Freedom of artistic expression is guaranteed in the Charter of Rights of Freedoms as part of the Constitution order of the CR (Constitutional Act No. 2/1993 Coll. as amended in Constitutional Act No. 162/1998 Coll.).
Cultural institutions create various programmes designed to make culture accessible to the public and they also participate in special programmes to improve skills in this area – such as those offered by the Arts and Theatre Institute’s Academy.
However, some topics of cultural rights are only slowly opening up in the CR, as in other Central European countries. One of them is the topic of decolonisation of collection institutions. In 2021, the Náprstek Museum of Asian, African and American Cultures (part of the National Museum) organised a series of lectures and discussions on the topic of the planned exhibitions in the reconstructed premises of the institution.
In the university environment, the Decolonisation Initiative was also launched in 2021, with a manifesto and a website that continuously adds challenges for different university disciplines. The initiators include students of the humanities from the Faculty of Arts of the Charles University in Prague, but their aim is to connect different disciplines and institutions. Gradually, syllabi, but also canons (e.g. of literature) and museum displays, should be transformed to reflect other, non-European voices.
In 2021, a group of students under the name of YOU DON’T! HAVE TO ENDURE IT used an anonymous form to ask students of the Faculties of Theatre of the Academy of performing arts in Prague and in Brno about their study experiences. Collected testimonies bear witness to and draw an image of the problematically endured internal world of prestigious theatre schools. The statements were publicly proclaimed in June 2021 in front of the entrance to the faculty in Prague. A provisional live stream of the performance shared on social networks had accumulated in few days after over 30 000 views). On social media, the initiative was supported by, among others, the Drama of the National Theatre, Hadivadlo Brno and numerous enrolled students as well as graduates and theatre professionals. Various cultural and other organisations have organised panels or conferences on the subject, with many prominent personalities and artists supporting the initiative. At the end of 2021, the Dean of the Faculty of Theatre in Prague announced a competition for the position of Ombudsman. His/her task is to address complaints that show signs of unethical behaviour, discrimination, psychological pressure, or inappropriate behaviour among persons in unequal positions of power.
A similar ombudsman position has been in place at the Academy of Fine Arts for several years. However, it too was created as a result of an internal ethical problem. There is also a new ombudsman at the Faculty of Film and Television Production.
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