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World Heritage Watch 2021 World Heritage Watch World Heritage Watch Report 2021 World Heritage Watch World Heritage Watch Report 2021 Berlin 2021 2 Bibliographical Information World Heritage Watch: World Heritage Watch Report 2021. Berlin 2021 228 pages, with 240 photos, 30 graphics and 84 maps Published by World Heritage Watch e.V. Berlin 2021 ISBN ISBN 978-3-00-069191-1 NE: World Heritage Watch 1. World Heritage 2. Civil Society 3. UNESCO 4. Heritage at Risk 5. Natural Heritage 6. Cultural Heritage 7. Historic Cities 8. Sites 9. Monuments 10. Cultural Landscapes 11. Indigenous Peoples 12. Participation World Heritage Watch © World Heritage Watch e.V. 2021 This work with all its parts is protected by copyright. Any use beyond the strict limits of the applicable copyright law without the consent of the publisher is inadmissible and punishable. This refers especially to reproduction of figures and/or text in print or xerography, translations, microforms and the data storage and processing in electronic systems. The designations employed and the presentation of the material in this publication do not imply the expression of any opinions whatsoever on the part of the publishers concerning the legal status of any country or territory or of its authorities, or concerning the frontiers of any country or territory. The authors are responsible for the choice and the presentation of the facts contained in this book and for the opin- ions expressed therein, which are not necessarily those of the editors, and do not commit them. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form without written permission from the publishers except for the quotation of brief passages for the purposes of review. Editorial Team Stephan Doempke (chief editor), Louise Tournillon and Michael Turner. Map editors: Martin Lenk, Andrea Martinez Fernandez Cover photos: Angel Falls, Canaima National Park, Venezuela. Photo: Rodolfo Gerstl Protests in Windhoek against oil and gas development in the Kavango basin, 20 May 2021. Photo: Liz Frank, WLC Laying concrete pavements on the Acropolis of Athens. Photo: Mikhalis Karagiannis / Eurokinissi Main buildings of the Vat Phou temple complex. Photo: Martin Lenk Back cover map: Martin Lenk Cover Design: Bianka Gericke, www.layoutmanufaktur.de Design and layout: Bianka Gericke, www.layoutmanufaktur.de Printed by: Buch- und Offsetdruckerei H.Heenemann GmbH & Co. KG, Berlin 3 Contents I. Monuments and Sites 9 Stonehenge, Avebury & Associated Sites Under Imminent Threat of Major Road Construction...........................10 Kate Fielden, Stonehenge Alliance Malta’s Ġgantija Temple: Threat to One of the World’s Most Ancient Buildings ......................................14 Dawn Adrienne-Saliba, Malta-ARCH / Astrid Vella, Flimkien għal Ambjent Aħjar Mdina’s Citadel Fortifications, Malta, in Urgent Need of Protection ...............................................19 Jorg Sicot, Flimkien għal Ambjent Aħjar The Acropolis of Athens in Peril ............................................................................21 Tasos Tanoulas, Acropolis:SOS Threats to the Churches of the Virgin and St. George of the Gelati Monastery and their Wall Paintings ...................28 Manana Tevzadze, ICOMOS Georgia The Current State of Archaeological World Heritage Sites in the Idlib Governorate, Syria...............................31 Ammar Kannawi, Idlib Antiquities Center Chinese-style Pavilions in Front of Jokhang Temple Shows China Disregards Tibetan Heritage ..........................42 International Campaign for Tibet II. Historic Cities 45 All Seems Lost on Liverpool Maritime Mercantile City WHS ......................................................46 Gerry Proctor, Engage Liverpool Okhta Cape: Archeological Site Extending from the Stone Age to the XVIII Century in Urgent Need ........................ of Support and Recognition ...............................................................................49 Elena Minchenok Continuing Destruction of Historic Buildings in Vienna .........................................................54 Herbert Rasinger, Initiative Stadtbildschutz Wien The State of Venice and its Lagoon with Reference to the Recommendations of the Advisory Mission of January 2020.......57 Franco Migliorini, Tutta la Cittá Insieme! Protecting Valletta, Manoel Island andMarsamxett World Heritage ...............................................61 Astrid Vella, Flimkien għal Ambjent Aħjar The Bypass Road of Gjirokastra – Short-term Effects vs. Sustainable Solutions.......................................65 Kreshnik Merxhani How to Preserve and Protect Ancient Aleppo ................................................................70 Louay Dakhel, Conservation Architect Old Aleppo and the Challenge of Reconstruction and Restoration ................................................74 Anonymous1 4 Nea Church in Old City in Jerusalem: A Chance to Emphasize the City’s Multi-faceted Heritage? ........................75 Chemi Shiff, Emek Shaveh Historic Cairo: A Diminishing Historic Urban Landscape .........................................................79 Anonymous Lamu Old Town is at a Critical Point of Losing its Outstanding Value and Heritage Status ..............................83 Mohamed Athman, Save Lamu III. Cultural Landscapesand Mixed Properties 87 Hope that Some of the Threats to the Kujataa UNESCO World Heritage Site Could Subside .............................88 Niels Henrik Hooge, Friends of the Earth Denmark’s Uranium Group The Lake District: World Heritage Site and Favourite Off-road Destination ..........................................93 Fritz Groothues (LakesWatch and Lake District Green Lanes Alliance) The Curonian Spit: In Danger of Losing Its Outstanding Universal Value ............................................96 Alexandra Koroleva, Ecodefense! Russia The World Heritage Upper Middle Rhine Valley Faces Multiple Threats ............................................100 Klaus Thomas and Elke Greiff-Gossen, Rheinpassagen Citizens Initiative Semmering Railway and Surrounding Landscape in Danger: Incessant Water Inrushes ..............................105 Christian Schuhböck and Josef Lueger, Alliance For Nature Government Tourism Development Continues Threatening Transboundary Lake Neusiedl .............................107 Zoltán Kun, Wildland Research Institute / Christian Schuhböck, Alliance for Nature Natural and Cultural Heritage of the Ohrid Region: Death by a Thousand Cuts...................................... 111 Sonja Dimoska and Daniel Scarry, Ohrid SOS Upper Svaneti World Heritage is in Danger ..................................................................117 Nato Tsintsabadze, ICOMOS Georgia Siwa Oasis: a Forgotten Heritage Under Threat ...............................................................122 Insaf Ben Othmane Hamrouni, Œcumene Studio The Ahwar of Iraq: Persisting Threats and Paths to Protection...................................................127 Toon Bijnens and Salman Khairalla, Save the Tigris Campaign The State of the Sacred Conservation Zone of the Vat Phou Cultural Landscape, Laos ................................130 Martin Lenk, Consultant on Nature Conservation Raising Local Voices, Supporting Local Concerns in Bali’s World Heritage Site ......................................135 Wiwik Dharmiasih, Universitas Udayana 5 IV. World Heritage Properties and Indigenous Peoples 139 Canada’s “Call to Action” for Wood Buffalo National Park has not Fully Materialized.................................140 Mikisew Cree First Nation Chaco Canyon and the Greater Chaco Landscape at Grave Risk Because of Oil Drilling................................143 Paul F. Reed, Archaeology Southwest The Need to Prevent the Future Degradation in the Yagul and Mitla Caves of Oaxaca ................................150 Guadalupe Yesenia Hernández Márquez, Preservamb Canaima National Park: Relentless Mining on the Rise .........................................................154 SOSOrinoco Koutammakou – a World Heritage Property to be Completed ...................................................159 Ibrahim Tchan, Corps des Voluntaires Beninoises UNESCO Must Protect Present and Future World Heritage Sites From Oil and Gas Pollution in Africa’s Eden ..............162 Andy Gheorghiu, Saving Okavango’s Unique Life (SOUL) Alliance Komodo National Park: The Only Home of Komodo Dragons in Peril ..............................................166 Wahana Lingkungan Hidup Indonesia (Friends of the Earth Indonesia) / Sunspirit for Justice and Peace V. Natural Properties 173 Doñana Dries up Surrounded by Environmental Problems ......................................................174 Juanjo Carmona and Teresa Gil, WWF Spain Białowieża Forest World Heritage Site: What is Next After the 2020 Relief? ........................................178 Tomasz Pezold Knežević, WWF Poland Europe´s Last Ancient, Primary and Old-growth Forests Under Threat of Destruction .................................181 EuroNatur Foundation (Germany) / Agent Green (Romania) / WOLF Forest Protection Movement (Slovakia) / Protection and Preservation of Natural Environment in Albania (Albania) Resorts as the Greatest Danger for the Western Caucasus World Heritage Property..................................185 Irina Panteleeva, Mikhail Kreyndlin and Alexandra Pilipenko, Greenpeace Russia Ile-Alatau State National Natural Park: Development or Destruction? .............................................188 Valeriy Krylov, Sergey Kuratov and Nataliya Medvedeva, Ecological Society “Green
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