Logo Assembly Logo Hemicycle

Application of Committee of Ministers Resolution (76) 3 to the cultural field (structures, terms of reference and working methods of intergovernmental committees)

Opinion 81 (1977)

Author(s):
Parliamentary Assembly
Origin
Text adopted by the Standing Committee, acting on behalf of the Assembly, on 18 March 1977.See Doc. 3945, report of the Committee on Culture and Education
Thesaurus

The Assembly,

1. Referring to the request for an opinion addressed by the Committee of Ministers to the Assembly ;
2. Having examined the report of its Committee on Culture and Education on the application of Resolution (76)
3. of the Committee of Ministers to the cultural field (Doc. 3945), 3. Adopts the following conclusions :
a single intergovernmental committee should be competent for cultural and educational co-operation on the basis of the Cultural Convention ;
the CCC should remain competent for the whole field of cultural co-operation and for the administration of the Cultural Fund ;
structures should, however, be flexible and open-ended, and an interdisciplinary approach should be encouraged where appropriate ;
it is necessary to retain and, if possible, increase direct links, at high level, with the various specialised ministries responsible for different aspects of cultural and educational matters in member states ; interministerial co-ordination at national level must also be ensured ;
the applicability of Resolution (76) 3 to the cultural field must be carefully reconsidered ; final arrangements must take into account the special character of cultural co-operation in the Council of Europe, and the necessity of full participation in such co-operation not only by non member states of the Council of Europe signatory to the Cultural Convention, but also by representatives of the Parliamentary Assembly ;
4. Considering the present state of cultural policies in Europe which, despite general economic difficulties, are an area of particular national concern in member states ;
5. Believing that the Council of Europe can make a constructive and substantial contribution to cultural co-operation on a European level,
6. Deplores the lack of political will for cultural co-operation within the framework of the Cultural Convention ;
7. Appeals for recognition to be given by member governments to the role of the Council of Europe in European cultural co-operation ;
8. Asks that financial means be made available to the Council of Europe and the Cultural Fund sufficient for the proper implementation of cultural co-operation on the level of the twenty-two European states participating ;
9. Calls for the active support of national parliaments towards the realisation of these objectives.