Myanmar tourism industry wants protection for colonial sites

The opening up of Myanmar means more money and more tourists coming in, which means more development – which in turn means the once-grand colonial-era buildings may have to make way for newer ones. The tourism industry is expressing a desire to protect some of these colonial neighbourhoods so that they may be kept as tourism products.

Tourism sector urges protection of colonial sites
Myanmar Times, 19-25 March 2012

Historic Yangon cityscape thrown a lifeline
Myanmar Times, 19-25 March 2012

Colonial-era buildings are a valuable resource for the tourism sector and a major attraction for visitors to the city, tourism experts said last week.

Many in the industry are supportive of the push for preservation but also point out the need for regulations that ensure renovation work on historical sites is tasteful.

Freelance tour guide U Zaw Lynn said he believed that preserving neighbourhoods, rather than just individual buildings, was important and that any preservation strategy would have to fit into a viable city-wide development plan to be effective.

“Although colonial buildings have great architectural value, their appearance can be diminished by nearby buildings that do not reflect the historical value of the building,” he said.

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