European Capitals of Culture

At last, the much expected decision has been taken and the new members will be able to take part in this highly popular community cultural action. On 26 January, at the meeting of the Committee on culture, youth, education, the media and sport of the European Parliament a document was submitted by the Commission. The document proposed to amend the Council decision 1419/1999/EC and extend the programme to the countries that join the Union on 1 May. It also referred to a later amendment to include Bulgaria and Romania.

The essence of the change is in the annex of the Council decision, which will look like this:

Note: The information on 2007-2008 was added after the Council meeting at the end of May.

A few months earlier we put on the web a writing on the theme, sour about east and central Europe being left out. (The inclusion of Cracow and Prague in 2000 was not exactly the same thing.) One subtitle asked Wroclaw, cultural capital in 2008? As we see in the table, our expectation was one year too early. From point of view of principle it does not matter that the first title goes to neighbour Lithuania. BO feels satisfaction.

The document recalls the very appropriate recommendation in the original 1999 decision whereby "a linkage between the programmes of the designated cities of the same year should be made".

It must be noted that for long (and maybe even today) the decision is formally not yet taken. BO first learned from kind rumours about the develoments that the document describes the following way: "This proposed amendment was prepared with the full cooperation of the Member States and the accession countries, which were able to express their preferences during an informal consultation exercise launched by the Commission among the new States during 2003." Although the proposal dates from 17 November, we could first read it by way of the ENCATC newsletter. Unless you know the exact source you will have a hell of a time before you find it on the Europa site.

No conspiracy here, just the normal dreadfulness of the functioning of the huge and complex EU bureaucracy.