Although Alexandria Governorate was chosen as the Capital of Islamic Culture in 2008 and Capital of Arab Culture in 2010, its ten official cultural centers remain severely neglected.
The Ministry of Culture has given very little attention to these vitally important cultural landmarks; some cultural centers have collapsed while others are in bad shape.
Crippling bureaucracy
Although Alexandria Governorate was chosen as the Capital of Islamic Culture in 2008 and Capital of Arab Culture in 2010, its ten official cultural centers remain severely neglected.
The Ministry of Culture has given very little attention to these vitally important cultural landmarks; some cultural centers have collapsed while others are in bad shape.
Crippling bureaucracy
Ramadan Abdulhafeez, a 45-year-old stage director, faced appalling red tape when he approached the General Organization for Culture Palaces (GOCP) to cash 5000 Egyptian Pounds (US $ 715) for a dance performance staged by his 14-member troupe in one of GOCP’s cultural centers in Alexandria.
“In 2009, my musical troupe presented a theatrical show called ‘A Girl for Marriage’. After applying to the GOCP and having obtained the required approval and a budget of 5000 Egyptian Pounds, we were faced with appalling formalities, although the amount was relatively small,”Abdulhafeez said.
His struggle had only just begun. “As we proceeded with the required paperwork for cashing the owed amount, several obstacles including procedural problems came up. We were asked to include 22 signatures on each paper and we subsequently had to contact the GOCP for more than five months. Having completed the signing procedure, we were surprised to learn that our file was lost. We later knew that the concerned official at the GOCP, who was affiliated to a Salafist group, hid our file so that the show would be postponed for the following year or be canceled altogether.”
The respective official was not available to ask about the reasons for the delayed processing, but Abdulhafeez was certain that it was due to religious beliefs. Regardless of that official’s background, AbdulhHafeez managed to find the file and the due amount was paid just one day before the end of the fiscal year.
“By the time we were prepared to present the show, we were surprised to find out that there was no theater under the auspices of the GOCP suitable for our show. So used the Jesuit’s Theater at our own expense.”
After the revolution
Amira Mujahid, in charge of the cultural program at the Palace of Art Appreciation in Sidi Gaber, during post-revolution Egypt, claims that little has changed.
According to Mujahid, performing arts centers in Alexandria are exposed to deliberate negligence resulting in the closure of several cultural centers in ElShatby, Anfoushy, Mostafa Kamel and Boulkly Culture House while others suffer severe negligence.
The Palace of Art Appreciation is one of the six remaining performing arts centers. The activities of this center have been restricted for purely routine reasons, according to Mujahid. A decision was issued by the Department of Civil Protection last January to close this particular center last January due to a breakdown of the fire-fighting system, although repair costs do not exceed 40,000 Egyptian Pounds (US $5, 700). The same situation occurred when the glass pane of the main door broke over a month ago. Although replacing the glass costs about 600 pounds (US $86), the center had to await the arrival of a special inspection committee from the central department in Cairo to approve the broken glass repair, which involves serious risks to the visitors.
Another problem that strained the cultural center’s budget and affected its activities was the organization’s appointment of 30 new employees after the revolution, causing the center officials to depend on their own efforts and visitors’ contributions for organizing seminars to avoid prejudicing new employees’ salaries, according to Mujahid.
Decisions on paper
The popular role played by the GOCP in the 1960s declined considerably over the past years. The status of the Palace of Art Appreciation is only an example of the deterioration experienced by other cultural centers in Alexandria. Ahmed Mubarak, member of Alexandria Governorate’s Local Council, which was dissolved in 2010, said no restorations were performed to Mostafa Kamel Cultural Center despite the council’s decision to carry out the needed repairs. Mostafa Kamel Cultural Center serves more than 50,000 people in Backus, Zahiriya, Raml and Shads. The building has since suffered considerable damage as a result of the cracks, which are likely to lead to its collapse at any moment.
The premises have been closed to visitors and it currently used to store neglected books. The adjacent area has also been changed to a parking lot.
The same fate, Mubarak said, also applies to the restoration project of Anfoushy Cultural Center in the Bahry District, which was closed after the revolution although it covers a large area. As a result, the center has turned into a deserted area in central Alexandria after being a beacon of culture for the people of Alexandria as a whole. An urgent decision is needed to complete its construction.
GOCP’s reforms to blame?
The Ministry of Culture is directly responsible for the restoration of such cultural centers. Undersecretary of the Ministry of Culture in Alexandria Muhammed Tariya admitted that cultural activities at a number of cultural centers had declined, but he attributed that to the restoration works carried out in the governorate’s centers. He explained that the GOCP was engaged in a comprehensive development project for Anfoushy Cultural Center. He said he did not know when the development project would be completed as the GOCP is the competent authority responsible for restoration and development works.
Tariya added that the GOCP had prepared a comprehensive plan for development of Mostafa Kamel Cultural Center, which is expected to be approved during the next fiscal year; construction will commence immediately after budget endorsements.
A way out
Apart from complicated bureaucracy and insufficient budgets— only 25,000 Egyptian Pounds ($3,500) per year have been allocated for all existing cultural centers, which hardly scratches the surface—Abdulhafeez cites an ethical obstacle.
Some forms of art are considered a prohibited practice and culture is viewed as ‘blasphemy’ and consequently responsible for disrupting any progress achieved in the country, according to Abdulhafeez.
