to Sale: The Portuguese Slave Trade to Spanish South America in the Early Seventeenth Century. Brill. http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.1163/j. ctv29sfpzt

-Borucki, A., Eltis, D., & Wheat, D. (2015). Atlantic history and the slave trade to Spanish America. -O’Toole R. S. (2017). Ser libre y lucumí Ana de la Calle The American Historical Review, 120(2), 433–461. y la formación de identidades de la diáspora africana https://doi.org/10.1093/ahr/120.2.433 en el Perú colonial. Revista Del Archivo General De La -Bowser, F. P. (1974). El esclavo africano en el Perú Nación, 32(1), 145-164. https://doi.org/10.37840/ ragn.v32i1.13 colonial (1524-1650). México: Siglo XXI Editores.

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Peruvian-African Friendship Day Source: Foreign Affairs

-O’Toole R. S. (2017). Ser libre y lucumí Ana de la Calle y la formación de identidades de la diáspora africana en el Perú colonial. Revista Del Archivo General De La Nación, 32(1), 145-164. https://doi.org/10.37840/ ragn.v32i1.13 -Perú. (1986). Decreto Supremo N° 0020-86-RE. Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores.

-Restall, M. (2000). Black Conquistadors: Armed Africans in Early Spanish America. The Americas, 57(2), 171–205. http://www.jstor.org/stable/1008202

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-Santa Cruz, N. (1960). A cocachos aprendí [Canción].

En Cumanana. IEMPSA. -Smithsonian Folklife Festival. (2015). Afro-Peruvian music and dance. https://festival.si.edu/2015/peru/ performing-and-visual-arts/afro-peruvian-music/ smithsonian -Tavera Colonna, Jazmín. (2022). EL APORTE DE LA CULTURA AFRICANA EN EL PERÚ: UNA IDENTIDAD PERDIDA*. Cultura y religión, 16(1), 370-403. https:// dx.doi.org/10.4067/S0718-4727202200010001

ARTICLE 4

THE CUMANANA IN THE AFRO-PERUVIAN TOWN OF YAPATERA: IDENTITY AND MEMORY PROJECTED TOWARD CULTURAL INDUSTRIES AND TOURISM 1

Samanta Hilda Calle Ruiz National University of Frontier

Faculty of Business and Tourism Sciences scalle@unf.edu.pe

Rosa Isabel Castillo Tavara National University of Frontier Faculty of Business and Tourism Sciences

ABSTRACT

T

he cumanana, an Afro-Peruvian poetic-musical expression originating in Yapatera (Piura) and declared National Cultural Heritage in 2004, constitutes a symbol of resistance and collective memory. Based on improvised verse and contrapunto (verbal dueling), it has served as a vehicle of identity, social critique, and intergenerational transmission of Afro-descendant knowledge. This study adopts a qualitative documentary approach grounded in bibliographic review, cultural analysis, and strategic assessment of its potential as a cultural resource for sustainable tourism and the creative industries. The results identify six priority guidelines for its enhancement: participatory diagnosis of cultural bearers, educational strengthening, creation of a community digital archive, organization of interregional festivals, integration into tourist circuits, and formulation of public policies for economic support. These actions aim to ensure heritage safeguarding and its alignment with local development. More than an artistic manifestation, the cumanana emerges as an oral archive of Afro-Peruvian memory and a tool for community cohesion. Its incorporation into cultural tourism and creative industries would revitalize the practice among young people, diversify the local economy, and position Yapatera as a model of participatory heritage management and as an intercultural bridge between Peru and Africa.

Keywords: cultural tourism, cultural industries, cultural identity, cultural heritage, Afro-descendant community

The cumananas of Yapatera Source: Ministry of Culture

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2

II. ETYMOLOGICAL ORIGIN AND CHARACTERISTICS OF THE CUMANANA 2.1. African Linguistic Roots The term cumanana derives from kikongo, an African language of the Bantu family spoken in the Congo region, and its approximate meaning is “to know” or “reciprocity of knowledge” (Panta Chunga et al., 2023). This linguistic root demonstrates the deep connection between African oral traditions and the poetic expressions developed by Afro-descendants in northern Peru, confirming that the cumanana is not merely a Creole adaptation but a direct continuity of African cultural practices reinterpreted in the American context, developed in syncretism with local coastal and Andean traditions.

Yapatera

Source: Ministry of Culture

The concept of “reciprocity of knowledge” implicit in the word reveals the dialogical nature of this Peru harbors a rich cultural diversity that includes practice: it is not a monologic expression but an important contributions from Afro-descendant exchange—a contrapunto in which two or more populations whose presence dates back to the voices collectively construct meaning and wisdom. colonial period. Despite their historical relevance, This communal dimension is characteristic of many Afro-Peruvian communities have faced processes of African oral traditions, where knowledge is conceived invisibilization that have hindered the full recognition as collective heritage, renewed and enriched through of their contributions (Valdivia et al., 2007). In this each performance (Hampaté Bâ, 1982). context, artistic expressions and oral traditions Other authors argue that the word has a mestizo become spaces of resistance and identity affirmation. and coastal Indigenous origin with African and In the heart of the province of Morropón, in the Piura colonial influences, reflecting the syncretic character region, lies the Afro-Peruvian town of Yapatera, of the Peruvian cultural process (Arrelucea, 2022). known for its African heritage and strong sense of In conclusion, the cumanana represents an art community identity. Among its most emblematic of the word that combines verse, music, and oral manifestations stands the cumanana, a poetic- counterpoint in an exercise of creativity and ingenuity musical expression that combines improvisation, that transcends generations and now forms part of rhythm, and verse, constituting a living testimony of Peru’s cultural heritage.

Afro-descendant collective memory. Inherited from enslaved Africans who arrived on the northern coast 2.2. Structure and Formal Features during the colonial period, the cumanana has evolved as a symbol of cultural resistance and as a vehicle for The cumanana is characterized by its structure the transmission of ancestral values, experiences, of octosyllabic quatrains with consonant rhyme, which formally aligns it with other expressions of and knowledge (Alzamora, 2018).

Hispanic oral poetry such as the décima (Trapero, Today, the cumanana projects itself as a valuable 2013). However, its specificity lies in the element resource for the development of cultural of contrapunto or “poetic duel,” in which two singers industries and sustainable tourism, contributing compete in wit, sharpness, and lyrical creativity. to the strengthening of Yapatera’s identity and the This competitive aspect serves as a social validation diversification of the cultural offer of northern Peru. mechanism for knowledge and verbal skill, rewarding This article examines its social and cultural function quick thinking, improvisation, and mastery of and explores its potential as a core element of metaphorical language. local development strategies based on culture and responsible tourism.

I. INTRODUCTION

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Cumananero El Gordo Guardado Source: GIINNSOTUR (2025)

The cumanana’s contrapunto addresses various thematic registers—love, humor, social critique, moral reflection, and existential themes. In each, the popular wisdom of the Afro-descendant community manifests itself, revealing their worldview and sense of humor, often marked by irony. This thematic diversity allows the cumanana to function simultaneously as entertainment, philosophical reflection, social commentary, and historical record.

III. HISTORICAL CONTEXT AND DEVELOPMENT IN YAPATERA

The contrapunto structure turned these improvisations into community events where the entire population participated as an active audience.

These performances became essential components of celebrations, funerals, patronal feasts, and family gatherings—spaces where the community affirmed its cohesion and distinctive identity. Over time, the cumanana became a central element of local AfroPeruvian identity, solidifying as a cultural practice defining Yapatera’s specificity (Alzamora, 2024).

3.2. Cultural Bearers and Intergenerational Transmission

3.1. The Cumanana in the Colonial Period During the colonial period, the estates of Peru’s northern coast—particularly in Piura and Lambayeque—were spaces where enslaved Africans and their descendants developed their own forms of communication, song, and poetry adapted to the conditions of the slave system (Espinoza, 2007). In this context of oppression, African cultural expressions functioned as mechanisms of symbolic resistance and strategies for preserving identity and human dignity.

The cumanana emerged as a form of collective expression that, at the end of the workday, transported enslaved Afro-descendants back to the everyday atmosphere of their African origins (F. Távara, personal communication, October 9, 2025).

Through their verses, they narrated daily life, love relationships, interpersonal conflicts, injustices of the colonial system, and dreams of freedom.

Using metaphor and coded language, cumananeros articulated critiques of the social order without directly exposing themselves to punishment, relying on humor, ambiguity, and polysemy as tools of cultural survival.

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The survival of the cumanana in Yapatera has been possible thanks to generations of cumananeros who have transmitted their knowledge orally. Among the most notable cultural bearers is Fernando Barranzuela Zevallos, remembered as a “millennial poet and cumananero,” who turned words into an instrument of reflection and resistance against historical oblivion (Espinoza, 2016).

Cumananeras Yumi and Lili at the mausoleum of poet Fernando Barranzuela Source: GIINNSOTUR (2025)

In his compositions, Barranzuela evoked the arrival of his African ancestors in the Yapatera valley and their struggle for freedom and dignity, building through oral poetry an alternative narrative of regional history that centered Afro-descendant experience. His work became a model for new generations, demonstrating that oral tradition can be as powerful and enduring as written culture.

The passing of master cumananeros like Barranzuela has raised concerns regarding the continuity of this tradition. The loss of such cultural bearers entails the disappearance of specific repertoires, technical knowledge, and historical memories that have not been systematically documented, emphasizing the urgency of implementing safeguarding programs.

Nevertheless, field research has confirmed the presence of other cumanana practitioners, including Alonso Rodríguez, Fernando Barranzuela Jr., Lilian León, and Luzmila Carrasco, among other adults and youth.

and a mechanism for community cohesion that reinforces collective identity. During Yapateran celebrations, poetic duels represent competitions of wit that bring together children, youth, and adults, creating an intergenerational space where values, knowledge, and cultural aesthetics are transmitted.

The community gathers to listen, learn, and laugh— strengthening intergenerational bonds and renewing its commitment to a shared identity.

4.2. Archive of Collective Memory The cultural value of the cumanana lies in its ability to narrate history through the people’s voice, constituting an “oral archive” of Afro-Peruvian experience. Through its verses, Yapaterans recount their origins, struggles, and hopes, constructing an alternative historical narrative to official accounts that have often rendered Afro-descendant experiences invisible.

Orality becomes a living archive of Afro-Peruvian memory—a history that cannot be found in official documents but is preserved in the voices of the cumananeros and in collective memory. This form of historical preservation, though vulnerable to social transformations, is democratic and accessible to all members of the community regardless of literacy level.

According to Ato (2019), this expression maintains strong emotional significance among students in Yapatera’s schools. However, its everyday practice has declined significantly among younger generations.

Reviving its systematic use would strengthen local identity and revitalize Afro-Peruvian awareness among young Yapaterans, providing cultural tools to confront ongoing challenges of discrimination.

Fernando Barranzuela Jr. reciting cumananas Source: GIINNSOTUR (2025)

IV. SOCIAL FUNCTION AND CULTURAL VALUE V. PROJECTION TOWARD CULTURAL OF THE CUMANANA INDUSTRIES 4.1 Communication and Community Cohesion 5.1. Opportunities in Cultural Industries The cumanana fulfills a multidimensional social function within the Yapateran community. It operates as an artistic medium that conveys emotions, values, and reflections on daily life, allowing people to express feelings and experiences that may be difficult to verbalize in ordinary language. The poetic form provides a structured framework for emotional expression, while the performative context creates a safe space for sharing personal and collective experiences.

At the same time, it serves as a pedagogical tool

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Projecting the cumanana into cultural industries represents a strategic opportunity for social and economic transformation. The concept of cultural industries, promoted by UNESCO (2018), refers to economic activities that produce and distribute goods and services based on creativity, knowledge, and cultural heritage. In Yapatera, the cumanana could serve as an organizing axis for artistic creation projects, audiovisual production, literary publications, and educational programs.

Initiatives such as Cumananas o Kumananas, a literary project by Piuran writer Walter Pintado Pasapera, demonstrate that Afro-Peruvian literature can be revitalized from within the community while generating national interest. Establishing training workshops, regional festivals, literary contests, and artistic residencies would foster the professionalization of local artists and the consolidation of a regional Afro-Peruvian cultural circuit.

cultural bearers, their active participation in all phases of the creative process, and an equitable distribution of the economic and symbolic benefits generated. The commercial exploitation of cultural heritage without community consent or participation constitutes a form of cultural extractivism that perpetuates colonial dynamics.

VI. THE CUMANANA AS A RESOURCE FOR SUSTAINABLE CULTURAL TOURISM 6.1. Tourism Potential and Experiential Practices From a local economic development perspective, the cumanana has enormous potential as a cultural resource and experiential attraction capable of structuring sustainable tourism circuits in the Piura region. Yapatera—recognized as the cradle of Afrodescendant culture in northern Peru, according to writer Walter Pasapera (2025)—has been identified as a priority area for developing cultural tourism that values authenticity, community participation, and respect for local traditions.

According to Chávez (2014), tourism in the district can be strengthened by incorporating cultural expressions such as the cumanana, along with Afro-Peruvian gastronomy, traditional festivities, and spaces of historical memory. Integrating these elements into coherent cultural circuits could generate participatory tourism experiences in which visitors not only observe but also interact and learn.

Cover of the book “Cumanana - Kumanana” Source: Fuente Propia

5.2. Cultural Products and Safeguarding The development of derivative cultural products— such as albums, documentaries, illustrated books, and digital content—would significantly expand the dissemination of this tradition both within and beyond Peru. The Videoteca de las Culturas of the Ministry of Culture (2014) includes the documentary Las Cumananas de Yapatera, a valuable example of audiovisual documentation that preserves and promotes tradition.

It is essential that such projects be carried out in close coordination with the Yapateran community, ensuring the free, prior, and informed consent of

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This experiential tourism model contrasts with forms of mass tourism that superficially commodify cultural manifestations. In Yapatera, the cumanana contributes to a tourism model based on authenticity, intercultural education, and respect—allowing visitors to understand the African roots of Peruvian culture and reflect on the histories of slavery, resistance, and creativity that define the Afrodescendant experience.

6.2. Tourism Integration and Local Development The link between cumanana, identity, and tourism is evident in celebrations such as Afro-Peruvian Culture Day, the Mango Festival, and the Feast of the Lord of Mercy, during which Yapateran residents organize dances, poetry recitals, workshops, and gastronomic exhibitions that attract visitors from various regions.

These activities generate both direct and indirect designed and managed by the community itself. income for the community—through food services, craft sales, and tourism offerings—while also strengthening cultural pride and ensuring the continuity of intangible heritage.

In this context, Yapateran women play a fundamental role as storytellers, singers, cultural managers, and promoters of oral tradition. Their active participation guarantees the intergenerational transmission of cultural memory and broadens Afro-Peruvian representation in public spaces, challenging gender stereotypes. The leading presence of women cumananeras contributes to diversifying thematic Yapatera Mango Festival Source: Walac content, incorporating specifically feminine Sixth, promote public policies that formally recognize perspectives that enrich the collective repertoire. cumananeros as bearers of intangible cultural heritage and provide them with economic incentives and VII. STRATEGIC GUIDELINES FOR institutional support for knowledge transmission.

VALORIZATION Such policies could include scholarships for young To consolidate a sustainable process of valorizing the apprentices, stipends for master cumananeros, and cumanana as a living heritage, six strategic guidelines funding for documentation projects. are proposed: First, conduct a participatory diagnosis identifying current exponents, local styles, performance spaces, and community perceptions of its value and future. This diagnosis should employ participatory methodologies recognizing Yapaterans as active subjects of knowledge.

VIII. CONCLUSIONS

The cumanana in the Afro-Peruvian town of Yapatera constitutes a legacy of immense historical, aesthetic, and social value that deserves sustained efforts for its safeguarding and projection. This poetic-musical expression represents not only a unique artistic manifestation but also a testimony of Second, strengthen the systematic teaching of Afro-descendant cultural resistance, an oral archive the cumanana in educational institutions through of collective memory, a mechanism of community pedagogical modules on Afro-Peruvian orality and cohesion, and a potential resource for sustainable local history that integrate this tradition into school local development. curricula while respecting its performative and communal nature.

Preserving the cumanana entails recognizing and Third, promote the digitization and creation of a strengthening an African heritage that remains alive community archive documenting traditional and and relevant continuing to fulfill essential social contemporary cumananas, including audiovisual functions and serving as a source of pride, education, recordings, transcriptions, and metadata on and prosperity for future generations. Its strategic performers, performance contexts, and cultural integration into cultural industries and sustainable tourism circuits represents a concrete opportunity to meanings. strengthen Afro-Peruvian identity, promote cultural Fourth, organize interregional festivals and diversity, and establish Yapatera as a model of gatherings that include improvisation contests, community heritage management. poetry recitals, conferences on Afro-Peruvian culture, and cultural fairs. These events increase visibility, For this projection to succeed, it is essential that foster appreciation, and can become sustainable Yapaterans maintain control and management of tourism attractions. their cultural heritage, participating actively in all decisions regarding its use, representation, and Fifth, integrate the cumanana into sustainable tourism commercialization. Only in this way can the cumanana circuits through immersive cultural experiences be simultaneously an economic resource, an identity combining performances with gastronomy, visits to symbol, a space of memory, and an intercultural historical sites, craft workshops, and conversations bridge connecting past and future, local and global, with cultural bearers. These experiences should be Peru and Africa.

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The proposed strategic guidelines constitute a guiding framework that must be adapted through participatory processes involving the entire Yapateran community. Successful implementation requires political will, economic resources, interinstitutional coordination, and—above all—the commitment and leadership of the Yapaterans themselves as stewards of their culture and architects of their future. In this way, the sung word will remain the resonant echo of a collective history that, through the voice of the Afro-descendant people, continues to write about the future.

Ministerio de Cultura. (2004). Resolución Directoral Nacional N.º 1255-INC-2004: Declaratoria de la Cumanana como Patrimonio Cultural de la Nación.

Instituto Nacional de Cultura. http://administrativos. cultura.gob.pe/intranet/dpcn/anexos/21_1. pdf?4721993 Ministerio de Cultura. (2014). Las Cumananas de Yapatera [Documental]. Videoteca de las Culturas. https://videoteca.cultura.pe/video/categoria/ escuelas/las-cumananas-de-yapatera

Panta Chunga, M. I., Mendoza Urbina, F. J., Crespo Tintaya, L. M., Ampuero Joyo, J. O., & Cruzata Martínez, IX. REFERENCES A. (2023). El poder de Kikongo: La cumanana desde Alzamora Arévalo, A. (2018). Voces ancestrales: la escuela para el aprendizaje intercultural. Qantu Tradición oral en el Perú afroperuano. Ministerio de Yachay, 3(2), 114-127. https://doi.org/10.51440/ Educación del Perú. https://repositorio.perueduca. qantuyachay.v3i2.198 pe/recursos/libros/voces-ancestrales.pdf Trapero, M. (2013). La tradición y la improvisación en Alzamora Arévalo, A. (2024). Merienda de negros (3.ª la poesía oral: la décima, un nuevo género poético ed.). Sietevientos Editores. integrador en el mundo hispánico. Anuario de Estudios Atlánticos, (59), 851-896. https://dialnet.

Arrelucea, M. (2022). El aporte de la cultura africana unirioja.es/servlet/articulo?codigo=4710729 en el Perú: una identidad perdida. Diálogo Andino, (67), 14-24. https://doi.org/10.4067/S0718- UNESCO. (2018). Manual para la salvaguardia del 47272022000100014 patrimonio cultural inmaterial. UNESCO. https://ich. unesco.org/doc/src/01851-ES.pdf Ato Arias, G. F. (2019). Identidad cultural de los estudiantes de cuarto y quinto grado del nivel Valdivia, N., Benavides, M., & Torero, M. (2007). primario Institución Educativa 14619 respecto al Exclusión, identidad étnica y políticas de inclusión recurso intangible la cumanana, Centro Poblado social en el Perú: El caso de la población indígena Yapatera - Piura - 2019 [Tesis de licenciatura, y la población afroperuana. Lima: GRADE. https:// Universidad César Vallejo]. https://hdl.handle. centroderecursos.cultura.pe/sites/default/files/rb/ net/20.500.12692/64085 pdf/EXCLUSIoN-IDENTIDAD-eTNICA-Y-POLiTICASde-inclusion-social-en-el-Peru.pdf Chávez Mezones, S. J. (2014). Turismo vivencial y la demanda turística del centro poblado Yapatera – Chulucanas, Piura [Tesis de licenciatura, Universidad César Vallejo]. https://hdl.handle. net/20.500.12692/129246 Espinoza León, C. (2007). El Pitingo: Cuentos y tradiciones de Yapatera (2.ª ed.). Sietevientos Editores.

Espinoza León, C. (2016). Yapatera y la historia del progreso según don Fernando Barranzuela.

Investigaciones Sociales, 20(37), 267-280. https:// doi.org/10.15381/is.v20i37.13256 Hampaté Bâ, A. (1982). La tradición viva.. París: UNESCO. https://nyemba.unilab.edu.br/wp-content/ uploads/2017/04/A-tradição-viva-AmadouHampaté-Bâ-texto-basico.pdf

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ARTICLE 5

THE VISIBILITY OF THE AFRO-PERUVIAN PEOPLE THROUGH CULTURAL POLICIES Alicia del Pilar Quevedo Canales Directorate of Policies for the Afro-Peruvian Population – Ministry of Culture of Peru

On December 17, 2024, the United Nations (UN) announced the Second International Decade for People of African Descent, which officially began on January 1, 2025, and will conclude on December 31, 2034. This declaration seeks to concentrate member states’ efforts on the development of their Afrodescendant populations. It is projected that a tenyear period is sufficient to implement an Action Plan and achieve concrete results.

A notable point from the assessment made by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights regarding the First Decade is that one of the areas where the most progress was achieved in the Action Plan was in the visibility of the living conditions of Afro-descendants. However, despite these advances, very few changes have occurred in the structural inequalities and racism affecting Afrodescendant populations across different societies:

As in the first Decade, which ran from January 1, 2015, to December 31, 2024, the guiding pillars of the Action Plan are recognition, justice, and development.

“In the last decade, we have achieved greater understanding and visibility of the lived experiences of Afro-descendants, but not enough has been done to bring about real and positive changes in their lives.”.1

Recognition involves promoting the right to equality and non-discrimination of Afro-descendant people.

It includes educating and raising public awareness, collecting relevant data about this population, and encouraging their political participation and social inclusion.

Justice is understood as effective access to the judicial system, as well as the implementation of special measures, whether affirmative actions or mechanisms for historical reparation.

The right to development encompasses strategies to combat poverty and improve access to education, employment, health, housing, and other public services, with the aim of closing existing social gaps.

To effectively implement these three pillars, it is essential to position them within the public agenda of States, which requires increasing the social visibility of Afro-descendants. This process involves introducing these topics into public debate, highlighting them in the media, and promoting discussion in various social spaces. In the digital era, it also entails disseminating—and even “viralizing”— content that reflects the realities of Afro-descendant people, both their struggles against discrimination and structural racism, and their contributions and cultural expressions.

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ONU

Source: Ayuda en acción

Afro-Peruvian population Source: Ministry of Culture

A Path from Peru In this regard, the present article reflects on the various ways in which visibility policies for the AfroPeruvian people have been promoted by the Ministry of Culture, with the goal of outlining a roadmap within the framework of the Second International Decade for People of African Descent. One of its aims is that, beyond visibility actions, structural changes may be consolidated to foster the development of Afro-descendant populations.

recognition of the Afro-Peruvian people, disseminating their historical and contemporary contributions to the nation.

Afro-Peruvian Visibility Calendar One of the main achievements in the field of visibility has been the consolidation of an annual calendar of Afro-Peruvian commemorations, which institutionalizes key moments of reflection and 2 remembrance. Among the most significant dates are:

In 2013, the Directorate of Policies for the AfroPeruvian Population (DAF) was created as a specialized body of the Ministry of Culture. Its mission is: “To design and implement policies, plans, and programs for the protection, promotion of rights, and development of the Afro-Peruvian population, ensuring their development with identity within a framework of equality of rights” (Ministry of Culture, 2013).

June 4 – Afro-Peruvian Culture Day: In 2006, the Congress of the Republic declared, through Law No. 28761, June 4 of each year as the Afro-Peruvian Culture Day, in honor of the birth of Nicomedes Santa Cruz—artist, poet, and intellectual symbol of the Afro-Peruvian people. It is a day to recognize the contributions of Afro-Peruvians to the building of the nation in economic, social, scientific, cultural, religious, and artistic spheres, among others.

To fulfill this mandate, the DAF structured its work around four main areas:

June – Afro-Peruvian Culture Month: Established in 2014 through Ministerial Resolution No. 1822014-MC, this month provides a broader space to carry out activities that promote the visibility of the Afro-Peruvian people. It is becoming a landmark period that encourages initiatives both nationally and internationally. It is worth noting that June is also recognized as LGBTQ+ Pride Month, which fosters intersectional dialogues around identity, equality, and inclusion.

1. Public Policies: Design and implementation of management documents to guide state action.

2. Participation and Representation: Creation of deliberative spaces for Afro-Peruvian organizations and promotion of their representation at different levels of governance.

3. Information Management: Production and analysis of quantitative and qualitative data to support public policy decision-making.

4. Visibility: Promotion of social and cultural 1

Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. (2024, December). Second International Decade for People of African Descent renews call for recognition, justice and development [Story]. https://www.ohchr.org/es/stories/2024/12/second-international-decade-people-african-descent-renews-call-recognition-justice

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July 25 – Afro-Peruvian Women’s Day: In 2020, Law No. 31049 declared July 25 of each year as National Afro-Peruvian Women’s Day, with the aim of making visible, recognizing, valuing, and raising awareness about the participation and contributions of AfroPeruvian women to Peru’s social, economic, political, and cultural development. The law assigns the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Women and Vulnerable Populations (MIMP) the responsibility of promoting activities that highlight, recognize, value, and encourage the effective participation of AfroPeruvian women.

December 3 – Abolition of Slavery Day: In 1854, the abolition of slavery was proclaimed in Peru. In honor of that date, the Ministry of Culture organizes commemorative activities highlighting the political participation of Afro-Peruvians, particularly through the National Meeting of Afro-Peruvian Organizations “Somos Familia” (“We Are Family”), which this year will celebrate its tenth edition.

Other Visibility Actions On addition to the commemorative dates established with the goal of consolidating them in the national calendar as reference points for the general public, several visibility actions are carried out throughout the year as important measures to acknowledge the achievements and contributions of the Afro-Peruvian people to national knowledge and culture.

October 19 – Peru–Africa Friendship Day: In 1986, Supreme Decree No. 0020-86-RE established Peru– Africa Friendship Day to be celebrated every October 19, in commemoration of the death of Mozambican president and leader Samora Machel, regarded as the father of his nation’s independence and a staunch Recognition of Meritorious Personalities of Afroopponent of the apartheid regime.

Peruvian Culture: This is an official distinction This date honors those who devoted their lives to granted to individuals whose work and actions Africa’s emancipation struggle and expresses the have significantly contributed to the country.

Peruvian people’s recognition of the historical bond Such recognition creates opportunities for the that unites us with the African continent, as well as dissemination of their legacies, including the declaration of centenaries—such as that of its valuable contribution to our culture and society.

Nicomedes Santa Cruz in 2025 and Victoria Santa Cruz in 2022—or the issuance of commemorative postage stamps, such as for singer Lucha Reyes in 2024.

Recognition of Meritorious Personalities of Afro-Peruvian Culture, 2017 Source: Ministry of Culture

2 For more information on the commemorative dates, see Annex 1.

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Afro-Peruvian Culture Research Meeting, 2025, National University of San Marcos Source: Ministry of Culture

Declaration of Intangible Heritage and Sites of Historical Memory of the Afro-Peruvian People: These official declarations recognize Afro-Peruvianrooted cultural practices as part of the national cultural heritage. Among them are the Festivity of the Lord of Miracles, the dances of Hatajo de Negritos and Pallas, the musical use of the checo, the tondero dance, the Peruvian cajón, and the Afro-Peruvian rhythmic cajita.

Similarly, certain localities whose histories are marked by a strong Afro-descendant presence— such as Zaña in the Lambayeque region and San Luis de Cañete in Lima—have been designated as sites of historical memory.

Afro-Peruvian Culture Research Meeting: Launched in 2017 and formalized through Ministerial Resolution No. 480-2023-MC, this event gathers researchers, academics, and cultural practitioners to share advances in Afro-Peruvian cultural studies.

Its objective is to influence the public agenda by providing evidence-based insights that inform policies and initiatives in favor of the Afro-Peruvian people.

reconstruction of the presence and contributions of Afro-descendants in the country.

Similarly, the book Fogón afroperuano: Herencia y saber de la cocina afroperuana de la costa— developed jointly with the organization Activos Culturales Afro (ACUA) and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)—compiles, through collaborative work, recipes and cultural practices from various Afro-Peruvian communities.

The book features contributions from cooks such as Carmen Huapaya Solano (San Luis de Cañete), Mirtha Cartagena, Angeolina Palma, Esther Cartagena, and Josefina López (Chincha), as well as Rosa Colchado, Amelia Jiménez, and Fanny Azañero (Zaña, Lambayeque), who are both authors and protagonists of its content. This publication was recently awarded the prestigious Gourmand Award 2025 in the category of open-access and freely distributed cookbooks.

The actions and initiatives for visibility promoted by the Ministry of Culture reflect a concerted effort to place both the social demands and the valuable contributions of the Afro-Peruvian people on the public agenda, as part of a broader effort to combat Production and Publication of Books Promoting racism and discrimination. However, the experience Afro-Peruvian Culture: An editorial line is being gained during the First International Decade for developed to produce high-quality publications that People of African Descent reminds us of that highlight and promote the richness of Afro-Peruvian visibility alone is not enough. These actions must be culture. Among the most notable works is Presencia accompanied by concrete, sustained measures that afrodescendiente en el Perú. Siglos XVI–XX (2015), address the structural inequalities affecting large by historians Maribel Arrelucea Barrantes and Jesús segments of the Afro-descendant population.

Cosamalón Aguilar, which offers a valuable historical

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For example, the declaration of Meritorious Annex 1 – Calendar of Significant Dates and Personalities of Culture must go hand in hand with Commemorations of the Afro-Peruvian People policies ensuring dignified living conditions and the adequate dissemination of their work. Likewise, the commemoration of Afro-Peruvian Women’s Day should transcend symbolism by promoting public policies that effectively reduce gender-based violence and improve access to decent employment for Afro-Peruvian women.

Award for the Book “Fogón Afroperuano” at the 30th Gourmand Awards Source: Best in the World Gourmand

The implementation of commemorative dates, distinctions, and recognitions tends to be among the most immediate actions in public management, explaining the proliferation of observances dedicated to various causes and groups. However, the true challenge does not lie in their creation, but in ensuring their sustainability through meaningful actions that help close the structural gaps affecting Afrodescendant peoples. In this sense, visibility initiatives are essential but must go beyond the symbolic.

For these initiatives to have genuine impact, they must be accompanied by effective mechanisms of representation and resource redistribution. Only then can we move toward a truly inclusive democracy— one in which cultural recognition translates into tangible improvements in quality of life and the full exercise of rights for the Afro-Peruvian population.

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centroderecursos.cultura.pe/sites/default/files/rb/ pdf/La-presencia-afrodescendiente.pdf Activos Culturales Afro ACUA, Fondo Internacional de Desarrollo Agrícola (FIDA) y Ministerio de Cultura del Perú. (2023). Fogón afroperuano: Herencia y saber de la cocina afroperuana [Libro electrónico].

Ministerio de Cultura del Perú. https://programaacua. org/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Libro-FogonAfroperuano.pdf Articles OHCHR ONU “El Segundo Decenio Internacional de los Afrodescendientes renueva el llamamiento al reconocimiento, la justicia y el desarrollo”www.ohchr. org/es/stories/2024/12/second-internationaldecade-people-african-descent-renews-callrecognition-justice19 de diciembre 2024 Regulation Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores. (1986, 21 de octubre). Decreto Supremo N.º 0020-86-RE: Declaran el 19 de octubre de cada año como el Día de la Amistad Peruano-Africana.

Congreso de la República del Perú. (2006, 18 de junio). Ley N.º 28761: Declaran el 4 de junio de cada año como el Día de la Cultura Afroperuana. Diario Oficial El Peruano.

Ministerio de Cultura. (2013, 20 de junio).

Decreto Supremo N.º 005-2013-MC: Aprueban el Reglamento de Organización y Funciones del Ministerio de Cultura. https://transparencia.cultura. gob.pe/sites/default/files/transparencia/2020/10/ reglamento-de-organizacion-y-funciones-rof/ dsndeg005-2013-mcrofdelmc.pdf Ministerio de Cultura. (2014, 4 de junio). Resolución Ministerial N.º 182-2014-MC: Declaran el mes de junio de cada año como “Mes de la Cultura Afroperuana”. Recuperado de https://www.gob.pe/ institucion/cultura/normas-legales/210005-1822014-mc gob.pe Congreso de la República del Perú. (2020, 30 de setiembre). Ley N.º 31049: Declaran el 25 de julio de cada año Día Nacional de la Mujer Afroperuana. Diario Oficial El Peruano. https://busquedas.elperuano.pe/ dispositivo/NL/1889434-3 busquedas.elperuano.pe Annex 1 – Calendar of Significant Dates and Commemorations of the Afro-Peruvian People Source: Directorate of Policies for the Afro-Peruvian Population – Ministry of Culture of Peru

References Books

Ministerio de Cultura. (2023, 19 de octubre). Resolución Ministerial N.º 480‑2023‑MC: Institucionalizan el Encuentro de Investigadores sobre Cultura Afroperuana. Recuperado de https://www.gob.pe/ institucion/cultura/normas-legales/4875472-4802023-mc

Asamblea General de las Naciones Unidas. (2024).

Arrelucea Barrantes, M., & Cosamalón Aguilar, J. Resolución A/RES/79/193 sobre el Segundo Decenio (2015). La presencia afrodescendiente en el Perú: Internacional para los Afrodescendientes.

Siglos XVI - XX. Ministerio de Cultura del Perú. https://

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EXPANDING AFRICANNESS

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ARTICLE 6

NAPOLEONIC AFRO-AMERICANS: IDEALISTIC AGENTS?

3

Ambassador Jorge Raffo Director General for Africa, the Middle East, and the Gulf Countries

Central America and the Caribbean, infused with Enlightenment ideals and inspired by the principles of the French Revolution, became the stage for the struggles between rising European empires and the declining Spanish one. The region and its surrounding seas were fiercely contested from the late 18th to the early 19th century through methods that demanded the intense mobilization of men of fighting age, as well as the political alignment of numerous social groups that had to determine their loyalties. Many of these decisions were influenced by the ethnic identities recognized at the time (Rueda, 2009).

Many Afro-descendants legally considered “free”—a colonial term used to distinguish them from those enslaved—joined the Latin American independence cause with the hope of helping to build an inclusive and egalitarian society. From 1789 onward, AfroAmericans in the Caribbean became disruptive agents of the colonial order. The roles of Haiti and Jamaica in the political initiatives to separate Central American territories from Madrid’s control were exemplified by the adventure of the Bocé or Bogé brothers.

later made a dramatic escape from prison but was recaptured after being mistaken for an instigator in a tavern brawl while waiting for a ship to flee Puerto Rico.

The Napoleonic agents deployed throughout a turbulent Spanish America drew crucial lessons from the Bocé brothers’ failed libertarian attempt. They henceforth pursued a dual mission: enforcing the Continental Blockade decreed by Paris against the British—using corsair ships to disrupt English trade in the Caribbean—and simultaneously supporting the insurgent patriot forces by weakening Spanish troops on land.

At age forty-five, Jacques Anastase Desmolards (or Dumoulard) was tasked with creating and maintaining a network of secret agents in Napoleon’s service. In 1809, he settled in Baltimore, from where he managed an intelligence network throughout the Americas, particularly in Mexico, where he commanded dozens of agents. He is regarded as the instigator of the first independence movements in Cuba starting in late 1809. Desmolards remained in espionage work until Jean Gaspard and Agustín Bocé (or Bogé), both French 1811, when he was replaced by another Napoleonic mulatto corsairs, took part in a revolutionary attempt officer, Anasthase d’Amblimont, who sent two of his in Maracaibo, Venezuela, in 1799, led by the patriot best agents—François Louis Delpech and Charles Francisco Javier Pirela. However, Pirela was captured Demarquet—to assist the patriots in the Isthmus days before the planned uprising, allowing royalist and New Granada. The former sought support for the forces to arrest the two captains and seventy-eight Napoleonic cause through Panama, proposing that crew members of the ships Bruto, Patrulla, and Paris send “[…] 20 artillery officers, 6 workshop Arlequín. They were imprisoned in the fortress of Panama for several years until, in 1806, the French ambassador inquired “whether Jean Gaspard and Agustín Bocé had been released.” The response received by Talleyrand, Napoleon Bonaparte’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, confirmed their release but noted that the three vessels remained confiscated (Manzanilla, 2011, cited in Puigmail, 2013).

Their lieutenants—Juan María Gautier, a French mulatto from Port-au-Prince; Jacob Gomes, second in command of the Bruto; and Antoine Duple, a Haitian mulatto—met different fates. Along with twenty other French sailors, they were sentenced to “work in chains on the port construction of Puerto Rico” (González, 2010, cited in Puigmail, 2013). Duple 3 Article published in La Tribuna (Honduras), March 2022

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Napoleonic Empire

Source: National Geographic

chiefs, 8 printers, 4 mining masters, etc.” (De Gandia, 1955)—a total of eighty-six specialists to aid the insurgent forces. The latter, meanwhile, accompanied Simón Bolívar during his meeting with General José de San Martín on July 26, 1822, in Guayaquil, which determined the city’s fate as part of Gran Colombia.

Bolívar would later say of Demarquet: “[…] He does not know how to lie or slander; I believe him loyal and sincere” (Barrios, 2002, cited in Puigmail, 2013).

The best example of this strategy to destabilize Spanish forces in Latin America was the agreement promoted by Delpech, Fajardo, and Napoleon himself in 1813, which included a promise to send an expedition from France in support of the patriots. The defeats of the Grande Armée and Napoleon’s first exile to the island of Elba prevented its execution.

Taken as a whole, the Bocé expedition marked the dawn of revolutionary and Napoleonic conviction among Afro-Americans—convictions that translated into action.

Puigmail, A. (2013). Agentes napoleónicos en Hispanoamérica: espionaje, redes y conspiraciones (1799–1822). París: Éditions de la Sorbonne.

Rueda, J. (2009). Identidades étnicas y movilización política en el Caribe colonial (1750–1820). Bogotá: Universidad Nacional de Colombia.

Zapata, C. (2009). Los afrodescendientes en la independencia hispanoamericana: sujetos y memorias.

Lima: Fondo Editorial del Congreso del Perú.

Recent studies (Zapata, 2009; Ferreira, 2009) emphasize the pioneering role of Afro-descendants in early independence movements as far back as the late 18th century. As Puigmail (2013) notes, “[…] It is therefore unsurprising to see them involved in the first independence movements alongside Francisco de Miranda in particular, supporting Simón Bolívar during his exile in 1815–1816, and later joining the emancipatory armies.”

References Barrios, M. (2002). Napoleón y la independencia de América: relaciones entre Bolívar y los franceses. Madrid: Editorial Complutense.

De Gandia, E. (1955). Historia de las ideas en la América española. Buenos Aires: Editorial Kapelusz.

Ferreira, L. (2009). Afrodescendientes en la independencia de América Latina: una revisión histórica. Montevideo: Universidad de la República.

González, J. (2010). Corsarios y prisioneros: las redes del Caribe napoleónico. San Juan de Puerto Rico: Editorial de la Universidad de Puerto Rico.

Manzanilla, J. (2011). Revolución, corsarios y conspiraciones en el Caribe del siglo XVIII. Caracas: Academia Nacional de la Historia.

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Simón Bolivar

Source: Wikipedia

ARTICLE 7

FROM THE ANDES TO THE MAGHREB: THE LITERATURE OF CLORINDA MATTO DE TURNER AND ASSIA DJEBAR AS A MIRROR OF SOCIETIES IN TRANSFORMATION

Amparo María Melchor Castro First Secretary, Diplomatic Service of the Republic of Peru

“If history is the mirror in which future generations must contemplate the image of those that came before them, the novel must be the photograph that stereotypes the vices and virtues of a people, providing a corrective moral for the former and a tribute of admiration for the latter.”

- Clorinda Matto de Turner, 1889, p. 11.

Peru, a country that opens its doors to the world from the South Pacific, and Algeria, the largest nation in Africa whose coasts are bathed by the Mediterranean, have both built their national identities upon the encounter and tension between ancestral heritages and colonial legacies. The Spanish and French colonization experienced by these two nations, respectively, marked defining moments that shaped modern Peruvian and Algerian identity. Their struggles for independence—though occurring in different centuries (Peru in 1821 and Algeria in 1962)—were characterized by sacrifice and collective resistance that found echoes in diverse artistic expressions, ranging from painting and sculpture to music and literature.

a historical novel that reconstructs the sacrifice and struggle of Algerian women, highlighting the crucial role played by these courageous figures.

Clorinda Matto de Turner: Literature and Social Protest Clorinda Matto de Turner was born in Cusco in 1852.

A Peruvian writer of global significance, she grew up in Calca, a small town in the Andes. Grimanesa Martina Matto Usandivaras—who later adopted the name Clorinda Matto—wove into her works the rural life and Andean landscapes that shaped her childhood. From an early age, she demonstrated a talent for writing, earning the position of editor of her school’s newspaper at just fourteen. Although she later left school to help her father with household duties and care for her siblings after her mother’s death, Matto never stopped writing.

Literature has, throughout the years, served as a bridge to connect and uncover affinities between geographically distant or temporally separate worlds. Novels, in particular, have the power to tell stories of pain and hope, revive memories, and act as repositories of collective remembrance. This genre has provided a space for resistance and sensitivity, especially for those who, through their writing, have depicted the injustices, abuses, and indifference of their times.

This article invites readers to explore the creative parallels that unite two great women writers, distant in both time and geography, yet connected through shared themes. In her work Birds Without a Nest (1889), regarded as the first indigenist novel of Peru, Clorinda Matto de Turner denounced the structures of discrimination, abuse, and exploitation endured

by Indigenous communities of her time. Meanwhile, nearly ten thousand kilometers away in Algeria, Assia Djebar achieved something similar in La femme sans sépulture (The Woman Without a Tomb, 2002),

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Cover, Birds Without a Nest Source: Armaenia Editorial

whose work revalues the Quechua language and is imbued with a proto-feminist perspective that must not be read through the lens of modern sensibilities.

Clorinda Matto stands out for her political activism at a time when the separation between the public (political) and private (domestic) spheres was unquestioned, and both politics and literature were domains dominated by men.

A Personal Point of Departure Clorinda Matto de Turner embodies, in 19th-century Peru—and even today—a questioning voice against the entrenched hierarchies and principles upon which the Peruvian Republic was built. In that same spirit of resistance, Assia Djebar, through her powerful novel La femme sans sépulture (The Woman Without a Tomb), offers a female perspective on Algeria’s independence and reconstructs the story of an Algerian heroine who fought to see her country free.

Clorinda Matto

Source: National Library of Peru

She explored multiple literary genres—poetry, prose, novels, legends, traditions, and theater. In 1889, she became editor of El Perú Ilustrado, the most influential magazine of her time, where she published Birds Without a Nest. In 1892, she founded La Equitativa printing press, a pioneering project operated exclusively by women and dedicated to publishing works by other female writers.

According to Mary Berg (2010), the central themes in Matto’s work include the emancipation and education of women; social injustice and the subjugation and exploitation of Indigenous peoples; and the abolition of corruption and abuse both in government and within the Church. Matto’s primary concern lay in the social issues and injustices faced by Indigenous communities—a stance that brought her into open conflict with the Church and political authorities of her era. As a result of political persecution, she fled to Chile in 1895 and later settled in Argentina, where she lived until her death in 1909 at a young age.

Mural Cabaah, Argel Source: Author’s photo

I discovered Assia Djebar during a recent trip to Algiers.

While wandering through the Casbah, the streets of “the white city,” and the ruins of Tipasa—immersed in layers of history, colonial architecture, and sacred mosques—I felt compelled to complement my Denegri and Peluffo (2020) define Matto as a experience through Algerian literature. controversial and pioneering figure of indigenismo,

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Assia Djebar: Memory and Female Resistance

the war. Such is the case of her novel La femme sans sépulture (The Woman Without a Tomb), a work based Writing about Assia Djebar has been a journey into on historical events yet imbued with the author’s the soul of Algeria through the words of one of its creative vision. most brilliant authors. Fatima-Zohra Imalayene, who later adopted the pen name Assia Djebar, was In this novel, Djebar recounts the story of Zulija Udai, born in Cherchell in 1936, a small city about 90 a heroine of Algeria’s war of independence. After the kilometers from Algiers. She was the first Algerian tragic murder of her husband by French colonists, woman to study at the prestigious École Normale Zulija joined the resistance, forced to separate from Supérieure in Paris, where she took part in student her children, live in hiding, and act as an intermediary strikes supporting her country’s independence. carrying food and messages between the city and the rebels stationed in the mountains.

Djebar firmly believed in the transformative power of education—especially for women. At that time, only 1% of Algerian women attended school, and even fewer completed their studies. Over her life, she taught history, literature, and film in Algeria, France, Morocco, and the United States, and in 2005 she became the first Maghrebi woman to join the French Academy.

Tipasa, Argelia

Source: Author’s photo

Djebar’s vast body of work spans poetry, historical and autobiographical novels, theater, and film. Her art blends historical events with personal experience, allowing readers to immerse themselves fully in her narratives. She writes about the transition from colonial rule to an independent republic and reflects deeply on national identity. Her storytelling, rich in female voices, is a form of remembrance and political resistance. In her 1974 film and later works, she documented the stories of women who lived through the war—mothers, wives, and daughters— highlighting the crucial role of rural women in Algeria’s struggle for independence (Serrano-Niza, 2020).

Book cover: La femme sans sépulture Source: Armaenia Editorial

The story unfolds in Cesarea (Cherchell), Djebar’s birthplace, and is told through the voices of several women who knew Zulija: her two daughters (Hania and Mina), her friend Doña Lionne (Lla Lbia in Arabic), her sister-in-law Zora Udai, and even Zulija herself.

Throughout her life, Assia Djebar maintained Each of these narrators reconstructs the life of the an active political commitment that is reflected first Arab woman to obtain a school diploma, fluent in throughout her works, where she denounced the lack French, who married three times (the first two ending of protection suffered by women and rescued the in divorce, and the last husband assassinated), joined voices and stories of those who disappeared during the resistance, and ultimately gave her life for her country’s independence.

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Main Square of Lima Source: Author’s photo

The voices of these women are testimonies of pain and resilience, placing women at the center of the historical narrative. Zulija, a courageous woman who organized a resistance group with the support of other women, was stripped of her home, her children, her family, and even her life. Her loved ones were denied the right to bury her and mourn over her remains — a final act of erasure that transforms her story into a symbol of resistance and remembrance.

oppression endured by Indigenous women of that era—an oppression that, sadly, persists in certain contemporary contexts. Marcela suffers double subjugation: as a woman and as an Indigenous person. She personifies a collective pain, living in a world where women were deprived of bodily autonomy and their voices held no weight within a patriarchal and classist structure that rendered them invisible.

Thematic Encounters

The contrast Matto presents through these two women reveals the depth of social oppression in her time and underscores the need to confront social, racial, and gender inequalities as the only path toward genuine transformation. The social critique in Birds Without a Nest calls on readers to develop a reformist conscience and portrays women—through Lucía—as agents of change who defy the submissive role assigned to them, transforming themselves from victims into challengers of structural injustice.

Matto and Djebar, two writers emerging from distinct realities — Republican Peru at the end of the 19th century and post-colonial Algeria in the 20th — converge in their literary concerns and political convictions. Both: (I) portray women from a position of resistance, giving them agency and voice in contexts of oppression; and (II) write about national identities in formation, which continue to bear the wounds of their colonial pasts.

In turn, Djebar, in The Woman Without a Tomb, presents women as repositories of memory, guardians of vital historical truths. Doña Lionne, for In Birds Without a Nest, Lucía Marín embodies an instance, is described as “pure memory,” possessing educated and cultured woman, deeply sensitive to the unique capacity to resurrect the past and recount the suffering of the women in her community— the life of a forgotten woman like Zulija. Through her, particularly Marcela, the wife of humble Indigenous Djebar portrays the intergenerational transmission villager Juan Yupanqui. Lucía represents a spirit of identity. of justice and moral courage, one that challenges social hierarchies, abuses of authority, and religious Zulija, the protagonist, is a woman who defies the complacency. She assumes an active role in paradigms of her era. She not only recognizes the confronting the injustices committed against the suffering and abuse endured by her people but also Yupanqui family and becomes a catalyst for change chooses to break her silence and become an active in a society where women’s roles were confined to fighter in Algeria’s war of independence. Zulija the domestic and maternal sphere. Lucía thus stands embodies female resistance and resilience, defying as an example of sisterhood and strength. stereotypes and transforming silence into action— becoming a symbol of struggle and dignity.

In contrast, Marcela represents the face of Women as Subjects of Resistance

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“Look at all this! —again, my gesture is for you, spectator of this frozen scene, whether in twenty days or twenty years, it matters not—my gesture denounces the ridiculous armor of their army. Look, my brothers, all this only for a woman!” (Djebar, 2020, p. 42).

In conclusion, both Matto and Djebar create an archetype of womanhood that transcends maternal and domestic roles, positioning women as empathetic yet defiant figures attuned to the social transformations of their nations in formation. For both authors, women embody social protest and serve as the moral backbone of their communities—a clear manifestation of female solidarity and collective strength.

Algerian heroine—to integrate women’s voices into the rewriting of national history. Although Zulija was executed and her burial site remains unknown, she endures as a national symbol of resistance.

“In 1956 and 1957, Zulija was truly at the center—not only of the struggle in Cesarea but of the connections maintained between the mountains, with their partisans, and the city’s inhabitants—hesitant, cautious, yet hopeful, as they watched the future approach through quakes and storms.” (Djebar, 2020, p. 138).

Both writers converge in portraying national identity as an unfinished project, shaped by colonial wounds and struggles for political and cultural liberation. For Matto and Djebar alike, no vision of nationhood can National Identity and the Traces of Colonialism be complete without an inclusive lens that embraces women, Indigenous peoples, and rural communities Matto wrote at the end of the 19th century, when as integral to its foundation.

Peru had been formally independent for more than half a century; however, the Indigenous population Final Reflections still lived under conditions akin to colonial rule. In Birds Without a Nest, she denounces the systematic The literature of Matto and Djebar, though born of abuse and exclusion of Indigenous communities distinct contexts, is unified by shared concerns: the from the construction of the Republic. Matto raises role of women, the nature of nationhood, and the her voice to expose the fractured national identity of enduring legacy of colonialism. Birds Without a Nest her time—one that ignored Indigenous peoples and and The Woman Without a Tomb critically reflect women. “We were born Indians, slaves of the priest, societies in transformation, giving voice to women slaves of the governor, slaves of the chief, slaves of who challenged authority at great personal cost— all who hold the staff of command.” (Matto, 2019, p. often through persecution or exile. Their ideas remain profoundly relevant. Both authors stand as cultural 274). and political symbols of world literature, proving that In her work, Matto shows how the Church and words can bridge continents and histories. May this local authorities became pillars of oppression, dialogue of affinities and unexpected encounters perpetuating colonial hierarchies under the guise of inspire readers to discover more about Peru and republican order. Through her writing, she exposes Algeria—through the visionary writings of Clorinda both the vices and virtues of her society, recognizing Matto de Turner and Assia Djebar. the moral and political power of the novel as a vehicle for reform. Her denunciation serves as a call to include Indigenous peoples and women in the nationbuilding process, revealing the paradoxes of 19thcentury Republican Peru—a society that sought freedom from Spain yet maintained internal systems of domination based on ethnicity and gender. These ideas remain relevant today, and Clorinda Matto is rightly considered a forerunner of social justice and diversity as foundations of national identity.

Meanwhile, Assia Djebar, through her reconstruction of collective memory, writes about national identity from a female perspective. The Woman Without a Tomb rescues the voices of women silenced by history and highlights the essential role they played in Algeria’s independence and nation-building.

Djebar reclaims the life and memory of Zulija—the

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Main Square of Cusco Source: Author’s photo

Assia Djebar Source: Times

References: Berg, M. G. (2010). Clorinda Matto de Turner (1852-1909): Perú. Alicante: Biblioteca Virtual Miguel de Cervantes.

Denegri, F., & Peluffo, A. (Eds.). (2020). Su afectísima discípula, Clorinda Matto de Turner. Cartas a Ricardo Palma, 1883-1897. Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú, Fondo Editoria Djebar, A. (2020). La mujer sin sepultura (M. Bofill, Trad.). Madrid: Armaenia Editorial. (Trabajo original publicado en 2002).

Matto de Turner, C. (1889). Birds Without a Nest. Buenos Aires: Felix Lajouane Editor.

Serrano-Niza, D. (2020). Cuerpos de mujeres (des)colonizados según Assia Djebar. Revista Estudos Feministas, 28(2).

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ARTICLE 8

THE AFRO-PERUVIAN LEGACY IN THE HATAJO DE NEGRITOS AND PALLITAS

Verónica Miyagusuku Ríos Second Secretary in the Diplomatic Service of the Republic Manifestations of the south-central coast of Peru recognized as Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO

The Hatajo de Negritos and the Hatajo de Pallitas, century in that Peruvian region (Tompkins, 2011). traditions originating on Peru’s south-central coast, constitute deeply representative manifestations of Afro-Andean Peruvian culture. These traditions represent a historical encounter between Andean worldview, African customs and European influence, resulting in a symbol of identity and social cohesion in the Ica region (Ministry of Culture of Peru, 2019).

In 2019, these two manifestations were inscribed, at the request of the Peruvian State, by the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of UNESCO on its Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity (UNESCO, 2019). This resulted in international recognition that confirmed the universal value of these traditions, and their capacity to bear witness to cultural mestizaje.

The present article explores the origin of the Hatajo de Negritos and Pallitas, their distinctive features, their social meaning and their ability to project onto the international scene; as well as the safeguarding measures that the Peruvian State has implemented to guarantee the continuity of this tradition. In this sense, it is emphasized that these expressions constitute a living testimony of Afro-Andean resilience, highlighting especially Afro-Peruvian cultural friendship as an essential feature of Peru’s identity and its diversity.

The dance of the pallitas or shepherdesses is performed by women to the sound of guitar or violin, accompanied by zapateo and song Photographer: Antonio Rodríguez Ministry of Culture of Peru, 2016

The African population that arrived in Peru carried with them elements of their worldview, musicality and artistic expressions, which intertwined with pre-existing Andean practices and the European Catholicism imposed by the colonisers, to give rise to the group dances and songs we enjoy today in the Hatajos (Ministry of Culture of Peru, 2019).

These dances recreate biblical passages related to the adoration of the Christ Child by shepherds and the Epiphany. The Hatajo de Negritos is performed primarily by males, whereas the dance of the Pallitas is executed by women. In both cases, the dances I.Origin and history of the Hatajo de Negritos and are performed to songs and instruments such as Pallitas the guitar and violin. Both expressions, recognised The Ica region, on Peru’s south-central coast, has as symbols of religious devotion, gather up to fifty housed a broad Afro-descendant community since dancers who perform in plazas and churches during the colonial era. During the 16th and 17th centuries, the December and January Christmas celebrations African inhabitants brought to Peru were integrated (Ministry of Culture of Peru, 2019). into the region’s productive and social systems, especially in the viticultural and agricultural estates.

According to local testimonies collected by historian William Tompkins, the origin of the Hatajo de Negritos and Pallitas dates to the second half of the 18th

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II. Cultural mestizaje in the Hatajo de Negritos and Pallitas

of communal life that underpin the Hatajo. The formation of groups, the concepts of sharing moments of singing and dancing, as well as the idea of The Hatajo de Negritos and Pallitas represent a unique intergenerational teaching express a cultural system cultural synthesis, born from the convergence of based on neighborly solidarity and cooperation, a three worlds: African heritage, the Andean worldview legacy of the ancestral principle of ayni, which sees and European influence. From this mixture emerges social life as a web of mutual support. a space of encounter and intercultural dialogue, which resulted in a diverse collective identity that has It is relevant to note that the term “pallitas” comes endured over the centuries. Beyond deep historical from Quechua, which refers to the shepherdesses; inequalities, the Hatajo embodies a form of cultural thus, even in the very name of the dance the Andean fraternity, in which art and spirituality became a component is evident. Moreover, the settings where common language within the diversity of its bearers it is performed (plazas, houses and temples) respond (UNESCO, 2019). to the Andean logic of sharing the sacred with the community (UNESCO, 2019).

African memory manifests primarily in the rhythmic component, which constitutes one of the most In this way, the dance and singing became a bridge that distinctive characteristics of the manifestation. permitted Afro-descendants and Andeans to build The energetic zapateo of the Negritos and Pallitas, together a mestizo spirituality, where the European accompanied by bells, evokes the musical and bodily was reinterpreted through local practices (UNESCO, practices of African settlers who arrived on the 2019). These elements transform the Hatajo into a Peruvian coast in colonial times under conditions of living voice of cultural resistance and into a reminder slavery (Ministry of Culture of Peru, 2019). that Afro-Peruvian history is inseparable from the construction of national identity (Ministry of Culture of Peru, 2019).

III. Declaration as National Cultural Heritage in 2012 and safeguarding measures The Ministry of Culture of Peru recognized the Hatajo de Negritos and Pallitas as National Cultural Heritage in 2012 (Vice-Ministry of Cultural Heritage and Cultural Industries, 2012); this had a positive impact on the valuation of Afro-Peruvian heritage in Peru by being a recognition of the importance of its traditions in the nation’s identity. This act was framed in a process that began in 2006, when Congress declared Each group is under the artistic direction of a lead dancer, whose each June 4 as Afro-Peruvian Culture Day (Law No. function is to teach choreography, songs and rhythms to the 28761 – Afro-Peruvian Culture Day), contributing to participants Photographer: Antonio Rodríguez Ministry of Culture of Peru, 2016 the re-valorisation of the intangible heritage of the It should be noted that during performances, the Afro-Peruvian people. ensembles of dancers and singers intone greetings of adoration to the Christ Child and to the Virgin Mary, which directly evidences the influence of European Catholicism. The tradition itself takes place within the framework of the liturgical calendar, reflecting how Afro-descendant and Andean communities resignified Christian symbols to endow them with their own meanings (Ministry of Culture of Peru, 2012). It should also be noted that the songs are not limited to biblical scenes, but also incorporate references to agricultural life, showing the close relationship between spirituality and everyday life.

The Andean influence is recognized in the values

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It is mandatory for all dancers of the groups to participate in regular rehearsals which begin a few months before Christmas Photographer: Antonio Rodríguez © Ministry of Culture of Peru, 2016

Since then, multiple safeguarding and dissemination initiatives of Afro-Andean manifestations have been deployed: documentaries like El Hatajo para el Niño (Ministry of Culture, 2012), workshops and community festivals led by institutions such as the Afro-Peruvian Cultural Centre San Daniel Comboni in Chincha, forums and symposia organised by the Decentralised Cultural Directorate of Ica, as well as contests and festivals supported by local and regional governments (Ministry of Culture of Peru, 2019).

inscribed on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity (UNESCO, 2019). The nomination process was promoted by the Ministry of Culture of Peru, in coordination with the traditionbearing communities.

The inscription represented a historic milestone, being the first element closely linked to Afro-Peruvian culture recognized at this international level (Andina, 2019). This not only made visible the richness and resilience of Afro-descendant populations in Peru Likewise, the Ministry of Culture has distinguished but also reaffirmed Peru’s commitment to its cultural as Meritorious Personalities of Culture the essential diversity and to strengthening ties among Afroguardians and promoters of Afro-Andean traditions, descendant and Andean peoples. such as Teresa Palomino Ormeño (2012) and Dominga Elisa Milaní Daza (2013). These recognitions, together The safeguarding plan developed by the Ministry with institutional efforts, have strengthened Afro- of Culture for the inscription of the Hatajo on the Peruvian identity and represent a pathway to ensure UNESCO List includes specific actions such as the intergenerational transmission of the practices that training of performers in violin, guitar and drum; the today stand as a living symbol of resilience, social recovery of traditional plants used in the costumes cohesion and contribution to Peru’s cultural diversity. of the Pallitas; as well as annual gatherings of dance groups to share knowledge. These measures illustrate IV. Inscription in UNESCO as Heritage of Humanity the commitment to ensuring that the tradition is not only preserved but also revitalised and strengthened In December 2019, during the 14th session of the with each new generation (UNESCO, 2019).

Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, held in Bogotá, Colombia, the Hatajo de Negritos and Pallitas were

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Photograph presented in the exhibition “Hatajo de Negritos and Pallitas, Afro-Andean Heritage of Peru” Photographer: Milena Carranza UNESCO, 2025

It is important to highlight that, within the nomination process, various associations and municipal authorities were actively involved in preparing the dossier, also granting their free, prior and informed consent (Palma Quiroz, 2015). Above all, it is worth noting that these communities themselves are the protagonists of the proposed safeguarding measures and will be the main actors in their implementation (UNESCO, 2019).

Being part of this List places the Hatajo de Negritos and the Hatajo de Pallitas on a global stage alongside emblematic expressions such as the Flamenco of Spain (2010), the Capoeira of Brazil (2014) or the Candombe in Uruguay (2009), whose inscriptions boosted their world recognition and favored the implementation of public safeguarding policies— since their bearer communities were recognized as identity references in their respective countries.

dance, the experiences of slavery and colonization, transforming them into artistic expressions of spirituality and collective unity (Ministry of Culture of Peru, 2019).

V. Universal value and international projection The Hatajo contributes to the global reflection on cultural rights. Its intergenerational transmission within a community environment ensures that girls, boys and young people maintain a strong sense of belonging and continuity, reinforcing their right to cultural identity. On the global level, this value is aligned with the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals, emphasizing that culture constitutes an essential pillar to promote inclusive and sustainable development (Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Peru, 2025).

In this way, the Hatajo de Negritos and Pallitas In this sense, the inscription of the Peruvian Hatajo surpass the local sphere and consolidate as symbols also offers an opportunity to project the value of of cultural diversity and human creative capacity.

Peruvian talent and cultural expressions, becoming Their recognition by UNESCO reaffirmed to the a means to sensitize national and international bearer communities of the Ica region that their legacy communities about the key role played by Afro- is not only Peru’s heritage but also a contribution of descendant community traditions in holistic universal reach to the cultural heritage of all peoples development, social cohesion and intercultural (UNESCO, 2019). dialogue in Peru.

Consequently, protecting and keeping alive the dances of the Hatajo makes it possible to recognize how communities re-signified, through music and

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The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Peru has promoted this expression as an emblem of Afro-Andean mestizaje. One example of this cultural foreign policy was the photographic exhibition presented at the UNESCO headquarters in Paris, organized by artist Milena Carranza, entitled “Hatajo de Negritos and Pallitas, Afro-Andean Heritage of Peru,” inaugurated on 3 June 2025 (Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Peru, 2025). The exhibition took place within the framework of Latin America and Caribbean Week and Afro-Peruvian Culture Month, which gave it particular visibility and relevance.

Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Their inscription, besides bringing international visibility, has a profound effect on the Afro-Peruvian community.

For centuries, the contributions of Afro-descendant populations were invisible in national narratives.

International recognition restores these communities their true importance in our national history.

More than a Christmas dance, the Hatajo is a symbol of cultural mestizaje, dialogue, unity and historical resistance. It represents a model of how diversity, far from fragmenting, can become a cohesive and creative force. In times when societies face During the event, Peru’s Permanent Representative identity tensions, from Ica the Hatajo reminds the to UNESCO, Ambassador Carlos Herrera Rodríguez, international community that culture is a territory emphasized that this manifestation is a living where differences unite and become shared stories testimony of cultural mestizaje, as it integrates and creativity.

Andean worldview, Catholicism and African memory in a unique synthesis. Likewise, he highlighted its value as an expression of historical resistance, social cohesion and intergenerational transmission of knowledge—elements that justify its global relevance (Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Peru, 2025).

At the same time, the coincidence with Afro-Peruvian Culture Month allowed the tradition to be linked with national commemorations, especially with the centenary of the birth of Nicomedes Santa Cruz, poet and decimista who symbolizes the Afro-descendant contribution to Peruvian culture (Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Peru, 2025).

Thus, the presence of the Hatajo de Negritos and Pallitas in forums such as UNESCO transcends the artistic plane, for it represents an opportunity to strengthen intercultural dialogue at the global level, make visible the participation of Afro-descendant communities in national and international narratives and reaffirm that diversity is an essential element of our identity.

VI. Final reflections The Hatajo de Negritos and Pallitas should not be seen only as a festive ritual of Peru’s south coast, but as a lesson in the transformative power of dialogue and cultural diversity. The synthesis of these three heritages—Andean, African and European— constitutes a living manifestation of cultural friendship between Peru and Africa, forged through adversity; but transformed into resilience, creativity and spirituality.

This richness explains why UNESCO inscribed it in 2019 on the Representative List of the Intangible

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Photograph presented in the exhibition “Hatajo de Negritos and Pallitas, Afro-Andean Heritage of Peru” Photographer: Milena CarranzaUNESCO, 2025

References Andina. (18 de Diciembre de 2019). Peru's diplomatic mission thanks UNESCO for recognizing AfroPeruvian dances. Bogotá, Colombia. Obtenido de https://andina.pe/ingles/noticia-perus-diplomaticm i s s i o n - t h a n k s - u n e s c o - f o r- r e c o g n i z i n g afroperuvian-dances-778660.aspx Ministerio de Cultura. (2012). El hatajo para el niño [Documental]. (c. l. Dirección de Patrimonio Inmaterial Contemporáneo, Ed., & R. Chocano, Recopilador) Lima. Obtenido de http://repositorio.cultura.gob.pe/ handle/CULTURA/1524 Ministerio de Cultura del Perú. (2019). Nomination file No. 01309: Hatajo de Negritos and Hatajo de Pallitas from the Peruvian south-central coastline (Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage, Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultura. París: United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization UNESCO. Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores del Perú. (06 de Junio de 2025). Nota Informativa 536-25: Exposición “Hatajo de Negritos y Pallitas, Herencia afro-andina del Perú”. Lima, Perú. Obtenido de https://www.gob. pe/institucion/rree/noticias/1183034-exposicionhatajo-de-negritos-y-pallitas-herencia-afroandina-del-peru-en-la-sede-de-la-unesco Palma Quiroz, T. R. (2015). Carta 0130900009 Solicitud de trámite para reconocimiento del Hatajo de Negritos y las Pallitas como Patrimonio Inmaterial de la Humanidad. El Carmen, Ica, Peru: Centro Poblado "El Guayabo". Obtenido de https://ich.unesco.org/ doc/src/35805.pdf Tompkins, W. D. (2011). Hatajo de negritos. En Las tradiciones musicales de los negros de la costa del Perú. (págs. 158-166). Lima: Centro de Música y Danza de la Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú CEMDUC. UNESCO. (2019). Decision of the Intergovernmental Committee of the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage: 14.COM 10.B.29.

Bogotá: Organización de las Naciones Unidas para la Educación, la Ciencia y la Cultura - UNESCO. Viceministerio de Patrimonio Cultural e Industrias Culturales. (2012). Resolución Viceministerial Nro. 035-2012-VMPCIC-MC. Lima: Ministerio de Cultura del Perú. Obtenido de https://ich.unesco.org/doc/ src/35801.pdf

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The Hatajo of Negritos and Pallitas Source: Truth of the People

ARTICLE 9

"LIKE LOVE, TRUTH IS INCLUSIVE": THE HISTORIES BY KERRY JAMES MARSHALL

Jimy Trujillo Chuquihuaccha Second Secretary in the Diplomatic Service of the Republica

was arrested for refusing to give up her seat to a white man on a segregated bus. From then on, his childhood unfolded amid the civil rights movement, whose epicenter was precisely in that southern state. By 1963, just one year after the Watts riots, his family moved to that same neighborhood, located near the local branch of the Black Panther Party in Los Angeles.

During his school years, when he had already shown interest in painting, he found inspiration in Russell L. Adams’s Great Negroes: Past and Present, which would later lead him to devote his life to art. In that iconic publication, the chapter dedicated to the work of Charles W. White—a painter whose murals and drawings portray the daily life of the Black Kerry James Marshall Source: Thoughtco community—deeply moved the young artist. And, as if destiny had kept its promise, Marshall had the Since September 20, the Royal Academy of Arts in privilege of studying at the Otis Art Institute—later London has been celebrating the work of Kerry James renamed the Otis College of Art and Design—under Marshall with the largest retrospective ever dedicated the mentorship and friendship of that very pioneer of to an African American artist in Europe: The Histories.

African American painting.

The monumental exhibition, which brings together seventy of his most outstanding and vivid works, Given this background, it is no surprise that Marshall offers an inclusive reading of the representation of would come to conceive of painting from a challenging the Black figure within the Western artistic canon. perspective. Although artistic trends in the 1970s From the stark period of the Middle Passage to leaned toward conceptualism, with remnants of the struggle for civil rights in the United States, the pop and abstract art, the painter chose a classical concept of Blackness stands as the protagonist of approach. In the words of noted critic Eddy Frankel this visual narrative.

(2025), through the language of classicism, Marshall is able to elevate the everyday—the fundamentally The symbolic journey through nearly five decades of Black—to the level of great masters such as Jacquesthe artist’s career represents a unique opportunity Louis David or Diego Velázquez. to discover—and in some cases, rediscover—a painter whose political commitment has evolved into An example of this is the painting De Style (1993), an aesthetic project capable of inserting the Black which adopts the monumental format of pharaonic experience into the exclusive margins of art history. artists such as Delacroix, Rubens, or Géricault, but to In this sense, his pictorial reflection makes visible depict an apparently ordinary scene: a neighborhood histories and identities systematically ignored, barbershop. Marshall demonstrates that African offering a dialogue between the past and present of American everyday life can, through visual art, attain the African diaspora. the symbolic grandeur once reserved for key moments of universal history and biblical passages (Frankel, 2025). His work grants an aura of exceptionality to Kerry James Marshall was born in Birmingham, the common, elevating the Black experience to a Alabama, in 1955, the same year Rosa Parks plane of universal recognition.

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This would not be possible without the unifying element in his paintings: the uniform blackness of the figures represented. To achieve this, the American painter uses three types of black: carbon black, originally derived from soot; Mars black, obtained from iron oxide; and ivory black, made from burnt bone. Thus, the color black in his works acquires an absolute value, without the need to be mixed with white. As has been explained, “the idea behind these paintings is that blackness is non-negotiable […] They are black to show that blackness can have complexity, depth, and richness” (cited in Mason, 2016).

controversy, such as slavery and the independence processes in Sub-Saharan Africa. In this way, his painting is also conceived as an open interrogation of how “official” history has been presented.

In his new series titled Africa Revisited, the central element of the exhibition, the artist portrays those African leaders and traders who participated in the transatlantic slave trade. A theme that, although widely studied by historians, has been largely absent from visual arts representation (D’Souza, 2025). With no intention of provoking controversy, the artist proposes an objective gaze upon these historical events, inviting viewers to reflect on the contradictions inherent in every human group.

In this regard, art dealer David Zwirner (2025) highlights Abduction of Olaudah and His Sister (2023), a work that reinterprets the kidnapping of Olaudah Equiano (1745–1797)—one of the first abolitionists and the only person of that century to narrate his life as a slave in the American colonies— and his sister, which took place in the village of Essaka, in present-day Nigeria. In this piece, the lush jungle setting directly contrasts with the sinister act occurring within it. Anachronistically, the kidnappers wear modern clothing, suggesting the persistence of similar events in contemporary times.

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De Style, 1993. Acrylic and collage on unstretched canvas (264.2 × 309.9 cm)

Source: Artsy

This would not be possible without the unifying element in his paintings: the uniform blackness of the figures represented. To achieve this, the American painter uses three types of black: carbon black, originally derived from soot; Mars black, obtained from iron oxide; and ivory black, made from burnt bone. Thus, the color black in his works acquires an absolute value, without the need to be mixed with white. As has been explained, “the idea behind these paintings is that blackness is non-negotiable […] They are black to show that blackness can have complexity, depth, and richness” (cited in Mason, 2016).

However, it would be unfair to confine Marshall strictly to the realm of aesthetic vindication when his work also serves as a demonstration of historical inclusion.

Throughout his career, the visual interpreter has delved into the records of African collective memory, allowing himself to address subjects not devoid of

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Abduction of Olaudah and His Sister, 2023. Acrylic on PVC panel Source: Davidzwirne

Six for One, 2024. Acrylic on PVC panel (220.3 × 321 cm) Source: Davidzwirne

In the same way, in Six for One (2024), Marshall draws upon a note found in the diary of a European slave trader: “They used to give 12 men for one horse. Now they only want to give 6.” In this scene, a large horse stands prominently in the foreground—presumably acquired in exchange for six people—and is shielded from the scorching sun by a colorful parasol, similar to those that appeared in nineteenth-century depictions of bourgeois leisure. The artist chooses to address the theme of the slave trade indirectly, shifting his focus toward the social transformations this condemnable practice brought about within African society (Zwirner, 2025).

It is no exaggeration to state that each piece in this exhibition expands the history of art by incorporating the Black figure into its strict canons. Histories, therefore, not only consecrates the career of one of the great Master of History painting but also reaffirms the enduring presence of Africa and its diaspora within universal culture. The work of Kerry James Marshall stands as a vivid reminder that the past, far from healing, remains alive within our collective journey as a human species.

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References D’Souza, A. (2025, 25 de septiembre). Kerry James Marshall on making ‘the paintings nobody else is making’. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes. com/2025/09/25/arts/design/kerry-jamesmarshall-royal-academy-london-art-museum.html Frankel, E. (2025, 22 de septiembre). ‘My paintings don’t fit the narrative’: Kerry James Marshall on why he’s depicting black enslavers. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2025/ sep/22/kerry-james-marshall-royal-academyblack-enslavers-america Mason, W. (2016, 17 de octubre). Kerry James Marshall is shifting the color of art history. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/17/ t-magazine/kerry-james-marshall-artist.html Zwirner, D. (2025). Kerry James Marshall. Africa Revisited. David Zwirner. https://www.davidzwirner. com/kerry-james-marshall-africa-revisited

GOAT WITH BEANS INGREDIENTS: - Goat meat (any cut)

- Corn beer vinegar (chicha de jora vinegar)

- Whole coriander

- Ground annatto (achiote)

- Green onions

- Vegetable oil

- Loche squash

For the beans:

- “Ají escabeche” (yellow chili pepper)

- Water

- Garlic cloves

- Brown or pinto beans

- Pepper and salt to taste

- Pork rind or pork belly

PREPARATION: Cut the goat meat into pieces and marinate it with chicha de jora vinegar, salt, pepper, chopped garlic, chopped coriander, chopped green onions, grated loche squash, and chopped ají escabeche. Mix everything well and let it rest for 10 minutes.

In a pot, heat some oil with ground annatto and add the marinated meat. Cook over low heat for 45 minutes.

For the beans: Place the beans in a pot with 1½ liters of water. Once they are cooked, add the chopped pork rind or pork belly and salt to taste. Let it boil for about two hours.

Separately, fry some garlic and add it to the cooked beans. Let it simmer over low heat for another 10 minutes. Serve the goat with rice and beans.

Recommendation: Any part of the goat can be used, but the ribs or leg provide the best flavor.

For quicker cooking, soak the beans the day before.

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CUMANANA L – OCTOBER – 2025 Editorial Board Amb. Jorge A. Raffo Carbajal Min. Marco Antonio Santiváñez Pimentel M.C. Eduardo F. Castañeda Garaycochea

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