VII.26 Angkor (Cambodia)
The Secretariat recalled that at the time of inscription of Angkor on the List of World Heritage and on the List in Danger at the sixteenth session of the World Heritage Committee in Santa Fe, on 14 December 1992, the Committee set forth five obligations it requested the Cambodian authorities to fulfill within a period of three years. This period coming to its term at the end of December this year, H. E. Mr Vann Molyvann, Minister of State of the Royal Government of Cambodia, took the floor at the invitation of the Chairperson to inform the Committee on the progress made in the fulfillment of these commitments since his last detailed report to the eighteenth session of the Committee last year.
Noting that three of the Committee's requests, i.e. the establishment of permanent boundaries; establishment of meaningful buffer zones; and establishment of monitoring and the coordination of international conservation effort, have been accomplished in 1994, the Minister reported that in 1995, the Authority for the Protection of the site and the Development of the region of Angkor (APSARA) was officially established by Royal Kret (decree) on 19 February 1995. Having thus completed the fourth request set out by the Committee, Mr Vann Molyvann, stated that the last obligation, that of the enactment of adequate protective legislation will soon be met. A very complete corpus of laws on cultural protection and related matters drawn up with the support of UNESCO and other international partners, which have been approved by the Council of Ministers, is expected to be enacted by the National Assembly before the end of December.
The Committee thanked the Observer from Cambodia for his detailed report and congratulated the Cambodian authorities on the progress which has been made, under difficult circumstances, to safeguard the Angkor World Heritage site and to meet the recommendations made by the Committee in this regard during its 16th Session in Sante Fe (1992). The Committee also recognized the contribution made by Those States Parties which have responded to the UNESCO Director-General's appeal for the safeguarding of Angkor. In particular the Committee commended the achievements made to date to define precise boundaries for the site and its buffer zones, to establish a national protection authority and to set-up a mechanism for the coordination of international assistance. The Committee noted that the legal protection which has been given to the site under Royal Decree has been adopted by the Royal Cambodian Government and is under consideration by Parliament. The Committee invited the Cambodian authorities to provide information at its next session of the follow-up to the legal process. Recognizing the still-prevailing exceptional conditions at the site, the Committee decided to retain Angkor on the List of World Heritage in Danger.