South China Morning Post: Beijing acts on Macau lighthouse

原來怠惰的是澳門政府．聯合國世遺中心在今年八月收到護塔連線的信，已經馬上派人來澳視察，並向中央政府反映．

問題是，屬於中央政府的中聯辦大樓並沒有停止興建，現在已經逐漸遮擋了燈塔，而澳門政府仍然認為一切無問題，高樓繼續建．這是甚麼世界？

政府這樣的行動，對照近日施政方針中侃侃而談保護世遺、以民為本，真是諷刺．


South China Morning Post - Front page

Beijing acts on Macau lighthouse

Fox Yi Hu in Macau Nov 28, 2007

Cultural authorities in Beijing have sent a letter to Macau over threats facing a world heritage lighthouse, urging it to address the problem and ease public concerns, sources say.
The State Administration of Cultural Heritage attached a copy of a Unesco inquiry that was sent to it in September.
Unesco's World Heritage Centre is seeking "clarification" from Beijing or Macau about a high-rise building threatening to dwarf the 142-year-old Guia lighthouse.
The administration's World Heritage Department confirmed it had sent a letter to Macau last week, two months after Unesco alerted Beijing.
A department spokesman said it was understandable that the Macau government had difficulty scaling back building plans for the Guia Hill area.
"We believe the Macau government is making an effort," he said.
The tower is outside heritage areas as outlined in Macau's 2005 application for World Heritage status.
Unesco experts visited Macau in August to check on the lighthouse, said Jing Feng, an Asia-Pacific specialist at the world heritage centre.
"We've expressed our concerns over the projects and asked for clarification," Mr Jing said. "We are still waiting for a response."
The lighthouse was listed as a World Heritage site when Unesco conferred the status on Macau's historic centre in 2005. Standing atop the 91-metre hill, it was the first modern lighthouse on the Chinese coast.
But a 126-metre, 34-storey residential block being built by San Va Construction halfway up Guia Hill looks set to dwarf it.
Last month, the government backed down on a demand that the tower's height be lowered, saying the building was "acceptable" in regard to the lighthouse.
The new apartment building has risen to about five floors. Some units have been presold.
Macau is in a difficult position as it approved the building plan and has no legal grounds to reverse its consent. It relaxed a long-standing restriction last September on the maximum height of buildings near Guia Hill, opening the way for developers to plan buildings as high as 135 metres at the foot of the hill.
Mr Jing said Unesco had to deal with the matter through Beijing as Macau was part of China.
The spokesman for the administration's World Heritage Department also stressed the need for Beijing to respond to Unesco's inquiry as it involved foreign affairs. "We fully respect Macau's autonomy as a special administrative region," he said, "but Macau is part of China." Sources said the letter was passed to the secretary for transport and public works' office. The office did not respond to an inquiry.