Preserving historical sites: ‘Laws are of little use unless implemented’
Ownership disputes affecting legal status of conservation work.
LAHORE:
Enacting laws calling for preservation of historical sites will do little good until strict implementation can be assured, said Prof Fauzia Qureshi, the National College of Arts Architecture Department head, on Friday.
She was giving a lecture on Cultural Heritage of Multan on the forth day of the Pakistan Urban Forum at Alhamra, The Mall.
She said during a project in 2004 to conserve 53 sites in the city she had persuaded the city administration to demolish encroachments including the Gol Market so that the visual connection between the Multan Fort and the Clock Tower could be restored. She said there were no protests because traders were provided with plots in a nearby area. But, she said, a mosque at the site could not be demolished because of an uproar was feared. She regretted that the mosque had over time expanded. She said she had recommended building the extensions underground because otherwise the purpose of restoration work would be lost.
Highlighting the problems she had faced during her work, she said ambiguity regarding the ownership of shrines too affected the pace of work. She said though successors to the elders buried at the shrines were often well known, the buildings were managed by several government departments including the Auqaf and the Archaeology Departments. This, she said, left no legal protection available to the preservation work.
She said the urs celebrations were in many cases damaging the shrines. She said there were no facilities available to deal with the influx of devotees.
She criticised the construction of a cricket stadium, a police station, a hotel and, of late, a Hajj Complex at the Multan Fort and conversion of Shah Berkhari’s shrine into a seminary. She said all vehicular traffic should be banned inside the complex and that it should be given status of a heritage site.
She said during her recent research on more sites in Multan including the Musa Pak Complex she had recommended the government demolish two building falling in the way of the complex (housing the tomb of Musa Pak, his son Yahya Nawab and Hamid Gillani). She said the buildings were owned by the Gillani family.
She said she had proposed direct access to the complex through Alang Road by removing encroachments on the way so that the complex could be preserved.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 5th, 2011.
Enacting laws calling for preservation of historical sites will do little good until strict implementation can be assured, said Prof Fauzia Qureshi, the National College of Arts Architecture Department head, on Friday.
She was giving a lecture on Cultural Heritage of Multan on the forth day of the Pakistan Urban Forum at Alhamra, The Mall.
She said during a project in 2004 to conserve 53 sites in the city she had persuaded the city administration to demolish encroachments including the Gol Market so that the visual connection between the Multan Fort and the Clock Tower could be restored. She said there were no protests because traders were provided with plots in a nearby area. But, she said, a mosque at the site could not be demolished because of an uproar was feared. She regretted that the mosque had over time expanded. She said she had recommended building the extensions underground because otherwise the purpose of restoration work would be lost.
Highlighting the problems she had faced during her work, she said ambiguity regarding the ownership of shrines too affected the pace of work. She said though successors to the elders buried at the shrines were often well known, the buildings were managed by several government departments including the Auqaf and the Archaeology Departments. This, she said, left no legal protection available to the preservation work.
She said the urs celebrations were in many cases damaging the shrines. She said there were no facilities available to deal with the influx of devotees.
She criticised the construction of a cricket stadium, a police station, a hotel and, of late, a Hajj Complex at the Multan Fort and conversion of Shah Berkhari’s shrine into a seminary. She said all vehicular traffic should be banned inside the complex and that it should be given status of a heritage site.
She said during her recent research on more sites in Multan including the Musa Pak Complex she had recommended the government demolish two building falling in the way of the complex (housing the tomb of Musa Pak, his son Yahya Nawab and Hamid Gillani). She said the buildings were owned by the Gillani family.
She said she had proposed direct access to the complex through Alang Road by removing encroachments on the way so that the complex could be preserved.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 5th, 2011.