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Cultural heritage management
APSARA, the national Authority for the Management and
Development of the Region of Angkor, has developed a global
project for the protection, research and preservation of
Angkor's kiln sites. Each of APSARA's internal divisions
is working to weave together different but related concerns
into a single and cohesive whole. Recently adopted national
legislation concerning the protection of cultural heritage
set this project within a solid legal framework. To initiate
and coordinate collaboration in the field, APSARA held its
first Forum for Cultural Heritage Management in June 1996
at Run Pagoda, adjacent to one of the kiln sites.
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The Forum brought provincial and local authorities,
religious leaders and international research teams together
for the first time to discuss the future of Angkor's past.
The kiln sites are to be classified as "Protected Cultural
Landscapes" in accordance with zoning regulations adopted
in 1994 to protect and guide development in the Angkor region.
APSARA has begun work with villagers and local authorities
to encourage full community participation in national cultural
heritage protection. For these communities, the benefits
of protection should soon beign to outweigh any "benefits"
gained through destruction. Customs officers are trained
to recognize authentic pottery and prohibit its export.
Monitoring of the Siem Reap antique market by the Cultural
Heritage and local police forces has been increased to this
effect.
"Please
join together to protect ancient kilns". A billboard
erecetd at the Tani site by villagers and APSARA team
member pictured here, 1997.
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| Foreign research institutions, development
agencies, art connoisseurs and other friends of Cambodia
also have an important role to play in protecting this
heritage. Situated within the Angkor Park, the kiln
sites are in fact integral to a registered World Heritage
Site. In this light, APSARA has solicited the assistance
of the international community in all aspects of the
project. |
| International research
teams have surveyed the various sites, and are currently
working with APSARA to implement a global research program
not only aimed at increasing general knowledge on Khmer
civilisation, but more particularly designed to integrate
local community participation in research itself. UNESCO
funds allocated to the community development component
of this project have allowed APSARA to collaborate with
the Siem Reap Land Survey Service and Japan's Sophia
University and Nara National Cultural Properties Research
Institute in carrying out a topographical survey of
the Tani site.Local collaboration in protection is reinforced
with the rise of local awareness of the cultural and
historical value of the sites themselves. In the framework
of APSARA, the international community strives to encourage
and assist local community development initiatives.
Assistance was given, for example, in the reconstruction
of a local Buddhist temple. |
In the future, APSARA
hopes to present the kiln sites not only to local
inhabitants, but also to national and international
visitors. Providing employment opportunities for villagers,
a site museum will add a new dimension to the tourist
experience at Angkor. So long hidden to the world,
Cambodia's buried treasures are finally being recovered
and uncovered. The challenge now is to save them for
posterity, to respect and appreciate their true and
eternal value. With care, they will remain an inexhaustible
resource for Cambodia's future.
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