Ashraf Reda, head of the Ministry of Culture’s plastic arts department, has provoked outrage among members of Egypt's art community by allegedly removing the details of Ahmed Basiony, a martyr of the 25 January revolution, from a catalogue that represents Egypt in the Venice Biennial.
Reda is accused by some of removing Basiony’s name and picture and replacing it with his own picture, then adding articles of his own, written in Arabic, English and Italian.
Minister of Culture Emad Abu Ghazy has ordered an investigation into the matter, promising to take punitive action against Reda if he violated ministry rules. The Coalition of Independent Culture, meanwhile, has called for Reda's dismissal.
Reda has denied any involvement in the matter.
Translated from the Arabic Edition
