Italian Culture Minister Holds Ferragosto Meeting with Top Officials

On August 15, 2023, Italian Culture Minister Gennaro Sangiuliano convened a meeting at the Ministry of Culture headquarters in Rome with undersecretaries and general directors to review ongoing activities. The over-two-hour session, explicitly avoiding the Zuckerberg-Musk debate, allowed each attendee to present proposals and programs for the coming months. Attendees included Undersecretaries Gianmarco Mazzi and Vittorio Sgarbi, Secretary General Mario Turetta, and directors of various departments such as Archaeology, Libraries, Cinema, Museums, and more. Sangiuliano emphasized that nearly all museums remained open on Ferragosto, ensuring access for tourists, and shared a video of the meeting online. He later visited the Colosseum and the National Roman Museum to thank staff working on the holiday. The meeting followed a tense letter sent on April 24 regarding leave during the Liberation Day holiday.