Anxious and with many questions. This is how the people of Cartagena have been showing themselves for several days regarding how the Independence Festivities will take place this year, following declaring a public calamity due to flooding in the city, in addition to the strong wave of insecurity that has recently occurred.
However, the Mayor’s Office of Cartagena, through the Institute of Heritage and Culture of Cartagena (IPCC), called a meeting to launch the Agenda for the Independence Festivities of November 11, 2022. It may interest you: Photos: they are the 30 candidates for the Reign of Independence 2022
The launch event was held at the Customs Palace, Vicente Martínez room, and was attended by Angélica Blanco Balseiro, current Queen of Independence; Alfonso Arce Morales, Manuel Vargas, Léster González, Regina Guzmán and Luz Marina Ramos, Great Lancers of Independence; and Olga Acosta Amel, Secretary of Education of the District.
And it is that following two years of not living the traditional celebrations, the Independence Festivities will take over the neighborhoods once more.
Next, the official agenda of the 2022 Independence Festivities:
The agenda, which contains more than 20 cultural events around the commemoration of the independence struggle, will start on October 7 with the launch of the Fiestas in the Plaza de la Aduana.
Within the massive events, the traditional preludes stand out in the 3 locations of the District, the Jolgorio de Tambores and the Noche de Candela, the Tribute to the Heroes of Independence and the Folkloric Parade of Independence.
The bembé was formed!, slogan of the Holidays
According to the IPCC, “the ‘bembé’ is a ritual of African origin characterized by the beating of drums. It is a festival of the Orisha sect in Yoruba mythology.
“It was historically a religious festival of the African ethnic groups, who kept their families settled on the outskirts of the bateyes of the sugar mills, sugar cane colonies and coffee farms in Cuba, manufacturing their bohíos with the authorization of the owners.
“The ‘bembé’ becomes a pachanga, an outdoor party with a lot of percussion. It is an invitation to Cartagena to enjoy, dance to the sound of drums, sing and enjoy their Fiestas”.
What does the manager say?
When asked regarding the controversy over whether or not to hold the Independence Day in 2022, the director of the IPCC, Óscar Uriza, told El Universal:
The Fiestas are aimed so that “art, heritage and culture are engines of development and agents of social cohesion within the framework of something that identifies us, which is Cartagena. We are going to enjoy the November festivities, the Independence Festival with all the people of Cartagena, in healthy peace and harmony”.