Informat.ro Summary / Romania, Guest of Honor at the 2028 Frankfurt Book Fair: How a Cultural Opportunity Became a Scandal

Romania’s participation as the guest of honor at the 2028 Frankfurt International Book Fair, an opportunity to promote Romanian literature, has sparked a conflict between the Ministry of Culture and representatives of the literary community. The controversy began with the announcement concerning the entrustment of project management to the Film and Cultural Investments Office (OFIC). Writers demanded explanations, and on Monday, October 12, interim minister András István Demeter stated that he was awaiting an alternative proposal from the Association of Romanian Publishers (AER).

How the scandal started

According to the petition drafted by writers and book professionals, the Ministry of Culture announced on Wednesday, October 7, in a Facebook post, that management of Romania’s participation would be assigned to OFIC, an institution established in 2023. The choice of a structure associated with cinema to coordinate a project centered on literature triggered dissatisfaction. Critics demanded clarification regarding the appointment procedure and the institution’s experience in book promotion.

The stakes involve more than merely setting up a national stand. Guest-of-honor status entails an extensive cultural program, with literature at its center and events in other artistic fields as well. The ministry cites this complexity to support the need for an institutional coordinator. Writers and publishers, however, believe that the project’s scope does not justify sidelining the specialists who prepared the bid and managed relations with the German organizers.

Why the writers became upset

Nearly 50 writers, publishers, translators, and literary agents signed the petition addressed to the authorities. The signatories include Andrei Pleșu, Mircea Cărtărescu, Gabriela Adameșteanu, Radu Vancu, Ioana Pârvulescu, and Varujan Vosganian, president of the Writers’ Union of Romania. They are seeking explanations regarding OFIC’s responsibilities and whether it has employees or departments qualified to promote literature.

The issue of competence lies at the heart of the protest. The signatories are calling for the decision to be reconsidered if the institution lacks the necessary responsibilities and specialists. They also request that the team that negotiated Romania’s status be retained within the implementation structure and at the decision-making level. For outsourced components, they are calling for transparent competitions to allow the best professional solutions to be selected.

The petition warns that the time available and the preparation schedule require institutional continuity and coherence. The dissatisfaction therefore concerns not only the choice of an organizer but also the way decisions are made. The authors of the protest are asking for the responsibilities, selection criteria, and role of book professionals to be publicly explained before the project moves forward.

What happened at Monday’s press conference

On Monday, October 12, the Ministry of Culture held a press conference dedicated to preparing Romania’s participation in Frankfurt. The discussions, which lasted more than two hours, highlighted the absence of an established program, budget, and coordinating entity. Demeter stated that the five employees who manage book fairs cannot support a project of this scale on their own.

The minister presented AER as a possible alternative to OFIC. If the association proposes managing the entire project, the ministry could prepare a government decision assigning it responsibility. In the absence of such a proposal, Demeter said he would proceed with the OFIC option, which would be expected to collaborate with publishers, writers, and other professional organizations.

The conference nevertheless revealed contradictory accounts of the consultations. AER vice president Lidia Bodea criticized the association’s failure to be invited to discussions about the organization and said she knew nothing about a proposal to take over coordination. Demeter maintained that he had invited the publishers, spoken with their representatives, and awaited a response.

“Today we’ve broken the cat, so everyone knows that the other side is waiting,” the minister summed up the deadlock. He specified that the funding would come from the Government but would also require resources raised from other sources, without announcing an amount.

What remains to be clarified

OFIC manager Valentin Savu specified that the designation of the institution represented a proposal by the ministry, not a definitive assignment. He described the office’s possible role as administrative, without replacing the book industry, and emphasized the need for dialogue.

The National Library of Romania, the Romanian Cultural Institute (ICR), ARTEXIM, the National Cinematography Center (CNC), and the National Cultural Fund Administration (AFCN) presented possible contributions without assuming leadership of the project.

The conference ended without the appointment of an organizer. Coordination, the participation of specialists, the program, and the budget remain to be established, while the ministry awaits the publishers’ proposal. Clarification of OFIC’s status leaves the negotiations open but does not, for now, resolve the main questions raised by writers and publishers.

*****Summary prepared with the help of a data feed provided by the media monitoring platform NewsVibe Romania. The analysis, data, and images presented were enhanced with the help of Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence tools.