A/HRC/58/60 77. Various stakeholders may have an interest in the digitalization of cultural heritage, ranging from source and heritage communities, public bodies, museums and libraries, teachers and academics, and private companies. Such parties do not all have the same level of rights in terms of digitalization. The Special Rapporteur emphasizes the need for source communities to be given the first say in decision-making regarding the digitalization of their heritage. For example, if the source community is an Indigenous People, it will have the right to free, prior and informed consent derived from the right to self-determination. Minorities must be guaranteed effective participation. The heritage community will have more of a say than a private company, the aim of which is not necessarily the protection of heritage but economic benefits. 78. Digitalization is not a neutral exercise. Attention should be paid to ensuring that it does not perpetuate historical bias and prejudice, maintain power structures or decontextualize cultural heritage. 79. Participation is an essential prerequisite of the right to heritage and cultural rights. It is a right that must be enjoyed by all, at different levels and in different ways. The various elements of participation must continuously be reflected upon and re-evaluated at all phases of the digitalization process, as well as after the item has been digitalized. Source and heritage communities must also participate in sharing the benefits of digitalization processes. 80. Maintaining open access to cultural heritage is an important element of the right of everyone to heritage. However, open access must not lead to less control on the part of the original source community to the benefit of the commercial interests of the owners of digital copies of the heritage. 81. To this end, intellectual property regimes must adopt a cultural rights approach as a matter of urgency. Although some specific initiatives may bring positive results, unless and until the intellectual property systems address holistically and coherently the limitations of copyright in digitalization, intellectual property will not ensure the non-violation of cultural rights. 82. States must prioritize investments in financial, human and technological resources to address key challenges, including ethical practices, cultural sovereignty and the meaningful participation of source and heritage communities. 83. The digital divide remains a significant barrier, particularly for marginalized communities who often lack access to digital resources and technologies and whose heritage may be excluded from digitization efforts. Careful attention must be given to this infrastructure to ensure that local, heritage and Indigenous communities are adequately consulted and that digitalization efforts respect their protocols, priorities and the meaning they convey to their heritage assets. 84. To ensure culturally diverse and inclusive digital heritage repositories and collections, Governments, public and private cultural institutions and professionals in the field of digitalization should: (a) Adopt a cultural rights perspective that respects source and heritage communities’ authority over their heritage; (b) Identify and involve diverse teams representing the various source communities from which the materials originate; (c) Ensure that all individuals have meaningful participation in the various elements and phases of digitalization on the basis of their interests and their different roles; (d) Ensure that Indigenous communities be accorded free, prior and informed consent in all matters that affect them in the digitalizing of cultural heritage; (e) Expand funding for community support and align open access efforts with key actors; (f) Ensure broad accessibility for all, including by diversifying the languages represented online to explain and contextualize heritage assets; GE.25-01705 19