|
Cultural Policy in Lithuania
National Report, European Review Programme of National Cultural Development Policies
Council for Cultural Co-operation, 1997, 185 pp.
Report of a European Panel of Examiners
by Bill Dufton, Council for Cultural Co-operation, 1997, 98 pp.
The Report Cultural Policy in Lithuania is an attempt to characterize and evaluate the state cultural policy in various spheres of culture and art, with special reference to -
- the legal, financial and administrative means employed by the state for the expansion of culture;
- the changes in various spheres of culture and art, the structure of institutions, the characteristic tendencies that have emerged, and the results produced by government measures;
- the cultural decentralization process, the effectiveness of the decision-making mechanism, the accessibility of culture to the public and its participation in the processes of culture;
- the support for artistic creation and artists, as well as the principal measures employed.
The main focus of the Report is the period between 1990 and 1995, since the developments in the most recent years - the post-communist transition period - are seen as more important for an overview of the Lithuanian cultural policy.
The Report consists of twelve chapters, dealing with topics such as the organizational structure and implementation of state cultural policy in Lithuania (Chapter IV), financing and the results of support to cultural institutions (Ch. VII), cultural heritage - a traditionally dominant field in Lithuanian culture (Ch. VIII), and data on the cultural activity of amateurs, an area in which Lithuania has a long and well-developed tradition (Ch. IX).
Report by the European Panel of Examiners
The Examiners stressed several needs for the Lithuanian cultural policy, such as the modernization of the cultural institutions and networks, understanding of the economic importance of the arts and cultural activities, paying greater attention to the role of professional artists in an open society, asserting diversity and encouraging new ways of working, and bringing all members of the community into the emerging market for cultural goods and services.
With these needs provided, the 'Lithuanian model of cultural policy' should become operational as a tool for integration, diversity and innovation, as well as for continuity and authenticity.
A set of recommendations presented at the end of the Examiners' Report is seen as a contribution to the debate on the direction of cultural policy in Lithuania.
For more information, please contact: Council of Europe, Cultural Policy and Action Division, F-67075 Strasbourg Cedex, France, fax: +33 3 88 41 37 82.
Cultural Policy in Croatia
National Report, European Review Programme of National Cultural Development Policies
Council for Cultural Co-operation, 1998, 294 pp.
Report of a European Panel of Examiners
by Charles Landry, Council for Cultural Co-operation, 1998, 64 pp.
The National Report presents a critical overview that does not conceal any problems and difficulties in the field of culture (and not only culture) that stand in the way of future cultural development in a transitional country that aims to be recognized as Central European/Mediterranean, but also offers an evaluation of the possible steps to be taken in making this goal achievable.
A comprehensive Introduction opens the Report, followed by the chapters on Cultural Policy (including topics like Legal and Organizational Framework, Financing, Decentralization, Privatization, etc.), Cultural Activities and Cultural Industries (embracing all cultural sectors, including the media), Cultural Heritage (monuments, archives, libraries and museums), Internal and International Cultural Relations (including a contribution on the minorities), and a chapter with the Conclusions, depicting the situation with regard to cultural issues in Croatia today and showing the prospects of an imaginable course of cultural development of the country.
Report by the European Panel of Examiners
The Examiners' Report, entitled 'From Barriers to Bridges - Reimagining Croatian Cultural Policy', stresses the idea shared by all of the members of the expert team that Croatia's main objective should be not economic growth but cultural development. The idea is elaborated in the chapters on 'Moving Culture Center-stage' and 'The Opportunity for Croatia', where the concepts taken from the UNESCO report 'Our Cultural Diversity' and the Council of Europe's 'In from the Margins' are applied, inviting the Croatian decision-makers to support the following themes for cultural development:
- Croatia: Cultural crossroads,
- Tourism in culture: Reinventing cultural tourism in Croatia, and
- Investing in Croatian creativity.
Preferring the strategic approach rather than one more narrowly directed towards the micro-details of each cultural sector, the Examiners focused on recommendations and proposals that could have the biggest impact in Croatia over time, having in mind the mentioned concept of 'putting culture centre-stage'.
For more information, please contact: Council of Europe, Cultural Policy and Action Division, F-67075 Strasbourg Cedex, France, fax: +33 3 88 41 37 82, or
Institute for International Relations, Ul. Lj. F. Vukotinovica 2, P.O.Box 303, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia, tel.: +385 1 45 54 522; fax: +385 1 48 28 361; e-mail: clink@irmo.hr
European Cultural Routes / Les itinéraires culturels européens
Council of Europe Publishing, Strasbourg, 1998, 73 pp.
The Council of Europe has published European Cultural Routes/Les itinéraires culturels européens, a richly illustrated book presenting a collection of twelve brief articles by experts in the field, describing the main features of each cultural route established by the Council for Cultural Co-operation of the Council of Europe. The Cultural Routes project, started in 1987, revives the famous routes which in the Middle Ages channelled pilgrims from various parts of Europe to Santiago de Campostela. Through advocating travel, the cultural routes promote a set of basic values such as freedom, human rights, tolerance, interculturalism, and yearning for knowledge.
To obtain the book, please contact: Council of Europe Publishing, F-67075 Strasbourg Cedex, France, tel.: 33 3 88 41 25 81; fax: 33 3 88 41 39 10; e-mail: publishing@coe.fr
VAT and Book Policy Impacts and Issues
Study prepared for the Cultural Policies Research and Development Unit by François Rouet, Council of Europe, 1997, 53 pp.
The Council of Europe has published a provisional version of a study prepared for the Cultural Policies Research and Development Unit by Mr. François Rouet, entitled VAT and Book Policy Impacts and Issues. Value-added tax is often regarded as the most modern and successfully conceived form of indirect contribution to the public purse, which finances all economic, social and cultural policies of public authorities. This fiscal instrument has spread rapidly, extending, since the early nineties, with specific national fiscal approaches, to the countries of Central and Eastern Europe. However, on the eve of the economic and monetary integration within the European Union, greater fiscal harmonisation is necessary.
The report examines how VAT applies to cultural goods and services, particularly to books, explaining how the preferential status (a reduced VAT rate) impacts the specific functions of books in national cultural policies. The new products and services for content delivery being developed today (CD-ROMs, on-line services, etc.) compete with books, shifting them to new socio-economic grounds - the field of information and communications. The report analyzes why and how the VAT rate on books, kept as low as possible, brings out the contradictory character of the relationship between culture and economics within the European context.
To obtain the study, please contact: Cultural Policy and Action Division, Council of Europe, F-67075 Strasbourg Cedex, France, tel.: +33 3 88 41 28 84; fax: +33 3 88 41 37 82.
|
