Busking's diversity at risk

I wanted to you to alert you to a situation in regards to a forthcoming proposal from the Melbourne City Council. The following text was given to me by a long-term busking acquitance.

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The City of Melbourne propose to:

• introduce a system of busking auditions (held quarterly)
  
• set a limit on the number of Busking Permits issued;
• have an EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) person measure the sound level of every busker that is issued with a Permit to ensure that they play at an acceptable level.

This is a real grassroots arts/music issue akin to the Fair Go for Live Music Campaign.

If these proposals go through it will have the reverse effect of Melbourne City Council's aims to encourage a vibrant, active local arts community. It will limit the opportunities of many arts/music practitioners to perform in a public space, to give some colour and life that adds to a rich energy to the city.

Melbourne City is one of the few municipalities around that allows anyone to get a buskers permit (they can be obtained at the Information desk at Town Hall for free) and perform to the people. This egalitarian approach has, over the years, assisted many performers to improve their craft before an audience.

But now it seems, the Taste Police want to have a say in who gets to perform in public.

To paraphrase John Howard, it will be a case of "We decide who gets to perform on the streets of Melbourne!

We will be going from an open-minded, tolerant approach, to a system that will restrict the number of performers on the street, and which will disengage many performers from the public.

The brilliant thing about busking is that it is truly democratic, for the people decide who is worthy of their support. If a busker is not good enough,to quote Bruce Springsteen:-

"Stay on the streets of this town

And they'll be carving you up all night"
('Dancing In The Dark' from Born In The U.S.A)

If you go to the City of Melbourne's Arts and Culture - Intoduction page (via Arts&Events) the opening paragraph reads -

"Melbourne is Living the Arts every day. The City of Melbourne is committed to fostering an environment where the people of Melbourne can participate in the arts,where artists and creative industries are encouraged and where Indigenous art and culture is valued and respected."

- Lord Mayor John So

Should the proposals mentioned above go through, it will mean that some performers will be disengaged from the community. They will be unable to participate as performers as they might have hoped. Their creativity and artistry will be discouraged. It is a stark opposite to the commitment mentioned by the Lord Mayor.

Current Procedure

Should the council decide to retain the current operational procedures in the issuing of Busker Permits, they will reinforce their commitment to the cultural and artistic vitality of the city.

The City of Melbourne is committed to ensuring that it is providing best practice services. This is the case for now with their approach to the granting of Buskers Permits as it stands now. Unlike other cities in Australia, Melbourne City Council exhibits a real sense of community spirit, by allowing anyone the opportunity to perform in the city. It is a fair and egalitarian approach. Indeed one could argue that the current approach in Councils dealings with buskers is, a worlds best practice in fostering the cultural diversity and range of entertainment that busking brings to a city.

When Busker Permits are issued at the Information Desk, prospective buskers must read through the Code of Conduct for Busking. The opening paragraph of this Code states:

"...Melbourne City Council is very supportive of the busking community and sees the proactive management of the Busking Code of Conduct as a way of fostering the cultural diversity and range of entertainment that busking brings to the City of Melbourne while ensuring the safety,access and amenity of our citizens"

There is no need to implement any change to regulations as has been suggested from some quarters, as the Code of Conduct for Busking spells out very clearly that in regards to interaction with the public, "buskers may not upset any member of the public by their behavior."

Under the heading Co-operation with Melbourne City Council Staff, it states very clearly:-

"Buskers must follow all instructions given by Melbourne City Council authorised officers and members of the Victorian Police."

The document also states:-

"Authorised officers of the City of Melbourne may ask buskers to move on if it is considered that a busker is interfering with pedestrian amenity"

All applicants for a Busking Permit are instructed by Council staff at the Information Desk (Swanston Street entrance) to read this document before they sign and date it. Melbourne City Council and the Victorian Police are already equipped with the powers to deal with any Busker behaving in an inappropriate way. Plus, by ensuring that prospective buskers read and sign the Code of Conduct for Busking, when they apply for a permit,they make buskers fully aware of their obligation to behave appropriately.

Therefore I hold the firm belief that there is no need to implement stricter controls or regulations, as Melbourne City Council 's authorised officers, and the Victorian Police, already have the powers necessary to deal with any busker deemed to be behaving in an inappropriate way.

Should the proposed changes to the existing busker's license system go ahead Melbourne City will appear more austere and bland. A vibrant 24 hour city in the 21st century would not discourage artists by imposing a stricter, more stringent and limiting way of issuing Buskers Permits.

Melbourne's reputation as a community that encourages culture will be tarnished by the proposed changes, as they would disengage and discourage many members of Melbourne's rich arts community.

These proposals are a disservice to the community. I believe that Melbourne citizens are open-minded and tolerant enough to appreciate the magnificent spashes of colour, artistry and vibrancy that busking brings to the city.

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Feel free to copy this, post in on your own blogs, or paraphrase it and send it to City of Melbourne Councillor Ng, stating your opposition to the introduction of these proposals. Her e-mail is: cathng@melbourne.vic.gov.au