Slovenian President Calls for Zero VAT Rate for Books

Ljubljana, 23.4.2010  |  press release

The President of the Republic of Slovenia, Dr Danilo Türk, today attended a reception in the City Hall of Ljubljana hosted by the Mayor of the Urban Municipality of Ljubljana, Zoran Jankoviĉ, for members of the honorary and organisational committee of the World Book Capital 2010 project.

In his address to the committee members, President Türk emphasised that Slovenes are a nation founded on books. We obtained the first printed books in the mid-16th century and the first full translation of the Bible in 1584. The exceptional importance of books for Slovenes has been additionally underlined by the fact that almost throughout our history, we had no developed political institutions and that in those times, culture successfully substituted for politics. Dr Türk emphasised that, in recent months, there has been a lot of hate speech and uncultured behaviour in the Slovenian political space. In his words, Slovenes should seek advice in their books, because the level of our political culture does not match the richness of our literary culture.

However, Dr Türk also stated some more optimistic data, according to which a nation of two million people published 5,200 books in 2009, which is an exceptional achievement. He added that we also have the Public Agency of the Republic of Slovenia for the Book, which has already been co-financing book production in a new and original manner for two years. In view of all this, Slovenia and its capital Ljubljana can indeed be considered a natural world book capital, said the Slovenian President. Although we cannot be satisfied with many phenomena in our country, we should nevertheless not overlook that we have achieved some good results, of which we can be proud and which show the Slovenes to be cultivated people and a nation founded on books.

The Slovenian President then attended the ceremony dedicated to the beginning of the project "Ljubljana–World Book Capital 2010". In his opening address, Dr Türk said that a book is the symbol of culture, of human spirit and human progress. When the capital city of a country becomes a world book capital this means that it is the capital of human spirit and progress.

He emphasised that the books published in our country every year contribute to the spiritual and cultural wealth of our nation and enrich us as Slovenes, as citizens of the Republic of Slovenia and as citizens of the world. Indeed, books are our ties with the world and are a part of our cosmopolitanism, a part of that for which we should strive.

Culture and books have for a very long time been a substitute for politics and a state. However, it has been demonstrated that a nation with such a strong culture and high respect for books can ultimately build its own state. On this occasion, President Türk invited everyone involved in the political process seriously to consider the language that they use and to make every effort to ensure that our existence and our politics are more cultivated and worthy of us as a cultured nation and Ljubljana as World Book Capital.

The Slovenian President supported the activities of the Public Book Agency and called for the introduction of a zero VAT rate for books. He explained that it is a mater of the attitude towards both books and cultured nations with a relatively small book market. It would therefore be right to support and facilitate making books increasingly available to people by using new methods. If the European Union as a whole adopted a policy of a zero VAT rate for books this would, according to Dr Türk, mean that the EU is turning from an economic and a political community into a cultural community, which also respects, cherishes and supports those cultures that are subject to harsher market conditions.

President of the Republic Dr Danilo Türk and Mayor of the Urban Municipality of Ljubljana Zoran Jankoviĉ, by hoisting the national flag, officially opened the project "Ljubljana – World Book Capital 2010". Dr Türk expressed his hope that the flag would fly proudly, that it would inspire people and remind us of how much books have already given to us and what we still expect from them.