Venus Fouad questions the state of Egypt's cultural policy, and what changes need to be made Now that we are turning a new page in the history of this country, what do we do about our cultural institutions? Do we overhaul them, add to them, deduct from them, or alter their course? This issue was raised in a recent seminar on "The Policies and Direction of Egypt's Cultural Organisations". The seminar, held at the Saad Zaghlul Cultural Centre, was attended by Emad Abu Ghazi, former minister of culture, Salah El-Meligi, chief of the Ministry of Culture's Fine Arts Sector and Heba Sharif, director of Pro Helvetia Cairo. In the course of the event questions were raised concerning the new strategies we should adopt with regard to culture, the improved communication between cultural institutions and individual artists, and the prospects for a more active cultural scene in the current atmosphere of freedom. Salah El-Meligi spoke about the changes that had taken place since the revolution, noting that many museums had to close down for security reasons. Egyptian museums, he added, lacked one of the most important features of museums worldwide, which was the presence of competent curators able to operate as a cultural conduit between the exhibits and the public. According to Meligi, the job of the museum is not just to display pieces or protect heritage. Its main role is to propagate interest in various aspects of cultural history and trends. Egyptian museums, Meligi said, would reopen once the situation improved. Until that time the ministry would use some of the museums as venues for cultural events. Heba Sharif then spoke of the role of non-profit organisations in supporting cultural projects. Explaining the manner in which the Swiss cultural organisation Pro Helvetia operated, Sharif said that Egypt could draw on the experience of other countries as it sought to restructure its cultural institutions. Pro Helvetia is a Swiss organisation engaged in supporting non-commercial endeavours by individual artists, critics and curators. Although it is part of the government, it is free to design its own policy, and submits its programme to the Swiss parliament for approval on a periodical basis. Pro Helvetia, Sharif pointed out, acted in keeping with the overall policy of the State rather than the policies of the specific government in power. Its policies are formulated by artists, critics, politicians, and economists acting in unison to produce a plan every three years or so. Generally speaking, Pro Helvetia aims to remove the obstacles facing cultural creativity while supporting heritage and diversity. The organisation is also active in supporting artists, providing opportunities for the public to enjoy the arts and promoting art education. One of the main endeavours of Pro Helvetia is to offer artists' residencies to foreign artists. To maintain transparency, it is possible for artists to apply online through the organisation's website. In the ensuing debate several questions surfaced, most prominently whether Egypt has a declared cultural policy and who makes it. Is our cultural policy a component of the state's overall policies? Is it drawn according to local or international considerations? Are economists given a say in the financial aspects of that policy? Are there criteria for supporting independent artists? These questions were addressed by former Minister Abu Ghazi, who said that when the State-run cultural institutions came into existence, albeit in a different form, 200 years or so ago, they were designed to educate the public on all matters artistic. These organisations were considered a cornerstone in Egypt's 19th-century bid to become a modern state. Among the earliest cultural institutions were the national museum, the national archives, the national library and the government's printing house. Most became affiliated to what was once called the Ministry of Knowledge (or wezaret al-maaref in Arabic). Prior to 1952, some of the privately-run organisations, such as the Society for the Lovers of Fine Arts, used to be influential in formulating public policy in the field of arts, Abu Ghazi pointed out. At some point, however, these societies were eclipsed by the State, and some were assimilated into the Ministry of Social and Internal Affairs (wezaret al-sho'oun al-egtima'ia wa al-dakhilia). After the 1952 Revolution the State expanded its involvement in culture and ended up controlling some of the independent cultural organisations, including the Fine Arts School, which was subsumed in the Ministry of General Knowledge (wezaret el-maaref el-omoumia). The scene, Abu Ghazi added, had changed somewhat in the past 20 years owing to the increased vitality of civil society groups and their heightened interest in the arts, as well as to the support given to them by foreign donors. Nor should one forget the role that for-profit organisations played in shaping the cultural scene, Abu Ghazi pointed out. Publishers, film production companies and music producers all had an influence on the country's cultural direction During the last century key Egyptian intellectuals and politicians wrote about the country's cultural policy. One such work was Rifaah El-Tahtawi's book The Faithful Guide for Girls and Boys (al-morshed al-amin li al-banat wa al-banin). Another was Yaaqub Artin's The final Word in Public Education (al-qawl al-tam fi al-taalim al-am), which was followed by Taha Hussein's The Future of Culture in Egypt (mostaqbal al-thaqafa fi masr). After the Ministry of Culture was created in 1958, more authoritative works on the nature of culture policies were written. Tharwat Okasha wrote two such works, Badr el-Din Abu Ghazi wrote one and Farouq Hosni wrote three. Since its formation in 1980 the job of formulating the country's cultural policy has been left to the Higher Council of Culture. The latter's reports, Abu Ghazi said, tended to be run-of-the-mill and were not usually communicated to the public. To sum up, Abu Ghazi called for a more democratic manner of managing cultural activities, saying that the State must encourage cultural diversity and defend the right of creativity and expression. "We must abandon the notion that the Ministry of Culture is for intellectuals alone," Abu Ghazi said. "There is a need to form alternative institutions to support cultural activities and stimulate cooperation among various cultural groups. "Egypt clearly needs to draw a clear-cut cultural policy, one that I hope would draw on the experience of other countries and on their successes in supporting individual artists. I am not saying that what's good for Switzerland is automatically applicable in Egypt. But there is much to learn from the energy, transparency, and open-mindedness of other nations."
