LETTER | Of Unesco, heritage sites and reading

LETTER | Unesco contributes to peace and security through international cooperation in education, sciences, culture, communication and information.

Unesco World Heritage sites are designated as having “outstanding universal value” and meet at least one out of 10 selection criteria under the Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage.

The cultural and natural heritage is among the priceless and irreplaceable assets not only of each nation but of humanity as a whole.

The loss, through deterioration or disappearance, of any of these most prized assets constitutes an impoverishment of the heritage of all in the world.

A case in point is the “proposal” to nominate seven Chinese new villages in Selangor as Unesco World Heritage Sites due to their valuable heritage left from decades ago.

Earning a Unesco heritage title is a privilege but do the seven sites have “outstanding universal value” and are among the priceless and irreplaceable assets to the country and humanity as a whole?

Or does it constitute an impoverishment of the heritage of all people of the world – with its disappearance creating an impoverishment of the heritage of all in the world?

Some argue it is a good thing for tourism, where people can learn about Chinese Malaysian history and culture.

For that matter, Petaling Street - Kuala Lumpur’s original Chinatown - has been active since the mid-19th century and has gone through various stages in its cultural evolution.

In any case, these new villages were created during the British colonial period to ward off communists and there is no “outstanding universal value” here.

Suaram adviser Kua Kia Soong wrote that these British-designed concentration camps were not established out of benevolence but were created out of a nefarious agenda of containment and control.

The proposer, a minister, said the proposal was still at the preliminary stage but last year, it was reported that plans were drawn up to recognise the cultural and historical significance of these settlements and if everything goes well, in 2026, Malaysia will add another World Heritage Site.

Quite true that sentiments are being played up by the opposition but if the proposer had read the criteria for selection in the Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage, he may not have pursued this idea.

Currently, there are only four sites on the Malaysian list and here we are asking for seven to be added on and it is not a matter of including similar sites from other ethnicities.

Reading is to obtain knowledge and lead to a journey of self-discovery. Benefits include mental stimulation/creativity, stress reduction, knowledge, vocabulary expansion, memory improvement and stronger analytical thinking skills. These are some of the traits needed to be a truly developed nation and Malaysia Madani.

We not only need to prepare our children but also to equip ourselves especially our lawmakers on our reading habits.

The first word revealed to Prophet Muhammad by Allah was “Iqra” which means to read! “A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies . . . The man who never reads lives only one.”

Let us exit from the fantasies of our own little cocoon, see the world and consider the sensitivities of others.

What say you…

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.