Setting the scene — politics and geopolitics
Visa and travel restrictions impact on events and collaborations, and politics affect wider civil society, of which culture is a part
There are visa and travel restrictions between some of the countries in the region, notably between Kosovo and two neighbours, Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is important to be sensitive and to bear this in mind, as this can have an impact on participation in events.
The political axes are changing in the Western Balkans. Where nationalism, conservatism or the right-wing may be gaining power in one region in the Western Balkans, in another it might be going in the opposite direction. Political change impacts on wider civil society, including on free speech and journalistic freedoms, universities, and NGOs and civil society organisations.
nationalism comes together with patriarchy (perspective of an interviewed academic)
As part of wider civil society, politics inevitably interact with the cultural sector. With finance comes obligations and restrictions. In North Macedonia, for example, national cultural institutions are said to receive almost 100% of their funding from the government. As museum directors are commonly political appointees, the success of a programme or institution can depend on proximity to and acceptance by the ruling government or political party. Decision making may be entirely government-led without any independent perspectives, like is suggested to be the case in Albania (though this information may be out of date). The rate of interference from politics or political control of culture in the region is difficult to measure, and the diversity and sensitivity of the region makes it difficult to generalise.
‘In what way the Ministry and the government are selecting experts, juries and committees are not transparent and based on excellence, but mostly on loyalty to the governing parties.’ Serbian profile on the Compendium of International Cultural Policies
As in most contexts, visible support from the political sphere (e.g. an opening night speech) will only effect change if it is backed up by significant behind the scenes multi-stakeholder dialogue — and cultural relations institutes can play a part in this dialogue.
Non-state funded activity (the independent sector) is seen as objective and free of state influence and thus a valuable partner for museums. Efforts are made to try to reduce the division and increase the cooperation between state funded and non-state funded activity or institutions, in order to bring in new voices and perspectives and reduce potential political interference.
View the whole series, Creative Collaboration in the Western Balkans
