From Chinese Press

Welcome cultural move

(China Daily)
Updated: 2011-02-15 07:55

The Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Finance recently announced that entry to all art galleries and libraries at the national and provincial levels will be free by later this year. The decision follows the move to make museums and memorials free for the public since 2008, says an article on southcn.com. Excerpts:

The government's decision to make entry to museums and memorials free from 2008 received widespread praise.

People now welcome its decision to make art galleries and libraries free for the public.

But making just museums, memorials, art galleries and libraries free for the public will not help the government meet all the cultural needs of the people.

To satisfy the overall cultural needs of the public, the government must provide comprehensive services in all cultural fields.

Relevant departments should keep supplying and preserving books, relics and high quality works of fine art.

The government has to make the cultural needs of the people the yardstick to foster cultural development.

With the free entry to art galleries and libraries comes a shift in role for the public cultural venues. These should now focus on collective cultural interests instead of individual benefits. Such a shift will be possible only with strong and continuous financial support.

Hence, the government has to maintain a constant supply of funds.

What makes the decision to make entry to art galleries and libraries free significant is the country's tireless pursuit for aesthetics and efforts to raise the cultural threshold of the people.

(China Daily 02/15/2011 page9)