Today El Tribunal de les Aïgues de la Vega officially informed the Rector of the University of Valencia, Mª Vicenta Mestre, of this status. This communicate was made during the meeting of the monitoring committee of the agreement between both institutions to organise different commemorative events. The events will take place in 2019 in honour of El Tribunal de les Aïgues of València, which was declared UNESCO intangible Cultural Heritage on 30th of September of 2009.

The Rector Mª Vicenta Mestre; the Vice-President of El Tribunal de les Aïgues, Francisco Almenar; the Vice-Principal for Territorial Projection and Society, Jorge Hermosilla; the jurists Javier Pastor and Francisco Bernat; and the secretary of El Tribunal de les Aïgues, Mª José Olmos attended the meeting.  

The Rector highlighted the historical importance of El Tribunal de les Aïgues and she affirmed, ‘For me it is such a honour receiving this high status, which I understand as a status for the whole Universitat de València and its long trajectory over the years.’ Mestre underlined the relevance of the collaboration among the Universitat de València and the social institutions, and she reminded that the Universitat de València was founded 520 yeas ago with the purpose of being at the service of the Valencian society.

The meeting has helped to continue with the design of the programme of activities and commemorative events which will take place in 2019 in honour of El Tribunal de les Aïgues.  The Universitat de València, through the tendering of Vice-Principal for Territorial Projection and Society, will carry out tasks of technical Assistance Offices related to these initiatives.

The university, El Tribunal de les Aïgues and other institutions will take part in the organisation of different activities, among which the 3rd International Conference of the Global Network Of Water Museums (WaMu-NET) and the day of “El Tribunal de les Aïgues de la Vega of València”, which will be celebrated from 12 to 15 of June, stand out.  In the meeting they talked about the organisation of a dozen formative days in the Valencian Community, which will be celebrated over 2019 with the purpose that the Valencian society knows more and better El Tribunal de les Aïgues and the importance of Valencian water landscapes.

El Tribunal de les Aïgues de la Vega of València is currently the oldest justice institution in Europe. Although the precise origin is unknown and it is thought that it dates back to the Roman Empire, the most extended hypothesis attributes its foundation to The Caliphate of Córdoba, more than one thousand years ago.  

Its function is to settle the disputes caused by the irrigation water among farmers of the irrigation community of the ditches from which are constituted:  Ditches from Quart, Benàger i Faitanar, Tormos, Mislata, Mestalla, Favara, Rascanya and Rovella.  The set of these ditches constitutes the called Vega of València, over which the Court has jurisdiction. They all, together with the ditch called la Séquia Reial de Montcada, which has another jurisdiction, shape L’Horta de València (the Valencian Orchard).  Since 1st of October of 2009 it appears on the list of UNESCO Intangible Heritage.