Kuwait’s French-speaking community is a cultural asset worth celebrating, says Swiss envoy
- ‘Be proud of your language’: Swiss ambassador champions cultural diversity in Kuwait
- One world, many languages, Ambassador Balmelli calls for protecting cultural identity
Swiss Ambassador to Kuwait H.E. Dr. Tiziano Balmelli has praised the strong presence of the French language in Kuwait, stressing the importance of protecting linguistic and cultural diversity and expanding opportunities for people to engage with different cultures.
Ambassador Balmelli said Switzerland was proud to be part of the international Francophone community and was keen to work with other member countries of the International Organisation of La Francophonie to strengthen the use of French in Kuwait through cultural activities and opportunities for communication.
Speaking on the sidelines of a screening of the Swiss film Tambour Battant at his residence as part of the Francophone Month celebrations in Kuwait, the ambassador said preserving cultural and linguistic diversity had become increasingly important amid a global trend towards the dominance of a single language.
He stressed that every language and culture deserved recognition and protection, particularly Arabic and Kuwaiti culture, which he said should remain a source of pride for the local community.
The Swiss envoy described the film, although relatively recent, as a story set in the 1970s that humorously portrays rivalry between residents of two villages in the Swiss mountains. He said its theme reflected universal human experiences, including love, competition and everyday disagreements between neighbours.
Explaining Switzerland’s relationship with the French language, Ambassador Balmelli said French had a long-standing historical and cultural place in the country and was one of its national and official languages. Switzerland was therefore proud of its membership in the wider Francophone family.
He said the Swiss Embassy in Kuwait considered cooperation with other Francophone countries a natural way to promote French and broaden its presence in the country.
On the contribution of Francophone activities to intercultural dialogue, the ambassador said cultural diversity must be actively protected and developed, particularly as the world increasingly moves towards the use of a single language. The coexistence of different languages and cultures, he noted, was an essential part of humanity’s collective wealth.
Ambassador Balmelli said the choice of Tambour Battant was intended to offer audiences an entertaining introduction to Swiss culture. The comedy depicts competition between two neighbouring mountain villages, exploring relationships and conflicts that are familiar across societies, regardless of geographical or cultural differences.
He added that the embassy wanted to offer audiences an enjoyable cultural experience at a time of growing geopolitical tensions and international pressures.
Assessing Kuwait’s interest in French, Balmelli said he was impressed by the language’s strong presence in the country, pointing to hundreds of qualified French-language teachers and thousands of citizens and residents who speak it.
He described this as a positive and distinctive feature of Kuwait’s cultural landscape and said Switzerland was proud to support its continued development. The embassy intends to organise further French-language and cultural activities in the coming months, creating more opportunities for interaction and introducing audiences to Swiss culture.
On the role of diplomatic missions in promoting cultural understanding, Balmelli said embassies and official institutions played a complementary role, while citizens, civil society organisations, the private sector and other community groups remained the main drivers of cultural and social activities.
He said hosting cultural evenings at diplomatic residences helped support these wider efforts by bringing people together, encouraging the exchange of experiences and providing opportunities to discover different cultures.
Delivering his central message, Balmelli urged people in Kuwait to take pride in their Arabic language and Kuwaiti and local culture, while remaining open to other languages and traditions.
“We are all members of the human family, but we speak different languages and belong to different cultures,” he said, stressing that this diversity was a source of beauty for humanity and the world and called for preserving this cultural richness and passing it on to future generations.
