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Activities Report 1999 July Newsletter

Natural Heritage Sites Listing  
      The move by the government to propose Malaysia's National Parks and cultural sites for listing in the World Heritage List is most welcome. Malaysia has been a signatory to the Convention for the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage since 21 November 1988. Malaysia, Myan-mar, Brunei and Singapore are the remaining ASEAN countries without a World Heritage Site (WHS).
      A WHS however needs full commitment and help from all the levels of Government and the general public. A country needs to provide regular reporting on the conditions of the sites, on measures to preserve them, and efforts to raise public awareness of cultural and natural heritage. A good place to start these efforts is to start our own heritage listing from the State level and thence the National Level. Due to the rapid development in recent years, many heritage and natural sites have been destroyed or altered.
      The State Governments should act swiftly to list heritage sites for preservation and
recommend them to the Federal Government for nominations to the World Heritage committee meeting which is held annually. Preparatory inventory assistance, technical assistance, emergency assistance and training will be provided on application, if there is a request and interest in nominations from the signatory country. Malaysia's unique identity and outstanding natural beauty and importance must be preserved for the nation and for mankind.*
     Malaysian Nature Society can offer our assistance in contributing to the decision-making process and recommendations to the Committee, in the selection of natural conservation areas which are not formally protected as national or state parks. (eg natural monuments such as caves, limestone hills, quartz ridge, other unique geological formations; habitats such as mangroves, bird sanctuaries, peat swamps, montane forests, etc).
      With the listing of heritage sites, the tourist industry will benefit as a heritage site is a major premium tourist attraction. The citizens of our nation will also be proud to be blessed with a unique heritage.
* Quoting from the UNESCO guideline's introduction, "The natural heritage as well as the cultural heritage are among the priceless and irreplaceable possessions, not only of each nation but of mankind as a whole…The Convention complements heritage conservation programmes at the national level …."

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Created on 30th June 1999