IMEB : A fool’s game agony
The International Institute of Electroacoustic Music of Bourges is silently suffering, and has been for months. Its employees, placed in the middle of a fool’s game between institutional partners and management, suffer too. But nobody knows anything because, as it is always the case in Bourges, a wall of silence has descended on this burning issue.
After an initial decrease in its subsidies of nearly 42,000 euros in 2008, the Regional Direction of Cultural Affairs (DRAC) informed IMEB in March 2009 of a further decline of 109,000 euros. This was a huge wound for the IMEB, which must also cope with the disinvestment of the municipality, which has chosen to focus on events and exhibitions at the expense of musical research and excellence. The General Council of Cher, which is struggling to establish its own budget and says having compensated for a long time part of the disinvestment of other institutional partners, will not increase this effort.
Founded in 1970 by composers Christian Clozier and Françoise Barrière, IMEB is called "National Center of Musical Creation" since 1997. Its research, creation, diffusion, publication and teaching activities built its international reputation.
Having to deal with the consequences of the disinvestment of State, the Cher Member of Parliament Jean-Claude Sandrier (PCF) was the first to raise the alarm in May 2009, in a written question to the National Assembly. "Such a decision could not have any other effect than to "kill" the institute, and would imply the disappearance of a heritage and a unique international history." Since then the situation is at a standstill.
Only a few months ago it seemed that all the persons implied in this issue agreed that the IMEB should be kept alive until the 40th Synthèse Festival. But things change very quickly, and spendings too. Well-informed people fear now that IMEB would come close to bankruptcy at the end of December. Some are convinced that management wants to commit hara-kiri to explode in the face of institutions that have dropped them.
In reality, no one knows anything, for a good reason : the General Assembly of IMEB should have taken place in June. We are still waiting. Since there is no General Assembly, the association’s accounts have not been presented. Considering that tens of millions of euros of public money were injected into this structure for several decades, the lack of transparency on this issue demonstrates once again that local democracy is here greatly ill.
The official position is to stay silent because "we must not impede the ongoing discussions." But during those so-called palavers, the management of IMEB does not remain inactive. Their human resources management policy is particularly confusing. In May 2009, a cleaning operative was dismissed because of a long-term sick leave. Furthermore, two employment tribunal cases, which have been waiting for months, will be considered in October and November 2009. Finally, last June, the employee representative was convened and notified of the initiation of dismissal proceedings for misconduct.
Declining subsidies, employment tribunal cases, dismissal procedure for "misconduct" against the employee representative (to avoid a more expensive economic redundancy ?), no General Assembly and ... no publication of accounts... Every measure seems good to lighten the weight of an old cargo ship so adrift that it looks like a scuttling...