In line with our mandates and confident in having support from members of our professional associations of Slovak museums and galleries, we, the signatories of this letter, present this Statement as our joint expression of deep concern about the current situation affecting the cultural heritage in Slovakia, in particular regarding the museums and galleries.
We perceive the actions and communication of the Ministry of Culture of the Slovak Republic as a show of force rather than a well-advised and prudent governance. Although we respect the results of democratic parliamentary elections and the will of our fellow citizens, as well as the wording of the Manifesto of the Government of the Slovak Republic, we feel alarmed by the policy of the Ministry of Culture which is not only diverging from the
Government Manifesto, but sometimes even directly contradicts it (at least in terms of the dialogue with culture professionals). Moreover, according to the information published in the media, the Ministry of Culture even trespasses the Manifesto by contemplating plans for a major restructuring of national collecting institutions. The fact that the Ministry has made no response to the media reports, has further deepened our crisis of confidence. We do not wish to dispute the lawfulness of personnel changes at Slovakia’s flagship
cultural heritage institutions (the Slovak National Museum and the Slovak National Gallery), but it is sad that in spite of our best-effort inquiries made repeatedly over time, the reasons for dismissal of directors of these organisations have not been disclosed and no strategic visions and plans for our cultural heritage preservation have been presented by the newly-appointed top management. In concurrence with the Ministry’s insufficient communication, it makes us increasingly concerned about the future development of our major cultural institutions.
Recent changes have also resulted in paralysation of the Slovak Arts Council, which in spite of its minor defects used to be one of relatively efficient instruments of funding and support of cultural heritage preservation and presentation. This has a major impact on essential specialised activities or presentation work of museums and galleries. A similar situation has been witnessed in other funding schemes run by the Ministry of Culture as well.
We do understand the need for consolidation of public finance, but in our opinion such measures should be drafted and applied in cooperation with experts to prevent irreparable losses. We are ready to hold discussions on cost-efficiency of museums and galleries too, but we are sure that closing them down would be an ultima ratio misstep which would in the long run cause the society (and especially the younger generations) huge losses, grossly
disproportionate to the saving of a couple of dozen thousand euros. There are a number of Slovak museums and galleries which are already facing pressures contradicting the ICOM Code of Ethics regarding qualification requirements and professional conduct.
As representatives of professional associations, we hereby appeal to the Ministry of Culture of the Slovak Republic to ensure transparent communication about planned processes and to uphold active dialogue with museums and galleries. We are all committed to transparent public governance, adherence to the ICOM Code of Ethics, and application of
objective criteria in the area of cultural heritage, preservation of which is in the utmost public interest. Culture has an immense power – a power to connect people in their diversity and to act as a natural bond keeping the fabric of society in hard times together. Please, do not let this magnificent feature of culture and cultural heritage wither away.
ICOM Slovakia:
PhDr. Margaréta Musilová
JUDr. Mgr. Tomáš Michalík, PhD.
PhDr. Martin Hrubala, PhD.
Mgr. et Mgr. Eva S. Kotláriková
Union of Museums in Slovakia:
Ing. Marián Majerník
Mgr. Michaela Škodová
Ing. Štefan Engel, PhD.
Slovak Galleries Council:
Mgr. Miloslava Borošová Michalcová, PhD.
Mgr. Adam Galko
Mgr. Zuzana Sýkorová
