Spain and Chile open a new phase of cultural collaboration in the field of democratic memory

The Minister for Culture, Ernest Urtasun, during the signing with Chile's Minister for Culture, Arts, and Heritage, Carolina Arredondo

The Minister for Culture, Ernest Urtasun, has travelled to Chile as part of the Ninth Ibero-American Congress of Culture and the meeting of the Cultural and Creative Industries Market, MIC Chile 2025, where Spain is the Guest of Honour. This trip opens a new stage of cultural cooperation with Chile, which focuses on democratic memory, cultural rights, ecological transition and diversity.

With the aim of strengthening ties between Spain and Chile and building a common agenda based on memory, human rights and the transformative value of culture, Urtasun and the Chilean Minister for Culture, Arts and Heritage, Carolina Arredondo, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding on 'Memory and Culture', at the Pereira Palace in Santiago de Chile.

This agreement establishes a collaboration framework for the next five years, and reinforces a shared history marked by exile, solidarity and the defence of democratic values, recognising Spain and Chile as cultural and democratic allies.

In this sense, Urtasun defines the agreement as "an act of democratic responsibility, a political, cultural and ethical commitment to our shared history, and a tribute to the memory of those who, in Chile and in Spain, defended freedom, justice and dignity. Therefore, this agreement stems from the deep conviction that culture and memory are inseparable."

The document focuses on cooperation between archives and museums in both countries, especially those that hold collections related to repression, social movements, and human rights struggles.

The aim is to contribute to institutional strengthening through the exchange of best practices and methodologies, with collaboration between professionals and researchers in the field of heritage, archives and museology.

The main objectives of the agreement include the exchange of digital copies of documents relevant to the history of repression and democratic resistance in both countries. Joint research and dissemination projects on historical memory will also be promoted, as well as cultural and training activities such as exhibitions, seminars, talks and residencies. The Ministry of Culture thus reaffirms its commitment to external cultural action based on cooperation, respect and the active defence of democratic values.

Spain, Guest of Honour

During his trip to Chile, Urtasun took part in the inaugural panel of the Ninth Ibero-American Congress of Culture 2025, entitled 'Artificial Intelligence: Challenges and opportunities'. He also held an informal meeting with cultural authorities from Latin America. The meeting addressed the challenges posed by Artificial Intelligence in artistic and cultural creation and production, the central theme of the Congress, but also one of the axes to be addressed at Mondiacult 2025, the UNESCO World Conference on Cultural Policies and Sustainable Development, to be held in Barcelona from 29 September to 1 October.

Parallel to the Congress, the Chilean Cultural and Creative Industries Market (MIC Chile) is being held, where Spain is the Guest of Honour. The Under-Secretariat of the Ministry of Culture has participated in two round tables with Spanish representatives of the sector to address both the internationalisation of the cultural industries and the new formats in the Spanish creative industries.

Culture and memory

With the recognition of memory as one of the fundamental axes of cultural policies, Urtasun has visited some of the most emblematic spaces of memory in the Chilean capital. On Thursday afternoon he toured the Museum of Memory and Human Rights, inaugurated in 2010 in response to the recommendations made following the Chilean Truth and Reconciliation Commission. He then visited the Estadio Victor Jara Memorial Site, a former site of detention, torture and execution during the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet, which today functions as a community space where human rights are defended and promoted.

As part of this tour through the memory of Chile, this Friday Ernest Urtasun will visit the Violeta Parra Museum, dedicated to the preservation and dissemination of the Chilean artist's legacy, and later he will visit the National Historical Archive, where he will have the opportunity to consult letters from the poet Miguel Hernández, which were brought by the Chilean ambassador to Spain. Finally, he will meet some of the descendants of Spanish refugees from the Spanish Civil War at the Spanish Cultural Centre and learn about their archives project.

Non official translation