Iran exhibition Security checks at the Bundeskunsthalle

Bonn · For the past two weeks the safety regulations have been tightened. The reason: The exhibition „Iran. Ancient cultures between water and desert“.

Christmas markets with barricades against truck attacks, New Year’s Eve with massive police presence, machine guns to protect the parades during Karneval - the security situation is leaving its marks on public life after a series of Islamist attacks. The high sensitivity has now reached the Kunst- und Ausstellungshalle der Bundesrepublik Deutschland in Bonn.

For the past two weeks the safety regulations have been tightened. The reason: The exhibition „Iran. Ancient cultures between water and desert“. However, due to no incidents at all, the security checks will be loosened again. According to press spokesperson Sven Bergmann, two employees were assigned with additional checks at the door after being trained specifically for the task.

Since April 13, that meant: To enjoy the impressions from colorful Persia, visitors had to undergo a bag and body check with metal detectors. The entrance to the special exhibition was marked with barrier tape, conditions just like at an airport. Apparently, a reliable source gave the museum cause for security concern. The decision to tighten the security checks was made in collaboration with the police in Bonn, says Bergmann.

As the employees had to be trained at first, the implementation of the new regulations might have been a bit bumpy at first, the spokesperson admits, recognizing a few sporadic complaints. But: „90 percent of the visitors had no problem with the checks.“ Last Sunday alone, 2.000 visitors were admitted smoothly. One of the visitors who complained about the innovation was Kurt Tudyka. In a letter to the intendant and the management he said that the way he was treated was an „absurd and ridiculous disgrace“.

According to him, it was humiliating visitors of a public exhibition. Also, he claims it was possible to enter the counter area via the restaurant without interruption. Tudyka, former chairman of the „Freunde der Kammerspiele“, demanded an immediate stop of the security checks. This was not the motive behind the decision to end the measures after a fortnight. The situation at the museum remained completely inconspicuous. It is unclear which scenario the responsible authorities had focused on. The exhibition continues until August 20, 2017. (Orig. text: Rüdiger Franz, ­­Translation: Mareike Graepel)

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