World Heritage Conservation in the Pacific

The Case of Solomon Islands

Stephanie Clair Price

• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan
• Year: 2018
• Print ISBN:
  9789811306013
• eBook ISBN:
  9789811306020
• Topic: Social Sciences
• Subtopic: Social Science Biographies
• Index: Social Sciences

Investigates the challenges associated with the legal protection of World Heritage sites in the Pacific Islands.

Analyses the implementation of the World Heritage Convention in the Pacific context.

Offers new options to strengthen the legal protection of World Heritage in Pacific Island States. 

Part IIntroduction

© The Author(s) 2018

Stephanie Clair PriceWorld Heritage Conservation in the PacificPalgrave Series in Asia and Pacific Studieshttps://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-0602-0_1

Begin Abstract

1. Implementation of the World Heritage Convention by the Independent Pacific Island States

Stephanie Clair Price¹

(1)

University of Western Australia, Crawley, WA, Australia

Stephanie Clair Price

End Abstract

1.1 Introduction

The independent Pacific Island States¹ (Fig. 1.1) are home to a diverse array of heritage sites. These include impressive marine and terrestrial ecosystems, sites evidencing the development of island societies, and places of significance due to their connection with the customs of Pacific Islanders. Eight places within these States have been inscribed on the World Heritage List,² including East Rennell in Solomon Islands, which is the focus of this book.

Fig. 1.1

Map of the independent Pacific Island States. Map made with data from Natural Earth. Free vector and raster map data @ naturalearthdata​.​com

East Rennell is customary land, and is owned and occupied by the East Rennellese people. It was the first place in the independent Pacific Island States to be inscribed on the World Heritage List.³ It was also the first place anywhere in the world to be listed based on its natural heritage values and customary protection. Consequently, its listing was a landmark in the implementation of the World Heritage Convention ,⁴ which established an important precedent concerning the acceptance of customary law as a sufficient basis for the protection of natural sites.⁵ However, East Rennell is now on the List of World Heritage in Danger,⁶ threatened by the impacts of resource development, invasive species, climate change, and the over -harvesting of certain animals.⁷ Addressing these threats will require a range of actions, including strengthening the site’s protection under customary and State law.

The World Heritage Convention requires State parties to implement the legal measures needed to protect the World Heritage within their borders,⁸ but does not mandate what form that legislation must take. It therefore allows State parties to tailor their World Heritage protection laws to suit their context. This creates an opportunity for the Convention to be utilised by Pacific Island States in a manner that is consistent with the nature of their heritage, land tenure, and legal systems. Despite this, developing and implementing effective legislation remains challenging for many such States, including Solomon Islands. If East Rennell is to retain its World Heritage listing, its legal protection must be improved. In addition, if the representation of Pacific heritage on the World Heritage List is to increase, and if the Convention is to be successfully used to conserve significant heritage sites, greater understanding of its application in the Pacific is required.

This book therefore explores the World Heritage Convention regime in the Pacific context, to identify the opportunities and challenges it presents for the protection of the region’s heritage. Solomon Islands’ implementation of the Convention is critically analysed, revealing lessons that could improve World Heritage protection in that country and elsewhere. The book begins here with an introduction to the Convention and its implementation in the Pacific.

1.2 The World Heritage Convention Regime

The World Heritage Convention was adopted by the General Conference of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO ) in November 1972.⁹ Among other things, it was a response to growing international concern about the impacts of human activities on cultural sites and wilderness areas. It also reflected increasing appreciation of the interrelationship between culture and nature, and the need to preserve heritage for future generations (discussed further in Sect. 3.​2.​1).

The drafters of the Convention wanted the treaty to apply to sites of significance to humankind, rather than places possessing only local or national value.¹⁰ Thus, sites only fall within the ambit of the Convention if they have ‘outstanding universal value’ (OUV).¹¹ State parties have the primary responsibility to safeguard such places , and must take ‘effective and active’ measures to achieve that end.¹² However, as the deterioration of World Heritage constitutes a ‘harmful impoverishment of the heritage of all the nations of the world’,¹³ the Convention also establishes a system of international assistance to help State parties comply with their duties.¹⁴

The World Heritage Convention has never been amended, and this would be a ‘long and risky’ task¹⁵ as there are now 193 State parties.¹⁶ Despite this, the Convention regime has evolved, because the Convention document itself only establishes a framework. It creates the key structural elements of the regime, namely:

• the World Heritage Committee (an executive decision-making body comprising 21 State parties);
• the World Heritage List (a list of sites that the World Heritage Committee considers have OUV, and has decided to include in the List on that basis); and
• the World Heritage Fund (a fund administered by the World Heritage Committee, used to assist State parties and others to identify and protect World Heritage) (Table 1.1).

It also gives an advisory role to three international non-government organisations (NGOs): the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS), and the Inte...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Front Matter
• Part I. Introduction
• Part II. World Heritage Conservation in the Pacific
• Part III. The Case of Solomon Islands
• Part IV. Conclusion
• Back Matter