Committee on Cultural and Information


COOPERATION in the fields of culture and information has progressed significantly with the establishment of the ASEAN Cultural Fund on .December 2, 1978.

An amount of five billion yen was contributed by Japan to the Cultural Fund in 1978 and 1979 to finance intra-ASEAN cultural projects. To manage the Fund properly, ASEAN has appointed the Singapore-Japan Merchants Bank Ltd. in Singapore and the Bumiputra Merchant Bankers Berhad in Kuala Lumpur as investment managers of the fund. Since 1979, the fund, as invested by these banks, have accrued an interest of approximately two million US dollars every year. This amount is used to finance the cultural and information projects drawn up by the ASEAN Committee on Culture and Information.

In general, ASEAN's cultural and information programs cover a wide variety of activities in Mm, radio and television, music, Southeast Asian studies, preservation of culture, exhibitions, performances, publications and other exchanges. These projects and activities have been drawn up with an objective of preserving the cultural heritage of ASEAN member countries, and fostering among their peoples greater interaction and awareness of their cultures.

Film activities

One of the most colourful activities of ASEAN is the annual film festival in which film entries from member countries are shown. The 10th ASEAN Film Festival was- held in Singapore in November 1980 and the 11 th is scheduled to be held in the Philippines in October 1981.

To determine the viability and acceptability of locally produced feature films for showing in member countries, an ASEAN film week will be held every year in Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philipines and Thailand starting 1981. Singapore, which does not have a feature film industry at present, is still considering its participation.

Other film activities pertain to the production of three documentary films on ASEAN, the publication of reports on the film industry of each member country, and a joint feature film production by the ASEAN Motion Pictures Producers Association.

Museum Projects

To help museum officials acquaint themselves with each other's works and to disseminate information about ASEAN museums and their major exhibits, the national museum directors of the member countries agreed at a meeting in Manila in October 1979 to compile and produce an ASEAN directory of museums. The directory, which will contain photographs of each museum�s major exhibits, will also catalogue the collections of each national museums. It is expected to be completed in August 1981.

Another project initiated by the museum directors of ASEAN is a photographic exhibition on ASEAN cultural heritage which will be on display in each of the member countries starting December 1981. The exhibition will contain 50 photographs from each country on such subjects as prehistory, ethnography, traditional handicrafts, monuments and sites, and traditional architecture.

M u s i c

Music activities for the ASEAN youth are being undertaken by the COCI. These activities revolve around an annual project called the ASEAN Youth Music Workshop.

At the first workshop held in Penang, Malaysia in December 1980, more than a hundred talented youth from the member countries participated in two week music camp with professional conductors and tutors. This culminated in public concerts performed by the youths where they played both classical as well as indigenous musical compositions.

Southeast Asian Studies

Studies on various facets of Southeast Asia are being undertaken with a view to preservation or use for development purposes. A project called "seminar and study tour on the use of cultural and traditional media� is studying and documenting the cultural and traditional media forms of members countries. Another activity being currently implemented is a workshop on the manufacture of brass musical instruments, one of several projects which involve the study of traditional technology. A fellowship exchange in archaeology is being worked out where experts will be sharing knowledge and experience in the excavation, restoration and documentation of archaeological remains in member countries.

Other related projects are: the ASEAN mass media seminar, a study in the mass communications of the region, and the conference of ASEAN writers on traditional and modem literatures.

Performances

Exchanges and performances of various cultural presentations have been made throughout the region. There are now three types of performances presented to the pubic regularly: the radio and television artistes programme which brings together on stage, on screen and on the air, the top radio and television personalities of the member countries; the performing arts festival which brings together dancers, performers and other stage players; and the ASEAN song festival which will bring together the top singers of the five member countries. The First ASEAN Festival of Performing Arts was held in Jakarta from 13-22 February 1981.

Exhibitions

Paintings and photographs from the five member countries have been exhibited in the cultural and art centers of each country. In addition to the museum directors exhibition on "ASEAN life and environment" will be shown around the region starting May 1981.

Exchange of Information

Member countries exchange radio and television package tapes for broadcast in each member country. These tapes contain cultural presentation such as dances, traditional music, folk tales and folksongs.

On the publication side, news and feature articles are exchanged and shared through the national news agencies of the member countries.

Symposia and Cultural Awards

An ASEAN sculpture symposium was successfully held in Singapore in March 1981 where fine sculptures were produced and displayed in the national park. The project will be rotated in the region and held annually. A meeting of art administration is scheduled to be held in July in Singapore to work on the criteria for awards in the field of culture and information.

Intra-ASEAN Cultural and
Information Programme

(Projects undertaken from 1980 up to April 1981)

A total of 12 cultural and 16 information projects of the Intra-ASEAN Cultural and Information programme have been successfully implemented for the year 1980-1981. Details of the programme indicating the programme area, actual project activities, coordinator country, date of implementation and budget are as follows:

    A. Southeast Asian Studies

  1. Project : Comparative Study of Folks Arts and Indigenous Architecture in ASEAN countries - Malaysia
    Activity : Seminars - December 1979 - US$ 299898
    Activity : Taks on Radio/TV
    Activity : Inventory of material and data - May to December 1980 - US$ 31,900
  2. Project : Preservation of Traditional Technology - Indonesia
    Activity : Workshop Manufacture of Brass Musical Instruments. March 1981 - US$ 20,284

    B. Performance, Exhibitions and related cultural activities

  3. Project : Preservation and Presentation of ASEAN Performing Arts and Music - Indonesia
    Activity : Organizers Meeting - December 1980. US$ 10,164
    Activity : Annual ASEAN Festival of Performing Arts, February 1981. US$ 142,614


  4. Project : Traveling Exhibitions of Paintings and Photographs - Thailand.
    Activity : Pre-Exhibition visits by Organizers, February 1981.

  5. Project : Exchange of Radio and Television Artistes.
    Activity : Preparatory Meeting, Malaysia, July 1980. US$ 14,432
    Activity : Preparatory Meeting, Indonesia, March 1980. US$ 14,432
    Activity : Preparatory Meeting on ASEAN Song Festival, Malaysia, March 1981 - US$ 4,800
    Activity : ASEAN Song Festival, Malaysia, March 1981. US$ 39,000
    Activity : Producers Meeting, Indonesia, March 1981. US$ 4,059

  6. Project : Film activities
    Activity : Tenth ASEAN Film Festival, Singapore, November, 1980. US$ 46,070

    C. Documentation, Preparation, Production, Distribution of Southeast Asian Print and Audio Visual Materials

  7. Project : Film Production
    Activity : Advisory Group Meeting, Malaysia, March 1981 US$ 14,400 (budgeted for 3 meetings)

    D. Conferences, Seminars, Symposia and Workshops

  8. Project : ASEAN Youth Music Workshop
    Activity : Meeting of Organisers, Malaysia, May 1980 - US$ 3,608
    Activity : Meeting of Organisers, Malaysia, November 1980 - US$ 3,608
    Activity : First ASEAN Youth Music Workshop, Malaysia, December 1980. US$ 113,140

  9. Project : ASEAN Sculpture Symposium
    Activity : Meeting of Experts, Singapore, S e p t e m b e r 1 9 8 0 - US$ 3,000
    Activity : ASEAN Sculpture Symposium, Singapore, March 1981. US$ 103,433

    E. Institutions and Networks

  10. Activity : Meeting and Demonsrtation, Thailand, February 1980. US$ 209944

  11. Project : ASEAN Painting and Photograph Exhibition
    Activity : Exhibition, Indonesia, March 1980 - US$ 30,008

  12. Project : Preservation and Presentation of ASEAN Performing Arts and Music.
    Activity : ASEAN Choreographers Workshop, Singapore, March 1980. US$ 275456

For 1980-1981 an, integrated Intra-ASEAN Cultural and Information Programme to be funded under the ASEAN Cultural Fund has been formulated by the COCI and approved for implementation by the Standing Committee in March 1981. A total of twenty one projects with forty five activities under seven programme areas, with a total budget of US$ 1,87,445 are being implemented. Details of the programme are shown in Appendix A.

For more information, please refer to the project details