After debating for two hours, the Permanent Commission of the Congress of the Republic, chaired by the legislator Luis Alva Castro, approved on Wednesday 14, on second voting, the Bill Nº 3622 that proposes the creation of the Ministry of Culture. 24 members of parliament voted in favour of the proposal, none against it and 4 legislators abstained.
The measure was adopted right after the members of parliament Carlos Raffo (GPF) and Javier Bedoya (UN) proposed to vote on second voting the same exact Bill that was approved on first voting.
The law creates the Ministry of Culture, defines its legal nature and action areas; regulates the specific and shared competences of regional and local governments, and establishes its basic organic structure. It will rise as a public law organism of the Executive Power with its own legal status.
As the highest governing agency in the area of culture, this new ministry will be in charge of formulating, planning, managing, coordinating, carrying out evaluating and overseeing the national policies for culture applicable in all government levels.
It will formulate national plans, programs and projects for the sector to promote, defend, disseminate and give value to cultural expressions.
It will also be in charge of implementing and managing the national registration system for cultural heritage goods, creators, arts and related areas producers, etc.
As part of its exclusive and shared duties assigned in relation to other government areas is that of coordinating the implementation of the national cultural policy with other sectors and the regional and local governments.
Organic structure
This law also determines the basic organic structure of the Ministry of Culture, formed by the Minister, the Viceminister of Cultural Heritage and Cultural Industries Viceminister, the Viceminister of Interculturalism and the General Secretary. The higher managing levels of the Ministry will have a specialized advising cabinet.
It will also have departments for institutional control, internal management and internal policy.
Attached institutions to the minister will be Peru’s National Library, the Peruvian Broadcasting Institute, the Quechua Language Academy, the National General Archive and INDEPA.
Cultural patronage
As part of the final complementary regulations of the law it is worth mentioning the donation to special projects known as Cultural patronage, promoted by the parliamentary Luciana León Romero (PAP).
Before the law to create the Ministry of Culture was approved, members of parliament like Lourdes Alcorta (UN) and Mercedes Cabanillas (PAP), proposed and demanded –without a positive result– to attach the Viceministry of Science and Technology to the Ministry of Education.
Likewise, the congressman Yonny Lescano (AP) proposed to name it Ministry of Science, Technology and Culture instead of Ministry of Culture. Meanwhile, Víctor Andrés García Belaunde (AP) affirmed that the law approved on first voting could not be approved by the Permanent Commission because it was an Organic Law.
Anyhow, after several interventions, Javier Bedoya (UN) argued, based on a resolution of the Constitutional Court (TC) and on the Congress’ internal rules, that under no circumstances the law approved on first voting could be voted again after an additional debate because this additional debate could change its structure and legal context. Thus, he proposed to vote the same law as it was approved on first voting.
It should be reminded that the first voting took place on 23 June, 2010 when the whole Congress approved it with 65 votes in favour, 6 against and 16 abstentions. It was made clear that the law, from then on, could be modified.
Related news and a video can be found at: http://culturaperu.org/blog/aprueban-creacion-de-ministerio-de-cultura