Guia Lighthouse group sends letter to UNESCO

Macau Post Daily
2008-06-12

Guia Lighthouse group sends letter to UNESCO

The Guia Lighthouse Protection Concern Group announced yesterday that it has sent the following letter to thedirector of the UNESCO World Heritage Centre in Paris, Francesco Bandarin.

The following is an abridged versionof the letter that was edited for publication:

Dear Mr. Bandarin,

We are glad to inform you that an Executive Orderwas published on April 16 to limit the height of new buildings in the surrounding areas of the Guia Lighthouse. Wewelcome such measures taken by the Macau administration. This should be considered as the first step in the rightdirection to protect the authenticity and integrity of the World Heritage site [the Guia Lighthouse on top of Guia Hill].

However, after the publication of the Executive Order, construction of a 126-metre high-rise building on the slope ofGuia Hill still managed to continue to reach a height of 80 metres, about 30 metres above the height limit imposed.

This has caused doubts as to the effectiveness of the Executive Order and the determination of the Macauadministration to safeguard the [view of the] Guia Lighthouse. We would also like to express our reservation to theheight limit imposed on Zone 5.1, along Avenida do Doutor Rodrigo Rodrigues [in Zape]. A height limit of 90 metresis too high to be acceptable.

We would be most grateful if UNESCO could bring forward our concerns to the attention of the central government[in Beijing] and the Macau administration. We will closely follow up the situation and keep UNESCO informed of thematter. We also welcome the opportunity to have an open discussion with UNESCO experts on their next visit toMacau.

Yours sincerely,CONCERN GROUP FOR THE PROTECTION OF THE GUIA LIGHTHOUSE