Trans Internet-Zeitschrift für Kulturwissenschaften 14. Nr. Dezember 2002

Message of Mr. Giorgio Ruffolo

European Parliament, Culture Committee

Dear Ladies and Gentlemen,

I am very glad to be there, not physically but with a message for such an important conference. Unfortunately in this moment, I am in Rome organising another Seminar on Cultural Co-operation in the European Union, but I will do my best to partecipate to the next year conference , which will be of crucial importance.

In my opinion we must believe in the European culture as a wonderful source of co-operative and conflicting production of culture. I believe that from its own incredible conflicts, from the civil, religious and national and social wars it has matured now, in its new miraculous condition of peace, a vocation to openness and tolerance that is an example to the world. This is why culture seems to be the terrain from which European unity can bloom with more flourish.

A metropolitan legend, confirmed by Mitterand, attributes to Jean Monnet the regret for not having "initiated" the adventure of European integration from culture. I don't think he said this and if he had, he would have been wrong. His economic functional approach was by far the best. However I equally firmly believe that if the bases were correct, in a time when its structure is enlarged and uplifted, Europe needs to find in its cultural richness the necessary bonding agent in order to achieve its great project.

This is why I promoted the setting-up of a European Cultural Observatory and the elaboration of a Triennal Plan for Cultural Co-operation. The Observatory should, in my mind, represent a moment of visibility and constructive confrontation between the various national policies that can give birth to new ideas, initiatives and macro projects. It is not an instrument of passive registration but a critical stimulus. The Triennal Plan should be the co-operation basis for the achievement of macro projects that go beyond the possibilities of single countries according the indisputable principle of subsidiarity.

But everything will depend on the results of the European Convention. The Constitution will be the concrete proof. That will be the moment in which it will be possible to truly re-found Europe in the light of a firm awareness of cultural unity.

© Giorgio Ruffolo

TRANSINST       Inhalt / Table of Contents / Contenu: No.14


For quotation purposes - Zitierempfehlung:
Message of Mr. Giorgio Ruffolo. In: TRANS. Internet-Zeitschrift für Kulturwissenschaften. No. 14/2002.
WWW: http://www.inst.at/trans/14Nr/ruffolo14.htm.

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