Authorities in Quang Nam Province have said construction of an anti-flood dyke at My Son Sanctuary violated the Law on Heritage Protection.
Building site at My Son Sanctuary
The People’s Committee of Duy Xuyen District approved a project to dig Khe The Stream for the construction of an anti-flood dyke at the sanctuary in January 2013 and assigned the sanctuary management board as investors without seeking approval from provincial management agencies. The project has an investment of VND1.7 billion (USD80.952) funded from ticket revenues.
The project started in February this year, but the province’s management agencies had not been informed about the work until tourists reported it to them. The impact of construction work has not yet been appraised by experts.
Nguyen Cong Huong, Director of the My Son Sanctuary Management Board said since the flood season of 2010, Khe The had faced serious landslides, including in places some 40 metres from the site’s B,C and D towers. Due to fears of future flooding, Tower B3 was now at risk of collapse.
He however admitted that “We are wrong not to seek management agency approval for the project. We just thought we should get on with it and complete the procedures later.”
Ho Xuan Tinh, Deputy Director of the Quang Nam Province Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, said after being informed, the department asked Duy Xuyen District People’s Committee to stop the work and return the area to its original state.
Mr. Tinh added that in principle, Duy Xuyen District People’s Committee was allowed to directly manage local heritage sites, but the digging without approval went was against the law. “Quang Nam Province Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism will also take joint responsibility for this,” he noted.
According to Dr. Duong Bich Hanh from UNESCO’s office in Hanoi, under the 1972 Convention for Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritages, restoration of world heritage sites needs to receive agreement from UNESCO. Meanwhile, the Law on Heritage Protection stipulates that this work must be agreed by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.
The ministry said it had not yet issued any document to agree to work on the issue, and the type of construction method had not yet been appraised by specialist agencies.