Arts and culture are an inherent part of understanding and conveying what it means to be human and how we perceive the world we inhabit. Evidence that the arts are an intrinsic part of human nature goes back tens of thousands of years. In repressive regimes, freedom of expression through the arts is often one of the first targets for restriction, acknowledging how effectively the arts can convey and document the truth about political, social and human conditions. The establishment and enforcement of the rule of law is essential to assure artists of their individual free expression rights as well as to protect the intellectual property rights of artists.