Urban Cultural Heritage Awareness: Problems and Issues [Archives:2001/10/Culture]

Abdulkareem Al-Magaleh 
Awareness Specialist
 
The cultural heritage scene is as rich and varied as the rich climate of the country. The comparison is made because climate has a lot to do with the nature of the cultural heritage in the various urban areas where one can see various traditions which is fitting to the particular environment the city is located in. Sana’a, for example, has a rich architectural style and an economy based on handicrafts and various traditional services. The preservation of such heritage in the city of Sana’a has taken a course through which old buildings and landmarks will be preserved and handicrafts revived and improved to cater for the local residents and for tourism purposes. The experience in Sana’a is an eye opener; where many of the success archived in the city can be applied to other parts of the country. When one speaks of preservation of such heritage in urban areas, one has to look at the variety of the cities and climates in which these centers are located to draw proper plans in how to handle the preservation efforts. Awareness raising is an essential part of such efforts which we think should take a two tier path, one which focuses on the local resident and the other on the general population as a whole. Both tiers have to take into consideration a number of problems and issues which we think are prevalent amongst the general population: here are some of these issues: 
Old is not appreciated: 
There is a common believe that old is not good as we see amongst the new generation who appreciate imports more than they appreciate locally made products including handicrafts. This is so because they are looking up to modern life and want to live this life which they think will bring them a certain statuesque and the comfort of modern life. An old house in the old quarter of the city doesn’t compare well with a new stone villa with modern villa which has ceramic tiles, carpeting and modern bathrooms. So would a garment handcrafted to a traditional style which many of the Yemeni forefathers and mothers had worn with pride. Consequently, the problem here is that of appreciation. People who live in a given city ,should first appreciate their heritage and should also appreciate the strides made by their forefathers in construction techniques, adaptation of building materials and the wise architectural planning which they had made suitable for their environment. The value and significance which can be cultural, social, religious, economic, commercial, political or historical has to be appreciated by both the people and the officials in charge of looking after cultural heritage preservation. Appreciation by the inhabitants are well as the general public and officials of any target area for preservation is necessary for their full involvement in planning as well as preservation efforts. 
Narrow definition of cultural heritage 
The definition of cultural heritage as the built environment only doesn’t play well with the general concept of cultural heritage preservation. Traditions, values and traditions arts and crafts which gives any culture its flavor and uniqueness. Awareness campaigns focusing on the built environment alone would be narrow sided and would have difficulty raising the needed awareness. 
Illiteracy: 
Many awareness campaigns in any field stumble with the fact that illiteracy is rampant studies have shown that over 69% of the urban population are illiterate. Illiteracy not only hampers transmission of information easily, but also make it difficult for illiterate people to understand concepts behind any oral or written effort. The problem pauses a challenge to the awareness effort where innovative mediums of communications have to be considered. 
Danger of using Traditional means of communications: 
There is the danger of stumbling into politics by using traditional means of communications i. E. Mosques and Schools. This fact of life has to be considered carefully to avoid any pitiful which may create unneeded political issues and undermines the objectives of the campaign. 
Dying Communications techniques: 
Story telling which used to be an effective mean of communication through which great stories based on historical events or personalities had been transmitted is no longer interesting with the advent of Television/Radio and film plays. A revival of such techniques entails extensive research effort and would have to take place within a new context or incorporated into another new medium of communication. 
Moreover, theatrical plays are not part of the tradition and the only thing closer to such medium is the traditional dances and comedy carnivals which used to be part of religious and wedding celebration. The association of these forms of communications into cultural heritage preservation awareness, given the fact, that we are trying to focus on the built environment, means going out of bound of the scope of the project, but certainly serves the wider scope of cultural heritage preservation. 
Women: 
Women are an important element of community development and any awareness campaign targeting them has to consider the special status of women in the country. They should be carefully targeted using traditional gatherings and local associations where women are present. Studies have shown that women suffer most from illiteracy, a fact which pauses the greatest challenge to any communication message. The problem is compounded by the fact that women are always busy rearing their many children and looking after their homes and may not be able to be at women gathering where they can be targeted. 
Seeing is believing: (a credibility crises) 
Experience has shown that the General population in Yemen strongly hold to the notion that seeing is believing. They will only pay attention to something when they see it and can often neglect or scoff at ideas which are based on theory or “future plans”. This has to do with the historic experience of the population when many things have been said but not done. 
Credibility is very important for the success if any community development program or awareness campaign. Credibility in Yemen society is something which require a boost since, without sounding pessimistic, many have lost confidence on any major campaigns or claims. The credibility of the mass media is no longer there. People prefer to hear the news from a station outside the country. Even if they hear it from a local station, they would believe it more if it was confirmed from the outside. Rumors are often believed more than the facts. 
Mass media distribution and lack of interest 
Newspapers and magazine as well as TV and Radio face a problem of distribution and reach. Newspapers, although many, publish only few thousand copies each and therefore the reach is limited. The illiteracy factor is a negative factor which works against the newspapers and magazines. The distribution of the press is rather limited to certain urban areas and the smaller then urban area, the chance of reaching them through this medium gets smaller and smaller. TV/Radio as a mass medium has a better reach but the access and effectiveness of such medium has to be evaluated for targeting certain group. Such evaluation is lacking and even the TV/Radio organization doesn’t have sufficient research on reach and targeting. 
There is also a lack of interest in the part of media organizations. Some in the industry would like to blame that on unavailability of resources, but the fact of the matter is that many media organizations are focused on politics and neglect other aspects of life in the country including cultural conservation. 
Lack of Audio Visual Training: 
The lack of Audio Visual training is often a constraint where the general population doesn’t necessarily absorb the message intended through an Audio Visual medium such as TV or presentation. The use of Symbols can be confusing at best where some people get confused on what they really mean. The illusion that an Audio-Visual presentation intends to make is often missed and concentration is on the beauty or the dazzling color of a picture or an image rather than the understanding of the message. 
Lack of easy access to international Media 
International media is concerned with wars and civil upheavals in many countries around the world and seems to lose interest in the other aspect of human heritage such cultural conservation. However, the coverage of such media to conservation efforts would play well with international organizations concerned as well as donors and will also generate interest amongst the general world population generating interest for tourism itineraries to cultural heritage sites. 
Economic situation: 
Economy plays an important role in enticing interest. The unique architectural heritage of urban areas is threatened by declining economic growth and by the use of so called modern building materials. Moreover, awareness in the potential economic growth in the development of traditional industries such handicrafts and building materials is often lacking. Benefits waiting for them in any preservation efforts which can create a wealth of opportunities is often missed as a result and creates a lack of interest as well. There seem to be a lack of inventories of economic benefits which can be reaped from preservation, a matter which no awareness campaign can do without because it constitutes the basis of message delivery to the population. 
The Legal situation: 
There is a lack of awareness in any legal framework which might exist for urban cultural heritage preservation. In my believe, this is due to the following reasons: 
1.Weakness of concerned government organizations and NGO’s 
2.Weakness of law and building codes enforcement by concerned authorities. 
3.Too many organizations working with the practically the same mandate. 
Absence of a National monuments Register: 
The absence of a national monument register deprives awareness message of an important credibility aspect. A register lands credibility to any awareness message for urban cultural heritage preservation since it gives the needed recognition and general acceptances of the significance of a monument or a site. 
Lack of coordination: 
Many governmental and non-governmental organizations work individually on any given issue. This lack of coordination, necessarily means lack of communications. Many government organizations working in the field have tried to tackle certain issues through awareness campaigns without coordinating with other organization, a matter which makes the message one sides and incomplete. 
Moreover, lack of awareness of the inside working of the mass media in general causes lack of coordination which can lead to under-coverage of any given cultural heritage awareness raising event. 
Conclusion: 
The above are some of the issues which can be a constraint if not handled properly and any community development or awareness camping must consider the above issues in order to develop the right awareness messages and to choose the right medium of communications. 

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