World Heritage Watch (WHW) has issued an urgent open letter to UNESCO, calling on the World Heritage Committee (WHC) to place Egypt’s Saint Catherine Area on the List of World Heritage Sites in Danger, warning of massive tourism developments that threaten the sacred site’s integrity.
The appeal stems from what WHW describes as the Egyptian government’s “continued failure… to uphold its commitments to the World Heritage Convention.”
The watchdog claims Egypt is attempting to turn one of the world’s most important religious and cultural landscapes into a tourism hub, and that over two decades of UNESCO leniency must come to an end.
“Egypt has continued to provide misleading, inconsistent or incomplete information to UNESCO, and it is time now that UNESCO is very clear that they are running out of patience,” said WHW Chair Stephan Doempke, who drafted the letter with experts who have decades of experience on the site and up-to-date information from local informants on the ground.
“The remoteness and serenity of the area, a key value of the World Heritage, must be preserved under all circumstances in order to maintain the sacred character of the landscape and enable the spiritual retreat of the monks,” Doempke added.
WHW has published detailed reports on the developments, supported by photographic evidence. It asserts that previous UNESCO calls to halt all activity until proper assessments were carried out have been ignored.
The group says the “massive impacts on the Outstanding Universal Values of the Saint Catherine Area WH Site can no longer be tolerated, and urgent and resolute action needs to be taken.”
The group also raises concern about Egypt’s recent nomination of Khaled El-Enany, a former Minister of Tourism and Antiquities, for the role of UNESCO Director-General, warning of a conflict of interest.
“It would be ironic to have the DG overseeing the WH Convention from a country that has so signally failed to uphold that convention and not only at Saint Catherine,” WHW said.
The letter, addressed to the WHC ahead of its annual meeting this week, outlines a set of demands for immediate action:
- The Committee should issue a statement that reaffirms UNESCO’s recognition of the ownership rights of the Greek Orthodox Church to the Monastery of Saint Catherine and its outlying properties.
- The Committee should also validate the information from independent and trusted sources that the site is facing several of the WHC recognised primary factors affecting the site, including development, transportation, social, legal and institutional, that threaten its Outstanding Universal Values (OUVs).
- The WHC must insist on a joint UNESCO/ICOMOS Reactive Monitoring Mission visit the Site within 3 months of the end of the WHC meeting.
- Depending on the results of the Reactive Monitoring Mission the WHC must then consider the possibility of inscribing the Property on the List of World Heritage in Danger and certainly if the mission fails to be conducted within the proposed time frame.
UNESCO has yet to publicly respond to the letter, but deliberations are expected later this week as the World Heritage Committee convenes.
