Three sites from Southeast Asia were added into the Unesco World Heritage list earlier this month at the World Heritage Committee meeting in Azerbaijan earlier this month – The Plain of Jars in Laos, Bagan in Myanmar, and the Ombilin Coal Mining Heritage of Sawahlunto in Indonesia. Here’s a news roundup:
- New Inscribed Properties 2019 | Unesco
- Myanmar’s temple city Bagan awarded UNESCO World Heritage status | CNA/Reuters. 6 Jul 2019
- Bagan wins World Heritage status | Bangkok Post, 6 Jul 2019
- Myanmar welcomes Bagan selected as world heritage site | Xinhua, 7 Jul 2019
- Myanmar hails UNESCO’s enlisting of Bagan as World Heritage Site | Xinhua, 7 Jul 2019
- ANU helps secure world heritage status for jars of Laos | Australian National University, 8 Jul 2019
The challenge for the next few years would be the maintenance and development of the sites, as tourist arrivals will definitely increase. The Plain of Jars is still not the easiest place to get to, and the lack of infrastructure may be a good thing in helping to protect the site against the effects of mass tourism. Here’s a drone video of the Plain of Jars I took from my visit in 2016: