[Virtual Roundtable #8] “The Impact Of COVID-19 on Heritage Law & Protection”

Virtual Roundtable #8 on “The Impact Of COVID-19 on Heritage Law & Protection” took place this morning at 11AM (SGT). The Panel featured Paulius Jurcys (ICOMOS Lithuania), Montira Unakul (UNESCO, Bangkok Office), Jack Lee Tsen-Ta (ICOMOS Singapore) and Moderator, Dr Kevin YL Tan (NUS Law).  

The Roundtable began with Dr Jurcys’ brief presentation of an empirical study conducted by ICOMOS Lithuania, noting that the sharp decline in international tourism and reduced funding has led to reduced staffing and delayed projects. He noted that while the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in reduced funding to manage heritage sites, there have also been some benefits with reduced pollution and the re-invigoration of local tourism in larger countries. Dr Unakul cited a UNESCO survey where 90% of world heritage sites were closed or made inaccessible due to the pandemic and pinpointed structural issues in heritage governance, including state-centric models of management which disempower customary guardians who live at the heritage sites. Citing the 1970 UNESCO Convention to fight illicit trafficking of cultural property, Dr Lee stressed on the need for proper inventory of artefacts for identification, noting an increase in the sale of looted artefacts overseas, particularly in the Middle East and Africa.  

The session also featured a lively Q&A discussion where the Panel tackled questions on the reform of laws for guardianship and the use of digital media in spreading awareness of heritage sites.  

Missed this event? Catch up on the video recording, due on the CALS Youtube channel soon!  

This Roundtable was organised by the Centre for Asian Legal Studies (CALS) NUS in collaboration with ICOMOS (Singapore).