UNESCO to review Luang Prabang's World Heritage status
UNESCO will send officials to Luang Prabang next month to see whether the town still warrants its World Heritage status, according to a senior official.
The head of the Luang Prabang Heritage Office, Ms Manivone Thoummabouth, said last week that the team of inspectors would arrive in Luang Prabang early next month, and will work there for two weeks to review all heritage sites in a routine inspection.
“They will come with a checklist to ensure all listed building and artefacts have remained intact in the 10 years since the town was listed as a World Heritage Site,” she said in a telephone interview with Vientiane Times.
She said the inspection was not unexpected, because UNESCO inspects all sites 10 years after they have been granted World Heritage status.
She added that UNESCO had proposed an inspection of the town last year. “Lao government and UNESCO officials reached an agreement on a deadline for the Luang Prabang inspection in August during a meeting in Switzerland ,” she said.
Ms Manivone said the team of inspectors had extensive knowledge of World Heritage Sites and remained independent from all state organisations.
UNESCO has removed certain sites from the World Heritage list in the past, including the city of Chiang Mai in Thailand , which was unable to maintain its sites due to rapid development.
Photo: Foreigners waiting to take photo of sunset in Luang prabang
Ms Manivone said she had a strong belief that the results of this year's inspection would be positive, because over the past 10 years local authorities have “done an excellent job in maintaining the area”.
She explained that many of the town's temples and houses were in the same condition as they were 10 years ago, and all renovations had been carried out carefully, in accordance with heritage guidelines.
She also said that while local architecture had been preserved, Luang Prabang residents had continued to maintain their traditional lifestyles; women still wear the traditional Lao skirt when offering alms to monks in the early mornings, an example of the many traditions that have largely disappeared in Asia .
Ms Manivone said the Lao government has always been intent on protecting its places of cultural heritage as they reflect the unique Lao culture, and help to boost the tourism industry.
“Many tourists come to Luang Prabang because of its World Heritage status,” she said, adding that this has led to more jobs and better incomes for local people.
It will be better if no foreign tourists swarming into Luang Prabang. People there will be living better. There will be no noise and gas and smoke pollution like it is now.
Chiang Mai is a city of a million people, Luang Prabang has about 40,000 people. They will never be the same. Chiang Mai is not so dependent on tourism for its economy. The best way to ensure Luang Prabang prospers in the future is to enforce the regulations that ensure it has a world heritage status. If the tourists leave what will the people of luang prabang do? Go back to rice? Also there is domestic tourism and religious tourism as well. Thousands of Lao go to luang prabang for the new year and to remember the city of the kings. This is an important place. It should not be 'reduced' to a tourism destination, but it should be protected so that the tourism industry does not leave it behind.
Luang Prabang is World heritage city, which translates into Lao language "Mouang Moladok Lok". But some said: "Luang Prabang is Mouang Moknalok, which translates into English " hell city". They cannot do anything in that city.
In this regard, I think, even better if Luang Prabang is removed from world heritage status.
That's a very difficult question.... if you let everyone do what they want in this city, for sure they will destroy the harmony and authenticity of the city....destroy what tourists are looking for and appreciate.... this mean you won't have any more tourists in this city. This would mean also loose an important testimony of your history.
But i can understand people living there too.... In my country too we have very strong rules to protect historical cities, and it's a big constraint for people living in those cities.... people are not free to build what they want, they have to respect many rules that make any improvement very expensive...but generaly they understand and accept the rules because they know it's for general benefit!
In fact, lao people are free to choose: - respect UNESCO rules mean make Luangprabang a national symbol that lao peole can be proud of, and that will attract many tourists and their money - or feel free to develop the city as any modern city: Luang prabang will become a 'normal' city... just maybe little bit more beautifull than other. Tourists will leave the city because it won't be interesting for them any more, lao people won't be able to benefit any more from tourists money. The city will loose it's UNESCO status... but lao people will retreive the full control of the city, and be able to develop the city for their personal needs and according to their taste.
That's also a big problem in laos: In my country, what tourists like is generaly the same thing as most of local people like too (old and strong architecture, peacefull places...) But in Laos, seam that western tourists'taste is very different from lao people's taste: tourists are looking for historical testimony, peacefull, natural and preserved places, old monuments and architecture, simple and typical way of life... but many lao people now don't care any more about that... they just want modernity, comfort, high-tech, more money, development (without care about the good or bad consequences of this development: many people consider that everything new is always good). Western tourists who come to lao have enough of this in their own country, and begin to understand the limits of this system, so they are looking for something else that they still can find in a country like Laos but that is disapearing little by little. UNESCO purpose is just to protect what can still be protected.... up to lao people to decide if it's good or not for them (the problem is that they need tourists'money to develop other parts of their country)... but they should think about the future and be sure they won't regret their choise later.
Last year i went to the main city Lhasa city of Tibet, China, they seperate city into 2 Zone: Tibetan zone and Chinese area, In thr Tibetan zone prople can not build modern building, but people can build the most modern building in new chinese zone
Luang Prabang will always be popular with tourists. Look at Vang Vien, tourists like that. Luang Prabang already reminds me of Chang Mai, full of guest houses and tourists with some regular peolple living normal lives and most working for tourists.
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