A case that one can hardly call solved. This was how MPs leaving the culture committee described the situation on Wednesday after Culture Minister Eric Thill was once again summoned to discuss issues surrounding the National Audiovisual Centre (CNA).
This time, the focus of the discussion was the condition of the renowned photo exhibition The Family of Man.
The debate followed a parliamentary question from two CSV MPs, who warned of a continued deterioration in the conditions of the Edward Steichen exhibition. The CNA is responsible for the display, which has been housed in Clervaux since 1994 and was added to the UNESCO World Heritage list in 2003. The CNA director and the minister acknowledged that problems had occurred with two air-conditioning compressors. However, Thill insisted that the situation was under control, a statement he defended again on Wednesday.
“I set the record straight: at no point did I lie to the legislative power of this country or misinform it. I forwarded the information that my experts provided me with. I stand by the information given to me and reject accusations that I misinformed the Chamber, the legislative power, or the parliamentary committee”, Minister Thill claimed.
However, The Left MP Marc Baum said he had data contradicting the statements made by the CNA director and the minister.
“He presents daily averages for humidity and temperature, but that is not how it is actually measured. It is measured hourly. When you look at the hourly data, you can see that there have been very large fluctuations, so you cannot say with certainty that the exhibition did not suffer any damage.”
Green MP Djuna Bernard also criticised the situation, arguing that the problems point to deeper structural issues. According to her, key expertise linked to the CNA’s core responsibilities, including the Family of Man exhibition, is missing, such as a specialist in photo restoration.
“Quite simply, it is a declaration of bankruptcy by the director”, she said.
Another issue raised concerns the contract with the company responsible for maintaining the CNA’s technical systems. According to an article in Tageblatt, the contract was reportedly changed under the new director, Gilles Zeimet.
LSAP MP Georges Engel said this claim had also been denied during the committee meeting: “The claim that the contract was changed under the current director is simply not true. These are facts that still need to be clearly established. If such claims were made, there must be documents somewhere to prove it.”
For now, the file remains open, with several issues still unresolved for MPs.
