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Notes from Council March - April 2008
24 March 2008

National Heritage Register

On 11 February 2008, under subsection 27(2) of the National Heritage Act 2005 (Act 645), the Heritage Commissioner has published a notice in local newspapers to announce its intention to designate 32 sites in Peninsula Malaysia as heritage sites.

An owner of the site or any other person affected or likely to be affected by the designation of the site as a heritage site may make an objection by serving a notice of objection to the Commissioner of Heritage with 30 days from the date of the publication of the notice.

The full schedule and notice of objection can be accessed and downloaded from the Department's website http://www.warisan.gov.my/jwn/index.php?site=default&page=notis_bantahan

The Federal Territory Kuala Lumpur had the most number of buildings identified for listing (10), while Selangor and Negeri Sembilan had five each. There were four from Malacca, three each from Kedah and Terengganu and Perak and Perlis came in with one apiece.

The buildings included 18 mosques including the National Mosque and Heroes Monument, one surau and two schools. The remaining 11 included the District and Land Office which is now the Crafts Complex in Seremban, the old Dewan Undangan Negeri Melaka on St Paul’s Hill in Malacca, Federal House, Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka’s original building and the Rubber Research Institute Building on Jalan Ampang, all in Kuala Lumpur. The others are the Parliament House, Batu Caves, the Chinese Assembly Hall, the National Monument, Carcosa Seri Negara and the site on which the Malayan flag was raised for the first time with the Selangor Club Padang (Dataran Merdeka).

This list includes seven sites which were gazetted as National Heritage as of 30 June 2007 (there are 18 items under the category “Heritage Sites” on this list). Section 67 of the National Heritage Act states that “The Minister may, by order published in the Gazette, declare any heritage site, heritage object, underwater cultural heritage listed in the Register or any living person as a National Heritage.” And the flow chart on the Ministry’s website shows that items – heritage buildings/sites, objects, intangible heritage or underwater cultural heritage – are identified from the Heritage Register.

One could ask why the remaining 11 National Heritage sites (category “Heritage Sites”) not been included in the notice of 11 February 2008?

Perhaps part of the answer lies in Section 125(3) of the National Heritage Act which states that “All appointments ... all registers … having effect under the laws or orders repealed … and in force or having effect at the commencement of this Act, shall …continue to be in force and have effect …”. Nine of the remaining 11 were gazetted under the now repealed Antiquities Act 1976. The remaining two have been listed as UNESCO World Heritage (Natural) Sites since 2001.

However, a check of the Heritage Department’s official website shows there are zero (0) items listed in the Heritage Register under the category “Heritage Site”. It is curious, because we might have expected to see a list of at least a couple of hundred buildings and sites, reflecting the items gazetted under the Antiquities Act.

One other item on the 11 February 2008 notice caught the attention of Council – the Rubber Research Institute Building on Jalan Ampang.

We have been advocating strongly for this building to be gazetted as National Heritage and are delighted to see it on this list for the Heritage Register. However, we remain concerned for the future of this building as it is among some of the properties which have been reported to be part of the landbank of a property trust, Yayasan Amanah Hartanah Bumiputera which is managed by Pelaburan Hartanah Bumiputera. The foundation, announced by the Prime Minister YAB Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi in the 2006 Budget, was set up under the Minister of Finance Inc and is aimed at helping more Bumiputera to own prime commercial property in key urban locations.

It was reported that Pelaburan Hartanah was in the process of acquiring several pieces of prime land in Kuala Lumpur to be developed as commercial buildings and offices and these included the KTM land in Jalan Bangsar, land in Jalan Davies and the RRI land in Jalan Ampang (Business Times, 12 March 2007 http://www.btimes.com.my:80/Current_News/BTIMES/Tuesday/Frontpage/upup2.xml/Article/index_html).

Ironic that the RRI is under threat when the National Library, in its portal Sejarah Malaysia, lists the RRI complex in Jalan Ampang as a heritage building, and describes it as the “most comprehensive Art Deco building in Kuala Lumpur” (http://sejarahmalaysia.pnm.my/portalBI/detail.php?section=sm05&spesifik_id=47&ttl_id=15).

Heritage Asia Magazine

Council is pleased to announce that our President, Tan Sri Ahmad Sarji has been appointed by MPH as Editor in Chief of Heritage Asia magazine. Badan Warisan Malaysia will be responsible for the editorial management of the magazine. This will take effect from the May-July 2008 issue. Badan Warisan and MPH will be signing a Letter of Agreement shortly. We are very pleased that we have been given this opportunity to promote to a wide audience the cause of heritage conservation.

Elizabeth Cardosa

Executive Director

EXTENDED: “Warisan Kertas 2” - Exhibition and Sale of Books, Maps, and Ephemera on Malaya and Borneo By Popular Picture History Resources

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News & Announcements

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Walls Come Tumbling Down, History Bypassed
Would this decision to demolish have been made were the building to have been the Bangunan Sultan Abdul Samad? Both these buildings were built at the same time, and the design credited to the same engineer, C E Spooner. And yet one is retained, despite having had extensive changes made to its interior, while the other has largely retained its original form. While it may be too late to save Pudu Jail, Badan Warisan hopes that the awareness raised by this will strengthen the resolve members of the public to be conscious of how fragile our heritage is and to speak up for its protection, conservation and preservation.

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Notes from Council
It was an historic moment for Badan Warisan Malaysia when, at approximately 1p.m. on Saturday 4 July 2009, our President, YABhg Tun Ahmad Sarji bin Abdul Hamid signed a lease agreement for the management of Suffolk House with YAB Mr Lim Guan Eng, Chief Minister of Penang, witnessed by about 40 people including the State Secretary YBhg Datuk Zainal Rahim Seman members of the State Ex-Co, the Penang Heritage Trust and Friends of the Botanical Gardens, as well as members of the press and media.

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MERDEKA STADIUM RESTORATION RECEIVES AWARD OF EXCELLENCE FROM UNESCO
Badan Warisan Malaysia congratulates the Merdeka Heritage Trust and Permodalan National Berhad on winning the Award of Excellence for the 2008 UNESCO Asia-Pacific Heritage Awards for Culture Heritage Conservation for the restoration of Stadium Merdeka. We also delighted that the restoration of Suffolk House in Penang received the Award of Distinction. Congratulations to Arkitek LLA Sdn Bhd, HSBC and the State Government of Penang.

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PENANG HERITAGE TRUST AND BADAN WARISAN MALAYSIA ON THE SUCCESSFUL INSCRIPTION OF MELAKA & GEORGE TOWN AS A SERIAL WORLD HERITAGE SITE
BWM is honoured to have played a part in the country’s achievement. During the last 10 years, we have had to add our weight and experience to actively support the efforts to promote the nomination. Last year we authored the World Heritage Site Management Plan (WHSMP) for George Town which was formulated on behalf of the Penang State Government. This plan formed part of the nomination dossier which was submitted to the World Heritage Centre. A WHSMP is a prerequisite for listing.

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Buletin Warisan September - November 2006
Notes from Council - In the past few months, some members and friends of heritage have commented that they would like to know more about the sorts of heritage issues which concern Badan Warisan Malaysia, and how the Council responds to them. This is especially so for those who do not often come to the Heritage Centre nor participate in activities which have been organized for members. To address this, a note on a selection of issues which are raised at Council will be presented in the Buletin Warisan for your greater understanding and appreciation of the efforts by Council towards promoting the conservation and preservation of Malaysia’s built heritage. In this edition, I am focusing on the most recent campaign for Bok House.

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Terengganu's Rich Heritage
In June 2005 a rather mixed gathering of people from the arts, the media, the adventure travel business, photographers and film makers were assembled at the salubrious Sutra Beach Resort north of Kuala Terengganu courtesy of DiGi Telecommunications for a celebration of some aspects of the state’s rich cultural heritage. The primary focus of the occasion was DiGi’s “Amazing Malaysians” contribution to its corporate social responsibility (CSR) and the individual concerned was none other than the renowned architect and conservationist, member of Badan Warisan YM Raja Dato’ Kamarul Bahrin Shah.

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Report on the Fundraising Dinner 6 December 2007 by Puan Sri Datin Amar Elizabeth Moggie
Malaysians are generous and some donations came from companies we least expected. BWM’s tax exempt status is a great incentive to donors and we were encouraged by people who genuinely supported our cause. We received 3 Platinum donations (4 including Sime Darby), 9 Gold donations, 23 Bronze donations and numerous Warisan donations. Even though some donors did not want to attend the dinner, all 62 tables were filled.

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TOWN PLANNING AND CONSERVATION: WHAT NEEDS TO BE DONE?
In the preservation of the streetscape or heritage enclaves, we should take a new course – leasing the properties for long periods, instead of selling them outright. The biding process should be open to investors in the country and abroad. The period suggested is a 50-year lease, and the government needs to ensure that these properties are protected when the lease term expires, and this needs to happen before anything is signed. We should not sign away our architectural jewels.

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Events

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