D E C I S I O N DECISION ON AMENDMENTS TO THE STATUTES ON THE BALTIC ASSEMBLY PRIZES FOR LITERATURE, THE ARTS AND SCIENCE The Baltic Assembly, proceeding from the proposals of the Joint Judging Committee of the Baltic Assembly Prizes for Literature, the Arts and Science, proposes to approve the following revised version of the Statutes on the Baltic Assembly Prizes for Literature, the Arts and Science: “STATUTES ON THE BALTIC ASSEMBLY PRIZES FOR LITERATURE, THE ARTS AND SCIENCE I. General Provisions
- The Baltic Assembly Prizes for Literature, the Arts and Science (henceforth - the Prizes) were established upon the Resolution of the Baltic Assembly Session of 31 October 1993, in order to facilitate the development of literature, the arts and science in the Baltic States, to assess the most distinguished achievements in these fields and to disseminate these achievements in other states. The Prizes have been established in order: - to demonstrate the mutual interests of the countries in this region for the upholding of their national identity and self-esteem by supporting outstanding achievements in literature, the arts and science; - to maintain a continuous interest among the people in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania about the developments in the Baltic States by creating the possibility to learn about each other's achievements; - to strengthen co-operation among the Baltic States in the fields of literature, the arts and science; - to promote an interest among a growing number of people in the intellectual values and languages of the Baltic nations, - to raise the level of literature, the arts and science in the Baltic States.
- The Prizes shall be awarded within the framework of the mutual co-operation program of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, upon the basis of the resolution passed by the Joint Judging Committee approved by the Baltic Assembly.
- The Baltic States shall allocate at least EUR 5,000 per each prize. The nominal value of the Prizes shall be set annually in accordance with the resources allocated in the budget. The monetary awards presented to the winners shall be exempted from taxes. II. Procedure for Awarding the Prizes
- The Baltic Assembly Prize for Literature shall be awarded annually at the session of the Baltic Assembly to an author for a novel, a play, a collection of poems, short stories or essays, or any similar written composition in Estonian, Latvian or Lithuanian. The work must have been published for the first time within the past three years.
- The Baltic Assembly Prize for the Arts shall be awarded annually at the session of the Baltic Assembly either to an author or to a performer for a work of art or a series of works presented (performed before an audience) within the past three years in fine arts, applied arts, in music, architecture, theatre or cinema. It also may be awarded to a director, soloist, actor, ballet artist or a group of artists for outstanding artistic achievement accomplished within the past three years.
- The Baltic Assembly Prize for Science shall be awarded annually at the session of the Baltic Assembly to an author for outstanding research work or series in the humanities, social or natural sciences, which is of international importance, has a considerable impact on the Baltic region and has been published within the past three years. III. The Joint Judging Committee
- The Joint Judging Committee of the Baltic Assembly Prize shall consist of nine people. The works nominated for the Prizes in literature, the arts or science shall be assessed by the respective experts. Each country shall delegate three persons to the Joint Judging Committee and determine the procedure for their selection.
- The members of the Joint Judging Committee shall be outstanding specialists in the fields of literature, the arts and science.
- The members of the Joint Judging Committee shall be replaced every three years. Every year at least one member of the Joint Judging Committee from each state must be replaced. After rotation has begun to function normally, the same person may not serve on the Joint Judging Committee for more than three consecutive years.
- The Joint Judging Committee shall elect a chairperson and two vice chairpersons from their midst who shall change each year in accordance with the procedure for their rotation (among the countries).
- The Joint Judging Committee meetings shall be convened at least once a year and shall be recorded in writing in the languages of all three countries and translated into English. The Joint Judging Committee decides its own internal working procedures. The Joint Judging Committee meetings shall take place alternately in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
- The Joint Judging Committee meetings shall have full powers if at least two representatives from each country participate. In addition to the regular meetings for awarding the Prizes, the Joint Judging Committee may convene other meetings if the necessity arises. The Committee meetings may be convened upon the suggestion of the Baltic Assembly, the Joint Judging Committee chairperson or the jury representatives from any of the respective countries. Every year the members of the Joint Judging Committee shall be entitled to discuss the regulations of the competition and the procedure for awarding prizes, and to propose amendments to these Statutes. The Joint Judging Committee shall be entitled to make a decision not to award any one of the Prizes. The Prize shall also not be awarded if the Joint Judging Committee is not able to reach an agreement, that is, to make a concrete decision with a simple majority vote. The unused resources shall be transferred to the following year's budget. The Joint Judging Committee shall make its decisions and the substantiation for them known to the public.
- The Prize nominees from each Baltic country shall be assessed by the appropriate judging committees. Only the appropriate judging committee of each Baltic country shall be entitled to select works for submission to the joint competition of the Baltic States and the works shall be submitted together with all the necessary information (the curriculum vitae of the nominee, reviews and other related materials, like audio- and video cassettes, slides etc.).
- Works and their authors shall be nominated for the Prize by the Joint Judging Committee. The Joint Judging Committee shall assess the works nominated by the appropriate judging committee of each Baltic country. IV. Nominating the Work and Awarding the Prizes
- Works shall be submitted to the appropriate judging committee of each Baltic country in accordance with the regulations of the competition prior to 1 June, and to the Joint Judging Committee one month before the awarding of the prizes. The appropriate judging committee of each Baltic country shall assess these works and nominate no more than the best two works from the fields of literature, the arts and science for review by the Joint Judging Committee. In order to assess a musical work, fine arts and theatrical productions, it is recommended to organize concerts, exhibitions and performances.
- The decision on awarding the Prize shall be submitted to the Baltic Assembly Secretariat no later than two weeks before the session of the Baltic Assembly.
- The same person (group of persons) may not receive the Prize more than once. V. Presenting the Prize
- The prize - a special statuette, a certificate signed by the President and Vice Presidents of the Baltic Assembly, and a monetary award - shall be presented at a Baltic Assembly awards ceremony, and the names of the prize winners and information on their achievements shall be published in the press of all three Baltic States.
- The literary work, the author of which has been awarded the Baltic Assembly prize, shall be published in compliance with the Baltic Assembly Regulations for Publishing the Works of the Baltic Assembly Prize Winners. The prize-winning works in the arts and science shall also be given publicity in all three Baltic States. VI. The Administration of the Joint Judging Committee
- Activities of the Joint Judging Committee shall be co-ordinated by the Baltic Assembly Secretariat, which also provides assistance to the judging committees of the Baltic countries.
- Each year funds shall be appropriated for ensuring the activities of the Joint Judging Committee in accordance with the budget of the Baltic Assembly of the current year. VII. Duties of the Joint Judging Committee
- The Joint Judging Committee, in conjunction with the Baltic Assembly Secretariat, shall be responsible for the proper utilisation of allocated funds.
- The Joint Judging Committee shall provide the Baltic Assembly with a report on its activities. The Statutes on the Baltic Assembly Prizes for Literature, the Arts and Science shall be adopted, amended and, if necessary, the awarding of the Prizes shall be suspended by the Session of the Baltic Assembly.” Vilnius, 29 November 2003