Appendix 6 - International Music Council

many cultural events, in particular 44 folklore festivals and rural celebrations in the Czech
Republic. (http://www.fos.cz/encyklopedie/objekty1.phtml?id=18786&kraj=&lng=2)
EU
The European Union considers the diversity of cultural expression to be one of its dominant
and specific features.
There is a current debate on enhancing it within the Union and its
member states. The main organisations lobbying music like the national music councils that
are traditionally very European and focussed on "serious" music, are willing to put new
accents and are increasingly open to support musical diversity.
Preserving and promoting cultural diversity are among the Community's founding
principles.
(http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=MEMO/05/387&format=HTML
&aged=1&language=EN&guiLanguage=en) They are enshrined in the Treaty, under
Article 151, and in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, under Article
22.3. The Treaty has enabled the development of cultural activity, notably the program
"Culture 2000" and its follower "Culture 2007".
(http://ec.europa.eu/culture/eac/culture2007/cult_en.html)
Its main focus lies on cooperation and exchange, in particularly on non-commercial cultural
exchange. It also requires the consideration of cultural dimensions in other EU policies
such as industrial policy in the case of the program MEDIA Plus and the internal market
policy in the context of the Directive "Television Without Frontiers".
(http://europa.eu/scadplus/leg/en/lvb/l24101.htm)
The Treaty also applies for external activities, calling upon the EU and its member states
to
promote in their international relations sustainable development, peaceful coexistence and
intercultural dialogue. The EU's policies support and implement specific objectives
enshrined in the adopted Convention for the
protection and promotion of diversity of forms
of cultural expression, such as developing viable local cultural industries and improving
the
movement of cultural works at global level, especially from developing countries.
There is an ongoing debate about the concept of "cultural diversity" and its implementation
into European cultural policy. The most influential document on the debate on cultural
policy on EU level is the Ruffolo report. In many parts it is very critical, the report itself is
proclaims the "unity of diversities". The report is critical about article 151 of the EU treaty
on cultural diversity
as it speaks only about THE "culture and history" (in singular) of the
European peoples, and thus excludes many people living in Europe or cultural elements of
non-European origin that have influenced or intersected with the European cultural field.
Clause 4 the Treaty establishes a formal relation between culture and other segments of
European policy. The Ruffolo report expresses disappointment about what it delivered in
real. (http://www.budobs.org/eu-documents/eu-documents/ruffolo-report-on-culturalcooperation-in-europe.html)
Protection of cultural diversity is invoked in order to prevent the 'loss of identity' either
through political harmonisation as in the case of EU policy or through global economic
trade developments. The concept
of culture identity in general remains largely
unchallenged and favours fixity, coherence and binary opposition. Identity and diversity as
political concepts, though, can only be employed productively, if they do not refer to
diversity of culture(s) and identities as something fixed and separated from others, because
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