YANGON, June 1 (Xinhua) -- The first-ever Yangon Heritage Trust (YHT) Conference 2012 was held at the Strand Hotel here Friday to lay down a strategy for conserving Myanmar's former capital city of Yangon in the 21st century where century-old buildings exist.
Organized by the YHT, the conference discussed papers dealing with the challenge of urban conservation, setting the framework on regulations for conservation and planning, and exploring historic urban landscape as a driver of development, said Lyndal Barry, Strategic Advisor of the Department for International Development (DFID).
Attending at the conference were U Myint Swe, Yangon Region Chief Minister; U Hla Myint, Chairman of Yangon City Development Committee (YCDC); Dr.Thant Myint-U, Chairman of YHT; resources persons from UNESCO; local and international architects; urban planners; business leaders; community organizations among others.
Dr. Thant Myint-U said that "Yangon's unique architectural heritage and invaluable collection of the 19th and early 20th century buildings is today in peril from the effects of long neglect as well as the perhaps more pernicious consequences of recent commercial development."
He pointed out that beautiful century-old residential and commercial buildings in downtown Yangon have been gradually torn down for nearly twenty years, together with colonial-era house all around the city, often to be replaced with poorly designed new structures already at the risk of collapse.
Conserving Yangon's architectural heritage would help to attract future investment in all sectors, he said.
Philip Davies, former London Region Director at the English Heritage, described Yangon as a hidden pearl of Asia.
He also advised to create a statutory list of historic buildings, designate conservation areas, prepare conservation guidelines to help owners to care for their buildings and ban advertising boards on listed buildings and in conservation areas.
There are 189 listed buildings and 11 ancients monuments in Yangon, according to Daw Mie Mie Tin, Deputy Director of the Department of Human Settlements and Housing Development (DHSHD) of the Ministry of Construction.
With a population of over 6 million and area of 795 square kilometers, the Yangon city is demarcated as 45 townships, of which 33 represent the municipal area.
The Yangon Heritage Trust has been created as a Myanmar non- governmental organization to help oversee this project and coordinate efforts.
The trust will also work to raise awareness and advocate for the conservation of these buildings and for the need of a broader urban plan that protects downtown Yangon's special heritage.
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