Can't manage then ban?

(Baonghean) - Never before has the issue of licensing song circulation received as much attention as it has recently.

Prohibited without permission

The issue of banning songs from performance that has received the most public attention is related to the music night "Joining Hands" scheduled by Hue University of Medicine and Pharmacy and the family of the late musician Trinh Cong Son on the night of April 21, which encountered procedural difficulties.

At the press conference of the first quarter of 2017 of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism on the afternoon of April 12, the leaders of the Department of Performing Arts (DPA) affirmed that they had complied with the law when granting a nationwide distribution license for the song “Noi vong tay lon” by the late musician Trinh Cong Son, after the Department received a request from Hue University of Medicine and Pharmacy.

At the same time, it was announced that the remaining 3 songs of this program have not been licensed because “no one has applied for it yet”! This means that the licensing of musical works has long been carried out according to the principle of “no permission is given without permission”.

The music night “Joining Hands” commemorates the 15th anniversary of musician Trinh Cong Son’s death in Hue in 2016. Photo: Internet

In response to the question that the Department of Performing Arts was bureaucratic, irresponsible, and authoritarian in granting distribution licenses for musical works composed before 1975, the leader of the Department of Performing Arts said that the granting of circulation licenses for songs composed before 1975 was implemented since 1989.

Due to the public's need to enjoy songs, 4 years ago, the Department of Performing Arts called on localities and individuals who owned or had the right to own musical works composed before 1975 to gather their works for the Department, so that the unit could appraise and grant circulation licenses.

Responding to the above call, thousands of songs were collected and sent to the Department with the hope of creating a clear corridor for musical activities. However, to date, the number of songs composed before 1975 licensed for circulation by the Department of Performing Arts is still quite modest.

For example, out of nearly 300 songs composed before 1975 by musician Trinh Cong Son, as of April 12, 2017, only 78 songs were licensed for distribution.

Among them are songs such as “Hanoi – Hue – Saigon”, “Ca dao Me”, “Dem thay ta la thac do” in the program of Hue University of Medicine and Pharmacy scheduled to be held on April 21. And the famous song “Len dang” by musician Luu Huu Phuoc is also among those that have not been licensed for distribution.

The reason is that "no unit has requested a license"!

Most Popular Banned Songs

Back to the song “Joining hands in a big circle” - one of the famous songs by the late musician Trinh Cong Son, released in 1968. The song is the emotional voice of patriotic Vietnamese people, wishing to join hands, stand shoulder to shoulder to fight to create a peaceful and happy life, reaching the noble goal of a unified, independent, peaceful and happy Vietnam.

The song "Joining Hands" Photo: Internet.

The work has appeared in many important political art programs, been included in textbooks for students, and was licensed by the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Ho Chi Minh City to produce music tapes and discs and perform before Decree No. 79/2012/ND-CP and the Department of Performing Arts issued control labels to be stuck on those tapes and discs.

However, “Nội vong tay lon” was still not accepted by this unit to be included in the list of songs licensed for nationwide distribution. The Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Ho Chi Minh City has repeatedly requested the Department of Performing Arts to consider legalizing the songs that the department licensed before Decree No. 79/2012/ND-CP was issued, but has not yet been approved.

After a strong public reaction, with just one petition from Hue University of Medicine and Pharmacy, the Department of Performing Arts signed the permission for the song "Noi vong tay lon" to be circulated and popularized nationwide.

According to Mr. Duong Trung Quoc - General Secretary of the Vietnam Historical Science Association, the somewhat spontaneous actions of this Department are "a disease of bureaucracy and authoritarianism".

From the licensing of “Nội vong tay lon”, to the recent ban on 5 songs released before 1975, public opinion is raising a series of questions about the shortcomings in licensing, should we create a list of banned songs, and if not banned, are they free to use, sing and perform?

However, Mr. Dao Dang Hoan, Deputy Director of the Department of Performing Arts, said: There is no "ask - give" mechanism here, the licensing is done in accordance with the law, which here is Decree 79/2012.

Song "The old road you walked". Photo: Internet.

However, public opinion does not easily accept this explanation of the leader of the Department of Performing Arts. Because what is happening shows that if the Department of Performing Arts is not wrong, then Decree 79/2012/ND-CP has problems and needs to be revised to suit the reality of life.

General Secretary of the Vietnam Historical Science Association, Mr. Duong Trung Quoc said: "It's been nearly half a century, why don't we do it?"

We have in our hands a whole cultural institution, music research associations, music teaching centers and universities, copyright protection agencies, why don't we review everything and implement the most important principle of respecting human rights, that people can do everything that the State does not prohibit.

We have to review to see what is no longer appropriate, then we ban it, not just approve it to allow it anymore.

Even the Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Mr. Vuong Duy Bien, expressed his dissatisfaction with the way the Department of Performing Arts worked: "If something is not suitable, we will remind you to correct it. Why do we issue a ban just because a few sentences are different from the original, creating bad public opinion, making people think that if we can't "manage" it, we can ban it."

Licensing song circulation, especially songs that have been around for decades and in the hearts of the public – a task that seems to be within the control of the management agency, is currently in chaos.

Every agency says that it has complied with the law and the decree. So the question is, if the law or decree is still inadequate, can the management agency propose amendments? Because the story here is not about right or wrong but about suitability with life. Should the mechanism of the Department of Performing Arts not allow permission if no one applies for it be changed and applied in a more flexible and reasonable way?

Van Thieng