WRITTEN QUESTION No. 3433/97 by Cristiana MUSCARDINI to the Commission. Damage to the universal artistic heritage caused by the Umbrian earthquake
Date: 1997-10-31
Institutions: European Parliament, MUSCARDINI
Subjects: EU aid, EU programme, Umbria, architectural heritage, cultural heritage, disaster area, earthquake, emergency aid, heritage protection, regional aid

25. 5. 98

EN

Official Journal of the European Communities

C 158/111

(98/C 158/145)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-3433/97

by Cristiana Muscardini (NI) to the Commission

(31 October 1997)

Subject: Damage to the universal artistic heritage caused by the Umbrian earthquake

The  Commission  has  recently  stated  that  it  will  allocate  ECU  100  000  to  repair  the  damage  caused  by  the
earthquake in Umbria; the money will be provided under Raphael, the Community cultural heritage programme
(the closing dates for some of the calls for expressions of interest issued in connection with the programme occur
at about this time).

Does the Commission not consider the amount allotted to be decidedly insufficient given the scale of the damage,
which was aggravated by the violence of the earthquake and in particular the seismic phenomena that continued
for days afterwards?

The  earthquake  has  damaged  not  only  private  homes,  but  also  cottage  industries  and,  above  all,  religious
buildings including the Basilica of St Francis in Assisi. The Raphael programme seeks to protect and conserve
cultural assets, but, to judge from the funds earmarked, the Commission does not seem fully to have appreciated
the historical artistic value of the buildings in question, which constitute not so much a priceless heritage of Italy
alone as a universal heritage that should consequently also be protected by the Union.

Answer given by Mr Oreja on behalf of the Commission

(16 December 1997)

The Commission confirms that it granted emergency aid of ECU 100 000 from the cultural funds. This sum,
which of course does not match the scale of requirements, was allocated › after consultation with the Italian
authorities › for the work of cataloguing fragments of the damaged frescoes in the Basilica of St Francis in
Assisi. This work is of great scientific interest and could form the methodological basis for other, similar actions
at  European  level.  The  involvement  of  other  European  countries  in  this  instance  may  lead  to  other  forms  of
collaboration with the Commission on cultural affairs, and in particular under the Raphael programme, always
taking into account the limited resources available to it.

In  addition,  considerable  support  can  be  given  through  structural  aid.  These  earthquakes  struck  largely  rural
areas to which the Commission attaches great importance and which are almost entirely covered by Objective 5b.

The two regions concerned requested the Commission to adjust the scheduling of Objective 5b in line with the
new priorities and requirements created by this serious earthquake.

The  Commission  confirms  its  wholehearted  willingness  to  initiate  the  necessary  procedures  within  the
partnership to add specific reconstruction activities to the single programming documents for Objective 5b. The
possibility  of  doing  something  for  the  artistic  and  architectural  heritage,  production  capacity  and  the
reconstruction of rural villages will be assessed in this context.

(98/C 158/146)

WRITTEN QUESTION E-3434/97

by Cristiana Muscardini (NI) to the Commission

(31 October 1997)

Subject: Cruelty to animals

A further example of cruelty to man(cid:146)s best friend par excellence occurred on an Alitalia chartered aircraft which
was transporting dogs to be used for a shooting party in the Crimea.

Owing to an error by the cargo handlers, the dogs were carried in the hold with the result that 27 out of the 30 put
on board suffocated to death in agony because there was no oxygen.