44.During the time after the previous Congress, new steps have been made in the Party’s intervention in the field of Culture. The rich cultural activity continued more intensively through the Scientific Conferences, the Festivals of KNE–Odigitis, the big artistic productions, the concerts, tributes, exhibitions and competitions of original artistic content; it was characterized by higher quality and more profound approach to the role of Art by the Party and KNE. The number of artists, intellectuals and other specialists in the field of Art, who took part or contributed to all this activity, was expanded in numbers and quality. Certain Party Organizations, utilizing the central experience, developed such initiatives at a local level and with notable results.

The intense cultural activity of this period, but also the initiatives developed by forces of the Party in the mass movement of employees in the field of Culture, more intensively during the last period of the pandemic, contribute to upgrading the Party’s prestige in general as well as particularly in the field of Culture. Through its activity, its practical interest for the serious problems of artists and other employers in the field and the appreciation it holds for their social contribution, the Party earns their respect, creating the path for them to overcome inhibitions and approach its political views. Their relationship with Art offers a different dynamic in their stance towards the brutal social reality.

The rallying of a significant number of artists to the Party, which has been achieved so far, should not be considered as satisfying or taken for granted. It needs a great effort with regular and stable political and ideological discussion in order maintain and widen the rallying of forces, and, most importantly, in order to create political and ideological bonds with younger and talented artists overcoming the actual delay.

45.Generally, it appears that the belief which —as mentioned at the 20^th Congress of the Party— considered culture as a supplementary part of its political activity, tends to be gradually overcome. Culture —especially art committed to communist ideas— starts to be recognized as another field of the class struggle, as a crucial field of action for the Party, able to express and promote, with its own means —aesthetically and artistically— the communist ideology and the necessity of socialism–communism.

However, it needs to further realize that the most important role of Art and Culture as a whole is to contribute to the expansion of educational horizon, to encourage the personality’s multifaceted development and thus the ability of communists to comprehend and impact on social reality. These elements are necessary so as to take up their role as a revolutionary political vanguard.

The possibilities not yet developed in the field of Culture for the development of the Party’s political intervention underline the need to overcome the great differentiation between Party Organizations regarding the level of organizing the cultural activity, by forming cultural committees in all Regional Organizations and PBOs of artists in the biggest cities at least, by regularly monitoring the field, better familiarizing with the issue of Art and having stable cultural activity.

46..Despite any achievements in the cultural work of the Party, there is still a long way to gobeforewe obtain the knowledge and ability to confront contemporary bourgeois theories over the content of Art, avidly cultivated and supplied by great funds through a web of governmental organizations, corporate groups and universities institutions, exerting a serious influence on the younger and more educated generations of artists.

The central and more dangerous characteristic of these theories is that complex social issues, such as violence towards women, “gender identity”, racism etc., are presented in terms of individual rights. Thus, the need to protect victims of any form of violence, racism, alienation because of gender, religion, sexual orientations, etc. is degraded.

It is clear that we need to intensify the research activity in order to elaborate theoretical issues of modern Art and literature, also by coordinating the work of PhD candidates in such fields. A significant factor for the establishment and intensification of the Party’s intervention in Culture is to develop a new generation of artists–creators and scientists in the field of Art, who, along with their talent and knowledge on the tools of Art, will have a Marxist education, which is a decisive factor for creating vanguard artistic work of aesthetically high value. It is a rather difficult goal which, especially in today’s non-revolutionary conditions of great retreat of the communist movement, cannot be left to chance. It requires constant and long-term effort, whose results may not be visible shortly, but will be proven to be valuable for the revolutionary transformation of society.