scholarly journals World cultural heritage monuments in Kosovo and Metohija: Problems and perspectives of protection

2021 ◽  
pp. 89-99
Author(s):  
Marko Nikolić ◽  
Marta Vukotić-Lazar ◽  
Mirjana Roter-Blagojević
Keyword(s):  
United Nations ◽  
Cultural Heritage ◽  
Cultural Landscape ◽  
International System ◽  
Ethnic Conflicts ◽  
Natural Heritage ◽  
Cultural Assets ◽  
World Heritage List ◽  
World Cultural Heritage ◽  
Albanian Population

In 2006, the UNESCO World Cultural and Natural Heritage Committee inscribed four Serbian medieval shrines from Kosovo and Metohija on the World Heritage List, in danger due to difficulties in their preservation and management, as well as the damage they suffered during ethnic conflicts, namely: the Church of Bogorodica Ljeviška in Prizren and the Peć Patriarchate, Dečani and Gračanica monasteries. In accordance with United Nations Resolution 1244, they are currently under the control of the United Nations Mission in Kosovo and Metohija. However, in addition to these monuments, the cultural and demographic identity of Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija is illustrated by over 1,500 established cultural assets (monasteries, churches, cemeteries, etc.) that testify to the centuries-old presence of the Serbian people and Orthodox faith in this area and their material and spiritual culture, as works of the overall European cultural heritage created in the intertwining of the influences of Eastern and Western Christianity and culture. The inclusion of these four cultural assets of great importance for Serbia in the international system of protection and monitoring has led to initiating the consideration of a comprehensive and long-term view of cultural heritage in Kosovo and Metohija at the international level as a key element in establishing better cultural and overall relations between Serbs and the Albanian population. The paper discusses the problems and possibilities of improving the protection and presentation of World Cultural and Natural Heritage in Kosovo and Metohija, as well as the expansion of the list, through the integration of international, national and local protection, and understanding of this area as a specific cultural landscape. Presenting the value of the heritage as a comprehensive cultural landscape which combines natural tangible and intangible aspects, as well as the organization of cultural, educational and other activities, would encourage respect for the diversity, integrity and identity of others, which is an unavoidable condition in the process of European integration currently opposed by ethnic groups.

Military Intervention, the UN Security Council, and the Role of UNESCOThe Case of Mali

2020 ◽  
pp. 82-104
Author(s):  
Sabine von Schorlemer
Keyword(s):  
United Nations ◽  
Cultural Heritage ◽  
Security Council ◽  
Test Case ◽  
Un Peacekeeping ◽  
French Military ◽  
Un Security Council ◽  
World Cultural Heritage ◽  
The United Nations ◽  
Historical Sites

Intentional destruction of cultural heritage by extremist non-State actors—be it by the Taliban in Afghanistan, the Islamic State (ISIS or ISIL) in Syria, Iraq, and Libya, or Boko Haram in Nigeria—is on the rise. Using the destruction of cultural heritage in Mali in 2012–13 as a case study, this chapter argues that the creation of the self-proclaimed independent State of ‘Azawad’ in Mali became a ‘test case’ for the United Nations’ will and capacity to prevent further destruction of world cultural heritage, and it also analyzes the legal foundation of the 2013 French military Operation Serval in Mali. It also discusses the responsibility to protect as applied to cultural heritage, evaluates the subsequent deployment of the United Nations MINUSMA, and evaluates the mandate given by UN Security Council Resolution 2100 (2013), the first in UN history that included comprehensive protection of cultural and historical sites as a task of a UN peacekeeping operation. Therefore, the chapter reviews critically not only the mandate of MINUSMA, but also its potential relevance concerning future culture-embedded UN peace missions, and also contributes to the debate of the usefulness of more ‘robust’ cultural protection action by the United Nations.

Part II Substantive Aspects, Ch.11 World Cultural Heritage

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francioni Francesco
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Heritage ◽  
Cultural Property ◽  
Dynamic Evolution ◽  
Special Position ◽  
Natural Heritage ◽  
Intangible Heritage ◽  
The World ◽  
Cultural Properties ◽  
Unesco Convention ◽  
World Cultural Heritage

The concept of ‘world heritage’ was legally codified by the 1972 UNESCO Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage (WHC). This convention occupies a special position in the ever-expanding body of international cultural heritage law. This is for three fundamental reasons. First, with its 193 States Parties, it is a truly universal treaty in force for the protection of cultural heritage. Second, it represents a major innovation by its unprecedented approach that brings together cultural properties and natural sites of exceptional importance, both subject to the same system of international cooperation for their identification, delineation, and protection. Third, this convention has contributed to the reconceptualization of ‘cultural property’, paving the way for its dynamic evolution into the more comprehensive concept of ‘cultural heritage’, understood as the inherited patrimony of culture—inclusive of the intangible heritage and living culture of relevant human communities.

Eritrea’s New Heritage Law: Drafting and Implementation Issues

2019 ◽  
Vol 26 (02) ◽  
pp. 167-179
Author(s):  
Senai W. Andemariam
Keyword(s):  
United Nations ◽  
World Heritage ◽  
United Nations Educational ◽  
Natural Heritage ◽  
World Heritage List ◽  
Key Issues ◽  
The United Nations ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Way

Abstract:On 30 September 2015, the government of Eritrea issued Proclamation no. 177/2015, the Cultural and Natural Heritage Proclamation of Eritrea, to govern the country’s cultural and natural heritage. Instrumental in the inscription of the nation’s capital, Asmara, in the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization’s World Heritage List, the Proclamation simultaneously governs cultural (tangible and intangible) and natural heritage. The author, the main drafter of the Proclamation, discusses issues and alternatives that were debated during the drafting process, lists the key issues in relation to implementation of the Proclamation, and suggests recommendations on the way forward.

World Cultural Heritage: Obligations To The International Community As A Whole?

2004 ◽  
Vol 53 (1) ◽  
pp. 189-209 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roger O'Keefe
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Heritage ◽  
World Heritage ◽  
International Community ◽  
Natural Heritage ◽  
World Heritage Convention ◽  
The World ◽  
World Cultural Heritage

The preamble to the Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage 1972 (the ‘World Heritage Convention’),1adopted 30 years ago, testifies to the conviction of the States Parties ‘that deterioration or disappearance of any item of the cultural…heritage constitutes a harmful impoverishment of the heritage of all the nations of the world’.2It speaks of the recognized ‘importance, for all the peoples of the world, of safeguarding this unique and irreplaceable property, to whatever people it may belong’3and declares ‘that parts of the cultural…heritage…of outstanding interest…need to be preserved as part of the world heritage of mankind as a whole’.4

scholarly journals Rights–Values–Interests: The Conflict between World Cultural Heritage and Community: A Case Study of the West Lake Cultural Landscape Heritage in China

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (17) ◽  
pp. 4560
Author(s):  
Jiancheng Lu ◽  
Xiaolong Luo ◽  
Peigang Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Property Rights ◽  
Cultural Heritage ◽  
Cultural Landscape ◽  
Local Communities ◽  
West Lake ◽  
Community Residents ◽  
World Cultural Heritage ◽  
Legitimate Interests ◽  
Landscape Heritage

The conflict between world cultural heritage and local communities is investigated by using the cultural landscape heritage of West Lake in China as a case study, and establishing an analytical framework of “Rights–Values–Interests” based on the property rights theory of the new institutional economics and the value and interest structure characteristics of cultural heritage. The conflict problem in the market environment is analyzed based on a theoretical explanation. An in-depth discussion of the framework and improvement of China’s protection institution is provided. We outline the following key points: First, the Chinese government “plundered” certain behavior rights and legitimate interests of community residents through the enactment of protection laws, leading to a conflict between the protection and community. Second, China’s laws lack a clear definition of the power and responsibility of the central and local governments with regard to protection actions, leading to vague positions of the government and exacerbating conflicts. Third, China’s protection laws are out of touch with the laws of private property rights. The root cause of the conflict is that the protection action only considers the protection law as the core but neglects the residents’ legal behavior rights. Finally, from the perspective of considering the residents’ legitimate interest demands, defining behavior rights boundaries, and strengthening administrative management, we propose to improve the protection institution in order to achieve the harmonious integration of heritage protection and local communities, and we call for a greater focus on the legitimate interests or survival rights of ordinary Chinese community residents.

Cultural Heritage on China’s 21st-century Maritime Silk Road

China Report ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 54 (2) ◽  
pp. 159-174 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ying-kit Chan
Keyword(s):  
United Nations ◽  
Cultural Heritage ◽  
21St Century ◽  
Local Level ◽  
Silk Road ◽  
Unesco World Heritage ◽  
United Nations Educational ◽  
World Heritage List ◽  
Maritime Silk Road ◽  
Chinese Scholars

This article suggests that Chinese scholars in Guangdong, through historical work endorsed or sponsored by their government, justify the inclusion of Southeast Asian nations in the 21st-century Maritime Silk Road (MSR) initiative. In doing so, they seek to add the MSR to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization’s (UNESCO) World Heritage List. By exploring how historians and officials adhere to the expectations of the Chinese state and UNESCO in highlighting Guangdong’s role in the 21st-century MSR initiative, the article examines the production of cultural heritage at the local level in contemporary China.

A New International Regime for the Protection of Underwater Cultural Heritage

2002 ◽  
Vol 51 (3) ◽  
pp. 511-554 ◽  
Author(s):  
Craig Forrest
Keyword(s):  
United Nations ◽  
Cultural Heritage ◽  
Armed Conflict ◽  
Hague Convention ◽  
Cultural Property ◽  
Underwater Cultural Heritage ◽  
International Regime ◽  
United Nations Educational ◽  
Natural Heritage ◽  
The World

In November 2001, a new weapon was added to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation's2arsenal used to protect and preserve the world's cultural heritage, in the form of the Convention on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage.3This Convention, while not yet in force, will complement UNESCO's three other heritage conventions, the 1954 Hague Convention on the Protection of Cultural Heritage in the Event of Armed Conflict,4the 1970 Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property (1971)5and the 1972 Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage.6

scholarly journals Preparation and Submission of the Nomination File of the Oasis of Figuig (Morocco) for Inscription on the World Heritage List: Impacts and Uses of a GIS

2011 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. 140-148
Author(s):  
Laurence Gillot ◽  
André Del
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Heritage ◽  
Cultural Landscape ◽  
Good Governance ◽  
World Heritage ◽  
Scientific Data ◽  
Heritage Management ◽  
Management Tool ◽  
Tourism Management ◽  
World Heritage List ◽  
The World

At the request of the municipality of Figuig, a team of scientists, working under the supervision of Professor Jean-Pierre Vallat of the University Paris Diderot and the School of architecture Paris-Val-de-Seine, was entrusted with the task of drawing up and inventory and making an analysis of the cultural properties of the oasis. This program has been led in order to assist the local authorities in the preparation of the nomination file for the inscription of the oasis on the World Heritage List. The oasis is regarded as a matter of fact as a cultural landscape, composed by an important cultural heritage, both material and immaterial. Figuig is indeed characterized by a rich architecture, particularly the ksour (fortified villages) with mud brick houses. Figuig also comprises a palm grove irrigated by a complex network of canals and “foggaras” (pits). Moreover, all the individual and collectives practices connected to the palm grove and to the ksour constitute an important immaterial cultural heritage. The bulk of scientific data (from archaeological, geographical, historical, anthropological investigations) calls for a coherent archiving in order to insure the heritage, environmental and tourism management of the oasis. For this purpose, a GIS would be useful. As a scientific and management tool, the GIS is a precious device which makes it possible to produce thematic (archaeological, historical, touristic, etc.) mappings and inventories. In parallel with these scientific initiatives, the training of the various stakeholders in the practice of the GIS is being developed. Individuals from the municipality, the cooperation offices and the tourism sector are thus developing new competencies. In this respect, the GIS should be a shared tool with multiple applications: scientific researches, heritage management, urban development, tourism management, etc. In this context, this paper sets to analyse the stakes, perspectives and applications of the GIS regarding the necessary development of the oasis whilst protecting its heritage, and ensuring good governance, transparency and justification in the framework of generally binding protective measures.

scholarly journals Sergiu Musteata, The State of Conservation and Periodic Reporting – A Way for Better Preservation and Sustainable Development of the World Heritage Sites

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 227-242
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Heritage ◽  
World Heritage ◽  
World Heritage Sites ◽  
Scientific Methods ◽  
Natural Heritage ◽  
Heritage Sites ◽  
World Heritage List ◽  
The World ◽  
Outstanding Universal Value ◽  
Effective System

Since 1972 UNESCO has established a frame of protection for cultural and natural heritage (Convention concerning the protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage) and the “World Heritage List”, which it considers as having outstanding universal value. In 1994, at the Nara Conference, the Document on Authenticity was established, stating that “the protection and enhancement of cultural and heritage diversity in our world should be actively promoted as an essential aspect of human development”. Today, many factors affect the authenticity and integrity of cultural heritage: intensive tourism, excessive restoration works, new inappropriate investments or uncorrelated private interventions, etc. The debates on cultural heritage research, preservation and management have increased in recent years as the effect of UNESCO standards, namely to establish “an effective system of collective protection of the cultural and natural heritage of outstanding universal value, organized on a permanent basis and in accordance with modern scientific methods”. The problem of preservation, management, and promotion of heritage is of crucial importance from many points of views: scientific, technologic, socio-economic, and cultural.

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