Good start
Life is a theater. I never knew that I could be part of a failed cultural movement in Macau.
In early March amid the COVID-19 outbreak, an artist friend invited me to join a WeChat group, the Concerned Group for the Recovery of Macau’s Cultural and Creative Industries (CCIs), where 100-plus struggling jobless cultural and creative folks gathered, after a string of major arts events had been cancelled, namely the Macau Arts Festival and the Tap Seac Art Fair, besides the shutdown of cultural and performing venues.
Many owners of small firms and individuals in the CCIs worked for or with the cultural affairs authorities in one way or another. The situation put their businesses in a tight spot, as even if jobs had been offered and contracts had been awarded there was no compensation.
Soon a working team was set up, of which I was a member. At the beginning, the 10-member team (composed of creative entrepreneurs, an artist-curator, handicraft artisans, a designer, translators and arts educators) was enthusiastic: an on-line survey questionnaire was created and eventually 100 valid questionnaires were collected, and the respondents’ answers were analysed by mid March.
It seemed all’s going at full steam…
Divided and alone
Later on, divides appeared: whether or not to establish a smaller core leadership, choosing one or two “appropriate” legislators as a communication channel with the government and which media outlets to contact. Ideological things.
Vital divides concerned commitment and vision. As the team developed amid relaxed novel coronavirus restrictions, some working team members got less involved, claiming that they were “busy”. And, without a core leadership and a clear direction, with all decisions made by loose voting, the team became disorientated and idle.
However, boosted by the survey and some media exposure, more and more people joined the Concern Group on WeChat. It made me feel more bad than happy, for I felt sorry for their misplaced trust and expectations, born out of those passionate slogans and catchwords. I truly wished the team could maintain the momentum and live up to it.
After prayers and winning over two like-minded team members who were in the minority, I drafted and we finally got our Ten Suggestions released openly, with the ultimate goal to improve the cultural ecology in Macau, through creating a long-term communication channel with relevant government departments for collaboration on feasible projects and for better use of resources on real, good projects – not those superficial ones. In the long run, to urge the government to roll out plans for Macau CCIs to ‘go digital’.
Nevertheless, with more jobs coming back, members once again became busier and the team was virtually inactive, with plans suspended. I was busy too but still sent out reminders, yet no one responded. Frustrated and alone, there was nothing I could do. Unity is strength.
‘Great’ meeting, halt, the silent majority
Sluggish team time went by until one day a member (the creator of the WeChat group) said that she (on behalf of her association) had been invited to a meeting next day with the secretary for Social Affairs and Culture and president of the Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC), but that only she could speak on behalf of her association and she would pass the Ten Suggestions to the bosses.
I called the bureau explaining what’s what, requesting a seat for the team at the meeting. A no-name lady called back, saying only invited representatives of associations could attend. This no-no bureaucratic response left me peeved – a sign that Macau’s association culture is so strong that SMEs and individuals are often ignored!
(As a test and seeking comfort, I asked a friend, a former top cultural official if he would turn us down in the same scenario; his answer did lift me up – hereby allow me to thank him for the support.)
Afterwards, that member uploaded a meeting sign-up picture onto the WeChat group, then announced to halt action as the “Ten Suggestions had been presented and our voices got heard”. Her idea resonated with that of most team members who thought the goals had been achieved. Two even immediately dropped out. The few who disagreed including myself tried to re-organise/re-start by reaching out to the big Group on WeChat, yet no response, people stayed mum.
A young talent in theatre production WeChatted with me privately: “People at my age don’t know about planning, we follow the big group.”
Eventually on April 7, the team was disbanded while the group remains there, silent.
Life goes on
This is the dull chronicle of a recent cultural ‘movement’ in our place. It started out well but got flat in the middle and at the end it failed. Still I’ve learnt something from it. The keys to successful collaboration, in this case let’s say a movement, are the right persons, like-minded with a similar ideology, vision and commitment.
Not long after, the MSAR government announced a second wave of support measures for employees, freelancers and SMEs. A few in the WeChat group hailed it. Okay, good for that. But local cultural ecology will be more or less the same, and bureaucracy continues…Life goes on, awaiting another movement to have a crack at it.
*The author is a Macau-based translator and travel writer
