[spectre] "MERRY" PRO-HELVETIA

[TirJazzFest]

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"MERRY" PRO-HELVETIA





The Director of the Tirana Jazz Festival, Fatos Qerimi and the organizing
staff of the event want to wish everybody a "Merry" Pro-Helvetia. Since last
year applying at the Swiss Cultural Foundation, run by Mr. Besim Petrela,
has become like a joke. Unbelievable, when thinking what role Pro-Helvetia
had played until a couple of years ago, before Mr. Petrela became director
of the foundation, and what role it plays now, especially after reading the
aims the foundation has put forward in their official website.



Not only it is impossible to find someone that answers behind the door of
the foundation offices (let alone present a project or consult one), but a
very subtle "technique" has been created by the foundation, since Mr.
Petrela became director. Even though one can send the application in as
early as January, there's not going to be a "board meeting" until late June.
Obviously this is because most of the events happen during the months of May
and June. Why bother with replying to applications on time, when one can
"promise" support and after the event is done, say "sorry but the board
decided not to grant support".



In June 2004, after having been assured by Mr. Petrela for the priority of
the event and the "secured" support of Pro-Helvetia, and after having given
a central place to the image and logo of the foundation, when the Tirana
Jazz Festival ended, the office sent a dry official letter granting the
amount of only 1500 CHF (1000 Euro), from 6000 applied for (and promised).
What Mr. Petrela literally said to us was that Mr. Pius Rohner, chairman of
the board was not convinced that there had been a Jazz Festival in
Tirana???? Even though it lasted for 1 entire week!!!



During this year's event, with the application sent in long time before the
board meeting, again Mr. Petrela "assured" for the support of the foundation
and asked for the logo to be present in all publications and add materials.
Indeed the official board meeting, after having been announced and postponed
to infinity of times, took place last Monday, one day before the Festival
started. There was no official reply, but the "assurance" for the support
and the request to put the logo of the foundation again in every printed
material and the TV spot. Today, 1 week after the successful closing of the
event (the only of the kind in Albania), the foundation, in the voice of Mr.
Petrela, replies that there's going to be NO FUNDING because the organizers
used the old logo of the foundation.



It is a pity indeed, but it's also true: Pro-Helvetia has become like a joke
since Mr. Petrela is running the antenna.



Therefore, we fully share the concern and the denouncing that Tirana
Biennale did to the way how Pro-Helvetia office is being run by Mr. Petrela,
a cheater and abuser of this position, deviating all the grants to ghost
events, supposedly taking place in other cities, organized by the NGO "Syri
i kalter", co-run by Mr. Petrela himself, far from the reach of eyes that
can merely take a look at them. We also join the other cultural operators,
like ISCM, the Institute "Observatory of Culture", the NGO "Stinet", the
Institute of Tirana Biennale, etc (the list is much longer), and decide to
REFUSE TO COLLABORATE WITH PRO-HELVETIA in the future, for as long as the
office shall be run in this way and by this person. His presence and this
way of management remind us that working in the cultural field in Albania
would be better defined as "the art of mountain-climbing". Yes, maybe it
could be helpful if the antenna in Tirana starts a training program of
"mountain-climbing", Mr. Petrela would be a great coach for that.