Remember Nemanja

The Ministry of Culture and Information presented to the public the Draft Law on Amendments to the Law on Culture, five public hearings were held, representatives of art associations, cultural institutions and individuals stated and explained why those proposals were wrong, the Ministry publicly promised to consider all objections and take them seriously and - nothing.

Two months have passed since then. No one mentions the changes to the Law on Culture anymore. The Ministry's silence is understandable, they said what they had and now they just need to pack it all up and send it to the Government for adoption, but it would be expected that those who care about the changes mentioned will try to change and implement them.

The most prominent among them concerns the National Council for Culture. The Ministry proposed that the NKS be re-established, which was welcomed considering that the mandate of the previous convocation expired five years ago, but also that instead of 19 members - representatives of representative art associations, the University of Arts, SANU and cultural institutions, in the future there will be seven members and that at the choice of the Government. Until now, they were elected by the National Assembly. The transfer of competence from the National Assembly to the Government was also proposed for the adoption of the Culture Development Strategy of the Republic of Serbia. The adoption of this proposal would bring about two changes: the abolition of the independence of the NKS from the executive branch and the removal of society from the process of cultural development.

Why, when it is necessary to decide on culture, is the Government suddenly more authoritative than the Assembly? Is it because Prime Minister Ana Brnabić gained experience in that area through the Council for Creative Industries? Or because the Minister of Culture, Maja Gojković, is also the Deputy Prime Minister?

A more important answer than these is the one to the question - why the public is silent. Even the part of it that is directly affected by the legal changes is silent. They act as if it was enough that they warned at the public debate that the proposed changes to the Law could have far-reaching consequences for culture, so there is no need for more and more. Why is there no need? Because experience tells them that even the public discussion was just a simulation in order to gain legitimacy for the changes that will be adopted in any case? Or do they believe that the Ministry will correct its proposals based on their suggestions?

Maybe they will, maybe Minister Gojković will show that she works for the benefit of culture this time as well. But somehow all this reminds of examples when the professional and interested public reacted regarding the fountain on Slavija, the monument to Stefan Nemanja and the Republic Square in Belgrade, only after they were completed.