Thanks to the transparency policies of UNESCO and its World Heritage Centre, All documents listed below are public information of open access for all around the world from UNESCO Web sites specifically, by Information System of the State of Conservation (SOC) open to the public from 2012 (Click here to see related news: http://whc.unesco.org/en/news/962/).
Live broadcast: during the Committee Meeting Monday 17, of 9:00 pm to Martes 18, 6:00 am hour de Panamá, in http://whc.unesco.org/en/sessions/37COM/
Any text in italics is an UNOFFICIAL translation of the document cited by the text in italics.
The purpose of this blog post is Heritage Panama depth analysis, but easily bring you, What needs to meet Panama in terms of the fortifications of Portobelo and San Lorenzo for the risks that threaten their outstanding universal value are eliminated.
Antecedent: 2012
The World Heritage property, “Fortifications on the Caribbean coast of Panama: Portobelo and San Lorenzo” is located on the north coast of Panama, in the province of Colón. It was inscribed on the World Heritage List 1980. It was inscribed on the World Heritage List in Danger 2012.
According to analysis by the World Heritage Centre and ICOMOS, hazards on the outstanding universal value of the “Fortifications on the Caribbean coast of Panama: Portobelo and San Lorenzo” are, the fragile state of the property and its rapid deterioration by environmental factors, limited lack of maintenance and conservation planning; erosion; absence of limits and lack of buffer zone; absence of a conservation and management plan; pressure invasions and urban; tourist pressure (particularly in Portobelo); and inadequate legislation for the preservation of the built heritage and regulations that combine the two components of the property (Item WHC-13/37.COM/7A, page 91). If these risks are corrected, Portobelo and San Lorenzo will come from the List of World Heritage in Danger.
Simple! But not easy.
The inscription on the List of World Heritage in Danger was decided by the World Heritage Committee by Decision 36 COM 7B.102 and implemented by Decision 36 COM 8C.1, which established the World Heritage List in Danger 2012.
The Decision 36 COM 7B.102 (click the link to view, for the text in English) states at paragraph No.6:
“6. Considers that the State Party has not complied with all the requests expressed by previous World Heritage Committee Decisions, and that therefore the property is in danger in conformity with Chapter IV.B of the Operational Guidelines and decides to inscribe the Fortifications on the Caribbean Side of Panama: Portobelo-San Lorenzo (Panama) on the List of World Heritage in Danger;” (Decision 36 COM 7B.102)
Then, the Decision 36 COM 7B.102 indicates the desired state of conservation for the property in paragraph No.7; namely, which must be fulfilled in order to remove the “Fortifications on the Caribbean coast of Panama: Portobelo and San Lorenzo” List of World Heritage in Danger:
“7. Adopts the following Desired state of conservation for the property, for its future removal from the List of World Heritage in Danger:
to) The approval and full implementation of an emergency plan, a comprehensive assessment of structural and mechanical risks, preventative conservation strategy and maintenance measures at San Lorenzo and Portobelo,
b) National laws and policies for the conservation of built heritage at San Lorenzo and Portobelo defined and in place,
c) Long-term consolidation and conservation through annual plans for the components of the inscribed property ensured,
d) The operational and participatory management system, including its related public use plan, approved and implemented,
and) The Management Plan fully integrated within territorial and urban development plans,
f) Encroachments and urban pressure adequately controlled,
g) The boundaries and buffer zone of all component parts of the World Heritage property precisely clarified,
h) Budgets for the preparation, implementation and follow-up of the management structures and conservation measures secured.” Decision 36 COM 7B.102
Panama has a calendar, also described in Decision 36 COM 7B.102 which strictly fulfilled the tasks within the time stipulated, culminate in September 2014. So we know in advance that the “Fortifications on the Caribbean coast of Panama: Portobelo and San Lorenzo” This year would not leave the Danger List, although Panama had fulfilled the task calendar for 2013.
This year, Cambodia
This year, in Session 37 COM that is llevándose out this week in Cambodia, discussed the document Item WHC-13/37.COM/7A, where “Fortifications on the Caribbean coast of Panama: Portobelo and San Lorenzo” take from the page 91 to 94. This document includes the background of the analysis by the World Heritage Centre and ICOMOS, and Draft Decision 37 COM 7A.36 (*).
In its Conclusion, analysis by the World Heritage Centre and ICOMOS reads:
“The World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies take note of the efforts made for setting up a coordinated national management system for World Heritage. However, they note the limited progress made by the State Party in the implementation of the Desired state of conservation and of the corrective measures of this property. They recommend that the World Heritage Committee express its concern that a comprehensive Emergency Plan has not yet been developed to identify a clear course of action to address the poor state of conservation of the property.
In addition, they note that no clear information was included on the decision-making process for the properties, nor on the role of the Technical Office in Portobelo in preparing the Emergency Plan. The institutional, legal and financial instruments to address the conservation and management of the property need to be clarified and put into force as a matter of urgency.”
(In UNOFFICIAL form, in Spanish would read: The World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies note the efforts made to create a coordinated national management system for World Heritage. However, note the limited progress made by the State party in implementing the desired state of conservation and remedial measures for this property. They recommend that the World Heritage Committee expressed its concern that a comprehensive emergency plan has not been developed to identify a clear course of action to address the poor state of conservation of the property.
Also, point was not included clear information about the decision-making process for real, and on the role of the Technical Office of Portobelo in the preparation of the Emergency Plan. It is necessary to clarify and enforce urgent institutional instruments, legal and financial resources to address the conservation and management of the property.)
Draft Decision 37 COM 7A.36 dice así:
“Draft Decision: 37 COM 7A.36
The World Heritage Committee,
1. Having examined Document WHC-13/37.COM/7A,
2. Recalling Decision 36 COM 7B.102, adopted at its 36th session (Saint-Petersburg, 2012),
3. Takes note of the information provided by the State Party on the conditions at the property and the actions implemented and regrets that the report did not specifically relate information to the adopted corrective measures;
4. Expresses its serious concern for the limited progress that has been achieved in the execution of the corrective measures and urges the State Party to implement them within the approved timeframe, with particular attention to:
to) Formulation of a budgeted Emergency Plan that includes the identification of priority interventions for stabilization, conservation and protection with timeframes and priority interventions for implementation,
b) Ensuring that operational conservation arrangements are in place and that budgets have been secured for the implementation of the Emergency Plan,
c) Identification of measures to address encroachments and urban pressure;
5. Requests the State Party to submit comprehensive technical and graphic information on the planned construction of a retaining wall at the Santiago de la Gloria fort in Portobelo by 30 October 2013, and to halt the interventions until the evaluation of the World Heritage Centre and the Advisory Bodies is submitted to the State Party;
6. Also requests the State Party to submit clear information on the role of the Patronato de Portobelo for the conservation of the property within the framework of a collective Management Plan for this property and the Archaeological Site of Panamá Viejo and Historic District of Panamá;
7. Further requests the State Party to invite an advisory mission to support the State Party in providing guidelines to finalize the diagnosis and to prepare a comprehensive conservation Emergency Plan as soon as possible,
8. Requests moreover the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 February 2014, an updated report on the state of conservation of the property and the implementation of the above, for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 38th session in 2014;
9. Decides to retain Fortifications on the Caribbean Side of Panama: Portobelo-San Lorenzo (Panama) on the List of World Heritage in Danger.” (Item WHC-13/37.COM/7A, on the pages 93 and 94).
Especially noteworthy Point No.3 of the draft decision, where the Committee notes the information provided by the State party (Panamá) on property condition and actions implemented – while Panama regrets that the report does not specifically related to any corrective action information (brought to Panama in the decision last year) threats to the outstanding universal value that led to the inclusion on the List of World Heritage in Danger, first; and Point No. 6 which asks Panama to clarify the role of the Board of Portobelo for conservation of the property (Portobelo and San Lorenzo) within what appears to be a new framework Panamanian has not been disseminated in Panama: Collective Management Plan, to administer the land to Portobelo and San Lorenzo, but also the Archaeological Site of Panama Viejo and Casco Antiguo (Historic District of Panama). What would be the role of boards in this budding management framework? Do you repeat the recent management model of the Old Town of Panama in the other historical monuments?
Draft Decision 37 COM 7A.36 specifically, will be discussed by the World Heritage Committee on Monday morning 17, of 9:00 pm to Martes 18, 6:00 am hour de Panamá, broadcast live on http://whc.unesco.org/en/sessions/37COM/.
Update, 18 June 2013:
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(*) The State of Conservation or SOC, for “Fortifications on the Caribbean coast of Panama: Portobelo and San Lorenzo”, is broken and publicly available http://whc.unesco.org/en/soc/1854. Includes a tab at the bottom where the Draft Decision 37 COM 7A.36.
