María Mercedes García, President of the Organizing Committee, told reporters that renowned world personalities will be in attendance, among them Costa Rican Georgina DeCarli, Director of the Latin American Museum Institute.

Also on hand will be Pier Luigi Petrillo, from the Office on European Affairs at the Italian Ministry of the Environment and Spaniard Pilar Barraca, a member of the Spanish Culture Ministrys Council on Heritage.

During the event, architects, historians, restorers and other experts will debate some 118 papers - 64 of them by foreign delegates" dealing with issues of common interest, such as the illegal trade in cultural heritage, heritage preservation and management and the ethical and legal framework to protect it.

The event will be dedicated to late Cuban intellectual Marta Arjona (1923-2006), to whom the creation of most municipal museums here in Cuba is attributed.

Parallel to the event, some exhibits will be inaugurated, including one at the Ernest Hemingway Museum and another one at the Dance Museum.

The biennial congress, founded in 1992, is sponsored by Cubas National Center for Preservation, Restoration and Museology (CENCREM) and the National Council on Cultural Heritage (CNPC).

(Cubarte)