WRITTEN QUESTION No. 1672/97 by Roberta ANGELILLI to the Commission. Suspension of publication of the Italian Archeological Encyclopaedia and the 'Biographical Dictionary of Italians'
Date: 1997-05-20
Institutions: ANGELILLI, European Parliament
Subjects: EU aid, Italy, archaeology, cultural heritage, document retrieval, encyclopaedia, heritage protection, publication, publishing, telematics













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91997E1672

WRITTEN QUESTION No. 1672/97 by Roberta ANGELILLI to the Commission. Suspension of publication of the Italian Archeological Encyclopaedia and the 'Biographical Dictionary of Italians'  


Official Journal C 045 , 10/02/1998 P. 0077 





WRITTEN QUESTION E-1672/97 by Roberta Angelilli (NI) to the Commission (20 May 1997)Subject: Suspension of publication of the Italian Archeological Encyclopaedia and the 'Biographical Dictionary of Italians'The Board of Directors of the Italian Encyclopaedia Institute recently announced that, owing to a serious economic crisis, publication of two works which were expected to appear in the near future - the Archeological Encyclopaedia and the 'Biographical Dictionary of Italians' - had been suspended.These two works are of crucial importance, both as historical records and as part of the national identity. Leading specialists from both Italy and abroad have been working on the two projects for several years now, with the backup of the latest computer technology. The whole of the Archeological Encyclopaedia, which is the only work of its kind in the world, has been compiled on computer, and can therefore be used as the basis for future telematic and multimedia applications.The decision to suspend publication of these two works when they were so near to completion is thus perplexing and thoroughly disappointing.The Commission is therefore asked to endorse the appeal made by the Assembly of Co-editors, Consultants and Compilers against the decision to suspend publication, and to:1. state its views on the matter;2. state whether at European level financial support might be found with a view to ensuring that the Archeological Encyclopaedia and the 'Biographical Dictionary of Italians' are published;3. provide information on any such support that may be available.Answer given by Mr Oreja on behalf of the Commission (30 June 1997)The Commission shares the Honourable Member's disappointment about the suspension of the publication of the Italian archaeological encyclopaedia and the Biographical dictionary of Italians.As the Honourable Member is aware, the Commission can only support projects and initiatives which fall within the framework of Article 128 of the EC Treaty wherein it is clearly stipulated that any action should aim to encourage cooperation between Member States and if necessary to support and supplement their action in the cultural heritage field. Furthermore, this objective should be achieved on the basis of Commission proposals which should be adopted unanimously by the Council and be co-decided by both the Council and the Parliament.In this context and as the Honourable Member is aware, the Commission has proposed the Raphael programme which is, presently, at the conciliation procedure stage.Should the programme be adopted, it will be followed by the publication of calls for proposals which will set out the participation conditions. Should the initiatives in question fulfill the eligibility criteria of any of the calls for proposals, then the Commission would gladly consider a financial contribution request.