The Tramuntana mountain range was declared a Unesco World Heritage Site in 2010. What may not be well understood are the criteria by which this declaration was made. It was not on account of the mountains being mountains. How many mountain ranges can there be across the globe? And how many would boast higher mountains than the Tramuntana can? No, the mountains in themselves, while obviously crucial, were not the principal reason.
Unesco identified the "historical, cultural and socioeconomic processes that have taken place". The mountains are evidence of cultural intermingling in that they have drawn on the physical efforts of the different cultures which have occupied them, most obviously the Muslims and the Christians of post-1229 invasion. What was initiated centuries ago is what there now is: a landscape that was shaped by the labours and ingenuity of its inhabitants. It is one characterised by water systems (hundreds of years before the massive reservoirs were created in the 1970s), by the terracing and by the dry-stone work which itself was used to make the terraces but also to form the means of communication that criss-cross the mountains - the pathways or rudimentary roads. And amidst these developments was the cultivation, such as the olive groves and orange trees.
It is, therefore, the cultural landscape that Unesco honours, one that sets the Tramuntana apart. But not wholly apart. The key element of dry stone, and dry stone in mountainous regions, is not unique to Mallorca. There are similar examples, for instance in Cyprus, and they have a common link - that of a Mediterranean culture combined with that of the Iberian peninsula and out into the Atlantic and the Canary Islands: the dry-stone culture.
What one sees in the Tramuntana is the physical presence of this remarkable culture, such as the path of the barranc (ravine) de Biniaraix in the south of Soller: the very name Biniaraix, a linguistic amalgam of the human cultures that carved the Tramuntana landscape - Arabic and Catalan. And now, in addition to this physical cultural heritage, there is an initiative to add the abstract, the non-physical.
In Mallorca, there is one and only one example of Unesco intangible cultural heritage. It can be seen in the sense that there are singers, but it is non-physical because it is a song, or a chant if one prefers. This is the chant of the Sibil-la, performed on Christmas Eve in churches, monasteries (and the Cathedral) across Mallorca: the most spiritual of Tramuntana sites, Lluc Monastery, is where the intangible meets the tangible in celebrating these different types of culture.
The Balearic regional government's culture ministry and the islands' councils are joining force in participating in an international campaign which is aimed at having "pedra en sec" - dry stone - be declared Unesco intangible cultural heritage. In fact, the first impulse behind this initiative came from the east of the Mediterranean: Cyprus and Greece. Now, and in addition to the Balearics, there is interest from regions in Spain as far apart as Galicia in the north-west to Catalonia in the east and Andalusia in the south, as well as in the Canaries.
But, one might ask, how can this be intangible culture? Dry stone can be seen, touched, walked upon, worked. It is tangible. Which of course is true, but the international candidacy of dry stone and its Mediterranean/Iberian culture focuses on what went into dry stone: the knowledge and skills of its working and the ways in which these were and have been passed down through the centuries. It is a culture of life, of living, of economy and of landscaping, one that unifies different cultures.
Unesco has to decide. Proposals can be made by governments and administrations for its committees to ponder. In the case of dry stone, the candidacy will concentrate on the technique of this ancient craft: the shared human ability that created the landscapes and transformed the physical environment, as happened in the Tramuntana.
All the regions (and countries) involved in this initiative will meet in September and finalise the necessary documentation to meet Unesco guidelines. If all goes to plan, then the candidacy will be submitted to Unesco by March of next year, and the result of the evaluation of the proposals will be known in 2018.
If a declaration is made, it wouldn't of course be Mallorca's alone, unlike the Sibil-la, but it would be great recognition nonetheless for the human ingenuity which left the legacy that it has for us to all enjoy.
Showing posts with label UNESCO. Show all posts
Showing posts with label UNESCO. Show all posts
Monday, April 11, 2016
Monday, March 30, 2015
World Heritage For The Catalan Rumba?
Rumba, as in the musical genre, originates from Cuba, though strictly speaking its origins are African. Slaves introduced styles of singing, percussion and also dance to Cuba, and thus was born a hybrid of Afro-Cuban music which truly became popular in Cuba in the first half of the nineteenth century but which found itself coming into conflict with authority; or at least the dance did. It was considered to be all a bit too wild and so it was banned. This prohibition didn't really stick and by the 1920s rumba had become hugely popular once more. And so they tried banning it again.
By now though, rumba was breaking out from its Caribbean base. Latin music and dance of different types were well known in the US and in Europe and so it underwent further processes of adoption and hybridisation. And one place where it eventually really took off was Catalonia.
The Catalan rumba started with the Romani gypsy community in Barcelona in the 1950s, and it crossed over with a further offshoot, the flamenco rumba, itself a hybrid style of music. So, what you get today with rumba acts in Mallorca, of which there are a number, is the influence of this Catalan version. And in line with the process of ever more crossing-over, contemporary rumba music in Mallorca has pulled in yet more influences: jazz, rock and even punk. This musical inter-breeding is very much in line with the way in which flamenco has been given various branch lines - the flamenco chill and the flamenco jazz - and the blurring of musical (and dance) lineage becomes fuzzier because of the shared Romani roots of both the flamenco of Andalusia and the Catalan rumba.
It isn't possible to identify an exact time in the past when flamenco became flamenco, though the Andalusian historian Blas Infante wrote in 1933 that its first stage of development was from the second quarter of the sixteenth century and that the word flamenco came from Arabic. This connection is quite important in the story of flamenco because, as Infante proposed, it represented the allying of Muslim Andalusians with the Romani. As such, it firmly establishes the Andalusian origin of flamenco and dismisses a theory that flamenco had something to do with Flanders; the word flamenco can mean Flemish.
Though the precise origins are unclear, what is obvious is that, as far as Spain is concerned, flamenco is considerably older than rumba and is much more rooted in Romani culture than rumba.
This history and cultural uniqueness were instrumental in flamenco being declared a UNESCO Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity in 2010. And this status is one now being sought for the Catalan rumba. On Saturday, a meeting involving representatives of various musical associations, musicologists and the European Commission's presence in Barcelona, Ferran Tarradellas, proposed taking forward the rumba's claim.
The way that these UNESCO awards work is that the request for consideration has to come from a government. The Spanish Government, for example, is looking into presenting the case for Moors and Christians fiestas to be given UNESCO status. In the case of the rumba, it would need the support of the government in Catalonia and then either national government or European backing, and the EU is said to be sympathetic. The justification for seeking UNESCO status is that the rumba is an identifiable part of Catalan culture, but there are possible drawbacks. One is being able to pinpoint exactly what Catalan rumba is. Another is its history, while a third is the authenticity.
By comparison with flamenco, Catalan rumba has neither the history nor a claim to uniqueness. There may be an authentic and original strand to the music as it exists in Catalonia, but it was one that had come about through the cross-breeding and exporting outlined above. And moreover, it simply isn't that old.
Uniqueness is not a total pre-requisite for UNESCO status, as can be seen in the case of the Mallorcan Sibil-la. This chant didn't start in Mallorca, but it was Mallorca where its tradition was maintained following proscription by the church. It became recognisably Mallorcan because it had died out elsewhere. The Catalan rumba, on the other hand, grew out of something that was alive and kicking.
Despite these drawbacks, the musicians of Catalonia want UNESCO status in order that the original Catalan rumba is recognised and is therefore afforded some protection. It is the very process of cross-over with other genres that has put the original at risk, but then one still comes back to one of the drawbacks - what actually is it? Its comparative newness has meant that almost from the word go it has been exposed to a dynamic of musical alteration and experimentation, a process which pretty much characterises the past sixty years or so of contemporary music.
By now though, rumba was breaking out from its Caribbean base. Latin music and dance of different types were well known in the US and in Europe and so it underwent further processes of adoption and hybridisation. And one place where it eventually really took off was Catalonia.
The Catalan rumba started with the Romani gypsy community in Barcelona in the 1950s, and it crossed over with a further offshoot, the flamenco rumba, itself a hybrid style of music. So, what you get today with rumba acts in Mallorca, of which there are a number, is the influence of this Catalan version. And in line with the process of ever more crossing-over, contemporary rumba music in Mallorca has pulled in yet more influences: jazz, rock and even punk. This musical inter-breeding is very much in line with the way in which flamenco has been given various branch lines - the flamenco chill and the flamenco jazz - and the blurring of musical (and dance) lineage becomes fuzzier because of the shared Romani roots of both the flamenco of Andalusia and the Catalan rumba.
It isn't possible to identify an exact time in the past when flamenco became flamenco, though the Andalusian historian Blas Infante wrote in 1933 that its first stage of development was from the second quarter of the sixteenth century and that the word flamenco came from Arabic. This connection is quite important in the story of flamenco because, as Infante proposed, it represented the allying of Muslim Andalusians with the Romani. As such, it firmly establishes the Andalusian origin of flamenco and dismisses a theory that flamenco had something to do with Flanders; the word flamenco can mean Flemish.
Though the precise origins are unclear, what is obvious is that, as far as Spain is concerned, flamenco is considerably older than rumba and is much more rooted in Romani culture than rumba.
This history and cultural uniqueness were instrumental in flamenco being declared a UNESCO Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity in 2010. And this status is one now being sought for the Catalan rumba. On Saturday, a meeting involving representatives of various musical associations, musicologists and the European Commission's presence in Barcelona, Ferran Tarradellas, proposed taking forward the rumba's claim.
The way that these UNESCO awards work is that the request for consideration has to come from a government. The Spanish Government, for example, is looking into presenting the case for Moors and Christians fiestas to be given UNESCO status. In the case of the rumba, it would need the support of the government in Catalonia and then either national government or European backing, and the EU is said to be sympathetic. The justification for seeking UNESCO status is that the rumba is an identifiable part of Catalan culture, but there are possible drawbacks. One is being able to pinpoint exactly what Catalan rumba is. Another is its history, while a third is the authenticity.
By comparison with flamenco, Catalan rumba has neither the history nor a claim to uniqueness. There may be an authentic and original strand to the music as it exists in Catalonia, but it was one that had come about through the cross-breeding and exporting outlined above. And moreover, it simply isn't that old.
Uniqueness is not a total pre-requisite for UNESCO status, as can be seen in the case of the Mallorcan Sibil-la. This chant didn't start in Mallorca, but it was Mallorca where its tradition was maintained following proscription by the church. It became recognisably Mallorcan because it had died out elsewhere. The Catalan rumba, on the other hand, grew out of something that was alive and kicking.
Despite these drawbacks, the musicians of Catalonia want UNESCO status in order that the original Catalan rumba is recognised and is therefore afforded some protection. It is the very process of cross-over with other genres that has put the original at risk, but then one still comes back to one of the drawbacks - what actually is it? Its comparative newness has meant that almost from the word go it has been exposed to a dynamic of musical alteration and experimentation, a process which pretty much characterises the past sixty years or so of contemporary music.
Friday, March 13, 2015
Into The Biosphere: Sustainable/responsible tourism
This has been a week during which it was revealed that Catalonia wishes to become the first tourism region in the world to obtain a Biosphere certification. Which seemed a little odd as Menorca has been a Biosphere for over twenty years: it was declared to be one by UNESCO in 1993. Whatever. Perhaps Menorca isn't a region as such. Anyway, UNESCO has a regional Biosphere which is certified by its Global Sustainable Tourism Council, a body with lofty aims to ensure, inter alia, that "tourism meets its potential as a tool for conservation and poverty alleviation". A Biosphere refers to, among other things, the encouragement of the "social and cultural authenticity of each (tourist) destination and community".
Catalonia's ambition comes at a time when, according to global trends in tourism, "a new traveller" is seeking "creative and sustainable destinations". The argument goes that by promoting sustainability (this Biosphere stuff), a destination can establish greater loyalty from a tourist who, impressed by the efforts to maintain the environment, the local culture, the local heritage, alleviate poverty, etc. etc., will become a repeat tourist. There is a further argument that this approach will enable a destination to in fact increase its tourism in the first place.
Sustainable tourism, responsible tourism and other terms do have specific meanings and grand intentions. But they have also become part of the tourism marketing lexicon for destinations for which they weren't originally intended. Sustainable tourism was derived from sustainable development, initially a UN programme with contemporary origins in the 1980s. Primarily, it was concerned (as was sustainable tourism when it was first conceived) with protection of less-developed parts of the world. Subsequently, the tourism industry latched on to the idea that all this sustainability offered product and marketing possibilities for developed tourist destinations.
This isn't to say that genuine efforts have not been made - as they have - but to come to Catalonia or indeed to Mallorca, how applicable are principles of sustainable (or responsible) tourism? Let's consider a couple. Involve local people in decisions that affect their lives and life chances. Provide more enjoyable experiences for tourists through meaningful connections with local people and a greater understanding of local cultural, social and environmental issues.
While it is undeniable that there are tourists who value the second of these, and do so in Catalonia or Mallorca, there is a vast number who really, let's be perfectly honest, aren't that bothered. And when they are in all-inclusives, their chances of being bothered are significantly lessened. What do advocates suggest? Bussing in loads of locals for the inmates of an all-inclusive to goggle at?
For less-developed parts of the tourism world, there are clear benefits from increasing the volume of tourism so long as this increase stays in harmony with the environment and the needs of the local people. For developed parts, increasing volume runs counter to principles of sustainability/responsbility. The creative or smart tourist destination in the developed world should not be aiming to add more tourists willy-nilly. Instead, it should seek tourists who will maximise economic benefits while keeping social and environmental costs to a minimum.
The argument goes that destinations such as Mallorca have devoted too much attention to constantly increasing numbers of tourists without truly assessing economic benefits, and in the past few days there has been an admission that this is the case. Sort of. It has come from the president of the Balearics, José Ramón Bauzá. In parliament on Tuesday, Bauzá said that there was "no direct relationship between an increase in the number of tourists and variance in Balearics GDP". "The key", he said, was competitiveness profit or loss. Through inference, Bauzá was saying what many have said before. More tourists do not mean greater economic benefits when a proportion of tourist volume contributes little or nothing to the economy or indeed can cause a loss. This is something that has been known about for years but it is not something that politicians and others have chosen to do anything about. The increase in numbers has all they have been worried about.
What Bauzá was saying comes back to a governmental desire for more "quality" tourists, but this does not mean more tourists in total. It means the opposite, and former tourism minister Carlos Delgado, in not so many words, once said as much. But while Bauzá and the PP have sought this course, we now have, repeated this week, the desire of the Mallorcan left-wing for a tourism that will permit "shared prosperity" for the people of the Balearics. From both right and left and so from different political starting-points, a common view appears to be emerging - that the islands' tourism model has to change, and it is a change that may well entail fewer tourists and not more.
Into all of this came an intervention from Gabriel Escarrer of Melià. He said that "the Balearics have to become the elite destination in the Mediterranean": not an elite destination, the elite destination. Meliá is committing itself to ever greater quality, as is the case with the Calvia Beach Resort. This commitment, says Sr. Escarrer, is one that emphasises differentiation from other destinations and - that word again - sustainability. But if Meliá's vision were to be embraced wholeheartedly and were, therefore, Mallorca to be propelled towards tourist elitism, the consequence is clear. It would result in fewer tourists. The current mass could not be converted into the type of tourist that Meliá (and the government) has in mind. And it most certainly could not be converted in this way while lousy and outdated all-inclusives remain.
By the coincidence of Catalonia and its Biosphere and of what Bauzá and Escarrer have said, this past week has encapsulated where Mallorca might be heading. While it is Catalonia that is seeking the Biosphere certificate, it can be certain that a close eye will be kept on that. And if Catalonia were to conclude that entering the Biosphere means sustainability and responsibility through fewer tourists, then others may well draw the same conclusion.
Catalonia's ambition comes at a time when, according to global trends in tourism, "a new traveller" is seeking "creative and sustainable destinations". The argument goes that by promoting sustainability (this Biosphere stuff), a destination can establish greater loyalty from a tourist who, impressed by the efforts to maintain the environment, the local culture, the local heritage, alleviate poverty, etc. etc., will become a repeat tourist. There is a further argument that this approach will enable a destination to in fact increase its tourism in the first place.
Sustainable tourism, responsible tourism and other terms do have specific meanings and grand intentions. But they have also become part of the tourism marketing lexicon for destinations for which they weren't originally intended. Sustainable tourism was derived from sustainable development, initially a UN programme with contemporary origins in the 1980s. Primarily, it was concerned (as was sustainable tourism when it was first conceived) with protection of less-developed parts of the world. Subsequently, the tourism industry latched on to the idea that all this sustainability offered product and marketing possibilities for developed tourist destinations.
This isn't to say that genuine efforts have not been made - as they have - but to come to Catalonia or indeed to Mallorca, how applicable are principles of sustainable (or responsible) tourism? Let's consider a couple. Involve local people in decisions that affect their lives and life chances. Provide more enjoyable experiences for tourists through meaningful connections with local people and a greater understanding of local cultural, social and environmental issues.
While it is undeniable that there are tourists who value the second of these, and do so in Catalonia or Mallorca, there is a vast number who really, let's be perfectly honest, aren't that bothered. And when they are in all-inclusives, their chances of being bothered are significantly lessened. What do advocates suggest? Bussing in loads of locals for the inmates of an all-inclusive to goggle at?
For less-developed parts of the tourism world, there are clear benefits from increasing the volume of tourism so long as this increase stays in harmony with the environment and the needs of the local people. For developed parts, increasing volume runs counter to principles of sustainability/responsbility. The creative or smart tourist destination in the developed world should not be aiming to add more tourists willy-nilly. Instead, it should seek tourists who will maximise economic benefits while keeping social and environmental costs to a minimum.
The argument goes that destinations such as Mallorca have devoted too much attention to constantly increasing numbers of tourists without truly assessing economic benefits, and in the past few days there has been an admission that this is the case. Sort of. It has come from the president of the Balearics, José Ramón Bauzá. In parliament on Tuesday, Bauzá said that there was "no direct relationship between an increase in the number of tourists and variance in Balearics GDP". "The key", he said, was competitiveness profit or loss. Through inference, Bauzá was saying what many have said before. More tourists do not mean greater economic benefits when a proportion of tourist volume contributes little or nothing to the economy or indeed can cause a loss. This is something that has been known about for years but it is not something that politicians and others have chosen to do anything about. The increase in numbers has all they have been worried about.
What Bauzá was saying comes back to a governmental desire for more "quality" tourists, but this does not mean more tourists in total. It means the opposite, and former tourism minister Carlos Delgado, in not so many words, once said as much. But while Bauzá and the PP have sought this course, we now have, repeated this week, the desire of the Mallorcan left-wing for a tourism that will permit "shared prosperity" for the people of the Balearics. From both right and left and so from different political starting-points, a common view appears to be emerging - that the islands' tourism model has to change, and it is a change that may well entail fewer tourists and not more.
Into all of this came an intervention from Gabriel Escarrer of Melià. He said that "the Balearics have to become the elite destination in the Mediterranean": not an elite destination, the elite destination. Meliá is committing itself to ever greater quality, as is the case with the Calvia Beach Resort. This commitment, says Sr. Escarrer, is one that emphasises differentiation from other destinations and - that word again - sustainability. But if Meliá's vision were to be embraced wholeheartedly and were, therefore, Mallorca to be propelled towards tourist elitism, the consequence is clear. It would result in fewer tourists. The current mass could not be converted into the type of tourist that Meliá (and the government) has in mind. And it most certainly could not be converted in this way while lousy and outdated all-inclusives remain.
By the coincidence of Catalonia and its Biosphere and of what Bauzá and Escarrer have said, this past week has encapsulated where Mallorca might be heading. While it is Catalonia that is seeking the Biosphere certificate, it can be certain that a close eye will be kept on that. And if Catalonia were to conclude that entering the Biosphere means sustainability and responsibility through fewer tourists, then others may well draw the same conclusion.
Thursday, September 25, 2014
A New Moors And Christians Battle?
It was a strange old day in the Congress of Deputies on Tuesday. The shameless Rajoy announced the withdrawal of the abortion law reform and the justice minister, Alberto Ruiz-Gallardón, architect of the reform, was left high and dry and so promptly resigned. If this was a matter of controversy and for dissent, there was a decision by Congress that wasn't. Unanimity prevailed. They all agreed. The fiestas of the Moors and Christians will be nominated for inclusion in the Unesco Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
Familiar as we are with the annual set-tos involving Moors and Christians in Mallorca - Pollensa, Sóller most notably - the mock battles and other forms of celebration of fights between forces of Christianity and Islam take place across Spain. There are reckoned to be some 400 towns and villages which indulge in a spot of Moor versus Christian, and the Spanish Government wants Unesco to recognise the whole lot of them.
The historical basis for the Pollensa and Sóller battles differs from many other Moors and Christians clashes. They are both of the sixteenth century and as such are removed by some three hundred years from epic battles that were part of the "Reconquista" and which, through their re-creation, are among the best known on the Spanish mainland, such as the Moors and Christians of Alcoy in Alicante when Saint George supposedly put in an appearance and scared off Moors who were engaged in a right old bundle with James I of Aragon, famed of course for his conquest of Mallorca, something which Santa Ponsa's version of the Moors and Christians recognises.
Santa Ponsa is, therefore, from what one might describe as the classic era of Moors versus Christians warfare. Pollensa and Sóller are from a wholly different era. The Reconquista was over, and the Moorish incursions that they represent were of a time when the Ottomans were battling to dominate the Mediterranean. Dragut, he of Saracen piratical fame in Pollensa, was very much more than some opportunistic pirate. He was the supreme commander of the Ottoman navy. While the people of Pollensa proudly celebrate the victory of Joan Mas, it has to be said that events in Pollensa in 1550 barely register in the long list of very much more important battles in which Dragut was involved.
One snag with the proposal for Unesco recognition is, therefore, the fact that there is a lack of historical consistency as to the origins of the fiestas. Congress, though, is wrapping them all up together in arguing that they are a "playful tribute" to the different cultures which does not emphasise the victories of one side over the other. Congress also argues that the fiestas' tradition needs to be safeguarded, though given that the fiestas in Mallorca (as an example) have never been in ruder health, it is difficult to understand what they need to be safeguarded against, and the same applies to mainland fiestas like that of Alcoy, which was declared as being of international touristic interest by the Spanish Government as long ago as 1980. There are other fiestas which have been declared as being of international, national or provincial touristic interest.
Or does one detect in this a concern that political correctness might disrupt the fiestas' tradition? Perhaps so, but if there is any politically correct move to somehow do away with the Moors and Christians, it is keeping pretty quiet. Nonetheless, it might be noted that there are events which involve elements which would be considered offensive to Muslims, such as burning a stuffed image referred to as Mohammed and throwing it from castle battlements.
Congress insists that the fiestas are a deeply rooted tradition and that public awareness of them demands their safeguarding. This may indeed be the case, but Congress must also surely be aware that the Reconquista model of the fiestas, as opposed to the Ottoman model, resonates with the history of the Caliphate, albeit that the Caliphate had disintegrated well before, for example, Jaume I was assisted by Saint George. There are those, one fears, who would be bound to look to make political capital or more out of a Unesco recognition, despite Congress's legitimate belief that the fiestas are only playful tributes. Indeed, there may well be those who consider the very nomination provocative.
Unesco may, therefore, find itself in an awkward position. It is evenhanded in making its awards across all sorts of cultures, but this diversity might be deemed to be an obstacle in accepting the nomination for what, let's face it, does represent the triumph of one side over another. If it felt that it was in a dilemma, then there could be a way out. An award for a whole host of fiestas with their competing historical origins might be considered to be too broad. Tricky.
Familiar as we are with the annual set-tos involving Moors and Christians in Mallorca - Pollensa, Sóller most notably - the mock battles and other forms of celebration of fights between forces of Christianity and Islam take place across Spain. There are reckoned to be some 400 towns and villages which indulge in a spot of Moor versus Christian, and the Spanish Government wants Unesco to recognise the whole lot of them.
The historical basis for the Pollensa and Sóller battles differs from many other Moors and Christians clashes. They are both of the sixteenth century and as such are removed by some three hundred years from epic battles that were part of the "Reconquista" and which, through their re-creation, are among the best known on the Spanish mainland, such as the Moors and Christians of Alcoy in Alicante when Saint George supposedly put in an appearance and scared off Moors who were engaged in a right old bundle with James I of Aragon, famed of course for his conquest of Mallorca, something which Santa Ponsa's version of the Moors and Christians recognises.
Santa Ponsa is, therefore, from what one might describe as the classic era of Moors versus Christians warfare. Pollensa and Sóller are from a wholly different era. The Reconquista was over, and the Moorish incursions that they represent were of a time when the Ottomans were battling to dominate the Mediterranean. Dragut, he of Saracen piratical fame in Pollensa, was very much more than some opportunistic pirate. He was the supreme commander of the Ottoman navy. While the people of Pollensa proudly celebrate the victory of Joan Mas, it has to be said that events in Pollensa in 1550 barely register in the long list of very much more important battles in which Dragut was involved.
One snag with the proposal for Unesco recognition is, therefore, the fact that there is a lack of historical consistency as to the origins of the fiestas. Congress, though, is wrapping them all up together in arguing that they are a "playful tribute" to the different cultures which does not emphasise the victories of one side over the other. Congress also argues that the fiestas' tradition needs to be safeguarded, though given that the fiestas in Mallorca (as an example) have never been in ruder health, it is difficult to understand what they need to be safeguarded against, and the same applies to mainland fiestas like that of Alcoy, which was declared as being of international touristic interest by the Spanish Government as long ago as 1980. There are other fiestas which have been declared as being of international, national or provincial touristic interest.
Or does one detect in this a concern that political correctness might disrupt the fiestas' tradition? Perhaps so, but if there is any politically correct move to somehow do away with the Moors and Christians, it is keeping pretty quiet. Nonetheless, it might be noted that there are events which involve elements which would be considered offensive to Muslims, such as burning a stuffed image referred to as Mohammed and throwing it from castle battlements.
Congress insists that the fiestas are a deeply rooted tradition and that public awareness of them demands their safeguarding. This may indeed be the case, but Congress must also surely be aware that the Reconquista model of the fiestas, as opposed to the Ottoman model, resonates with the history of the Caliphate, albeit that the Caliphate had disintegrated well before, for example, Jaume I was assisted by Saint George. There are those, one fears, who would be bound to look to make political capital or more out of a Unesco recognition, despite Congress's legitimate belief that the fiestas are only playful tributes. Indeed, there may well be those who consider the very nomination provocative.
Unesco may, therefore, find itself in an awkward position. It is evenhanded in making its awards across all sorts of cultures, but this diversity might be deemed to be an obstacle in accepting the nomination for what, let's face it, does represent the triumph of one side over another. If it felt that it was in a dilemma, then there could be a way out. An award for a whole host of fiestas with their competing historical origins might be considered to be too broad. Tricky.
Wednesday, January 22, 2014
A Questionable Benefit: Palma and World Heritage
Palma wants to become a World Heritage Site. The great and good had gathered for the annual gala at which the city doles out its annual awards and were informed that at the next meeting of the city's council a proposal would be put forward for a commission of "experts" to examine the presentation of the city's candidature to receive the UNESCO accolade. Assuming the proposal is accepted, and the opposition parties already know about it and would appear not to be ill-disposed to the idea, what would it mean? Would it mean anything? Why bother?
What are the criteria for becoming a World Heritage Site and would Palma actually qualify? Above all else, a site should supposedly have "outstanding universal value" and then it should meet at least one of ten criteria, so does Palma meet any of them? Without going through all of them, it is probably fair to say that it does. For example, under "interchange of values" (which can be reflected in, for instance, architecture, monuments or landscapes), there has been such an interchange. Or was, going back in time. How about "human creative genius"? One might make an argument for the Cathedral being representative of this.
A case could therefore be made for being a candidate, but what benefits might accrue from the award? The most obvious one is for tourism, and it is the one which is most frequently cited, but this is a benefit which is removed from what the UNESCO award was originally aimed at, which was to protect sites that were under threat from human or natural intervention. UNESCO first swung into action in the 1950s when a campaign to relocate the Abu Simbel temples in southern Egypt was successful; the temples had been threatened by being flooded by the building of the Aswan Dam. A tourism benefit may have followed as a consequence of the relocation, but it was the protection which was of uppermost importance.
The protection aspect is still critical. Mallorca's only physical World Heritage Site at present is the Tramuntana mountain range, and the awarding of its heritage status came with caveats regarding developments that could or could not take place; if they are ones which UNESCO disagree with, then the award can be taken away. But while protection is key to the whole exercise, benefits from tourism have tended to assume greater importance in the minds of some of those places which seek heritage status. It does, after all, carry some kudos. Or does it?
Mallorca may only have the one site at present, but the number of sites worldwide grows and grows. There are currently just under 1,000, which might not sound a lot when spread across the globe, but there must come a point at which the award has a diminishing return because it is no longer particularly exclusive or uncommon. In Spain as a whole there are 44 awards, not all of them physical because the Mallorcan Sibil·la chant is one of them, but out of this 44, 13 are cities in a broad sense of the word. For example, in Ibiza some 85 square kilometres were declared a World Heritage Site for biodiversity and culture in 1999. I wonder how many people know this and how many are influenced by the existence of the award, in much the same way as I wonder how many people are influenced by the whole of Menorca being a biosphere reserve (a different UNESCO award) since 1993. Menorca hasn't benefited because promotion has been poor. The same can be said for Ibiza, and the same can certainly be said for the Tramuntana. Its award was made in 2011 and since then ...?
In 2007, the consultants PriceWaterhouseCoopers presented a paper to the UK Government's Department for Culture, Media and Sport which looked at the costs and benefits of World Heritage status. The report's conclusions gave plenty of grounds for believing that the award was of dubious value. The process of bidding costs money - at least 400,000 pounds in direct terms, so it was said - and was increasing because there was that much more competition to obtain an award. This isn't a huge cost, but the report suggested that offsetting this against obvious benefits was very difficult. A key issue it raised was that to do with "causality or additionality"; in other words and putting it bluntly, would the award make any difference?
For a city such as Palma, which is already heavily geared towards tourism, it could well be concluded that World Heritage status would have negligible impact. And there is just the possibility that the award, because of the protection element, could in fact have a negative impact as the strings which come attached to World Heritage status can stifle development. In an article in October I looked at the proposal for Palma's transformation in line with the concept of the "creative city". While this would retain existing culture, it could nonetheless be an example of development that UNESCO would frown upon. What, therefore, is more important to Palma? To have the flexibility to develop in ways not dependent upon tourism or to be told by a United Nations body what it can or cannot do in return for an award which brings with it a questionable benefit?
What are the criteria for becoming a World Heritage Site and would Palma actually qualify? Above all else, a site should supposedly have "outstanding universal value" and then it should meet at least one of ten criteria, so does Palma meet any of them? Without going through all of them, it is probably fair to say that it does. For example, under "interchange of values" (which can be reflected in, for instance, architecture, monuments or landscapes), there has been such an interchange. Or was, going back in time. How about "human creative genius"? One might make an argument for the Cathedral being representative of this.
A case could therefore be made for being a candidate, but what benefits might accrue from the award? The most obvious one is for tourism, and it is the one which is most frequently cited, but this is a benefit which is removed from what the UNESCO award was originally aimed at, which was to protect sites that were under threat from human or natural intervention. UNESCO first swung into action in the 1950s when a campaign to relocate the Abu Simbel temples in southern Egypt was successful; the temples had been threatened by being flooded by the building of the Aswan Dam. A tourism benefit may have followed as a consequence of the relocation, but it was the protection which was of uppermost importance.
The protection aspect is still critical. Mallorca's only physical World Heritage Site at present is the Tramuntana mountain range, and the awarding of its heritage status came with caveats regarding developments that could or could not take place; if they are ones which UNESCO disagree with, then the award can be taken away. But while protection is key to the whole exercise, benefits from tourism have tended to assume greater importance in the minds of some of those places which seek heritage status. It does, after all, carry some kudos. Or does it?
Mallorca may only have the one site at present, but the number of sites worldwide grows and grows. There are currently just under 1,000, which might not sound a lot when spread across the globe, but there must come a point at which the award has a diminishing return because it is no longer particularly exclusive or uncommon. In Spain as a whole there are 44 awards, not all of them physical because the Mallorcan Sibil·la chant is one of them, but out of this 44, 13 are cities in a broad sense of the word. For example, in Ibiza some 85 square kilometres were declared a World Heritage Site for biodiversity and culture in 1999. I wonder how many people know this and how many are influenced by the existence of the award, in much the same way as I wonder how many people are influenced by the whole of Menorca being a biosphere reserve (a different UNESCO award) since 1993. Menorca hasn't benefited because promotion has been poor. The same can be said for Ibiza, and the same can certainly be said for the Tramuntana. Its award was made in 2011 and since then ...?
In 2007, the consultants PriceWaterhouseCoopers presented a paper to the UK Government's Department for Culture, Media and Sport which looked at the costs and benefits of World Heritage status. The report's conclusions gave plenty of grounds for believing that the award was of dubious value. The process of bidding costs money - at least 400,000 pounds in direct terms, so it was said - and was increasing because there was that much more competition to obtain an award. This isn't a huge cost, but the report suggested that offsetting this against obvious benefits was very difficult. A key issue it raised was that to do with "causality or additionality"; in other words and putting it bluntly, would the award make any difference?
For a city such as Palma, which is already heavily geared towards tourism, it could well be concluded that World Heritage status would have negligible impact. And there is just the possibility that the award, because of the protection element, could in fact have a negative impact as the strings which come attached to World Heritage status can stifle development. In an article in October I looked at the proposal for Palma's transformation in line with the concept of the "creative city". While this would retain existing culture, it could nonetheless be an example of development that UNESCO would frown upon. What, therefore, is more important to Palma? To have the flexibility to develop in ways not dependent upon tourism or to be told by a United Nations body what it can or cannot do in return for an award which brings with it a questionable benefit?
Thursday, August 30, 2012
MALLORCA TODAY - Can Morató demolition raised with UNESCO
The Alternativa per Pollença, already in contact with UNESCO's Spanish representative, has said that it will denounce to UNESCO a decision to remove protected status from the old Can Morató carpet factory in Pollensa which would lead to it being demolished.
UNESCO's involvement is on account of the factory falling within the Tramuntana region that has World Heritage Site status from UNESCO. If Can Morató were to be demolished, it is suggested, the boundary of this site could be affected.
The town hall insists that the factory, built in 1922 but abandoned since 1960, is in a state which cannot enable its renovation and restoration.
UNESCO's involvement is on account of the factory falling within the Tramuntana region that has World Heritage Site status from UNESCO. If Can Morató were to be demolished, it is suggested, the boundary of this site could be affected.
The town hall insists that the factory, built in 1922 but abandoned since 1960, is in a state which cannot enable its renovation and restoration.
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
A Mountain To Climb: Tramuntana and heritage
So, the Tramuntana mountains have been granted World Heritage status. Let joy be unconfined. Cue all manner of self-congratulatory noises and claims of benefits to tourism and then very little, if anything, by way of action.
The one advantage the mountains have over another Mallorcan item of world heritage, the Sibil·la chant, is that you can see them. They are tangible and not, as was the case with the conferring of UNESCO status on the Sibil·la, an "intangible cultural heritage of humanity".
A drawback of being able to see them, however, is that, as mountains go, they aren't very impressive. The Puig Mayor is Ben Nevis plus 300 feet or so. But size isn't everything. It is what lies within the range that is more important than its scale: the maintenance of tradition and customs; religion; agriculture; flora and fauna; the villages; the documentary work of Archduke Luis Salvador. It is all these, plus the measures that have been taken to protect the mountains, that make the Tramuntana a worthy recipient of the heritage status.
The benefit to tourism should be a very obvious one. With a world heritage stamp slapped onto them, the mountains are revealed, ever more, as an alternative to Mallorca's sun and beach. But will the award amount to much? If you take culture and heritage to be one and the same thing, you have to wonder whether this new status will genuinely create a benefit. The music expert Francesc Vicens summed things up well when the Sibil·la got its award: "Much is spoken about cultural tourism, but I believe that the term has been used a great deal but without planning or a strategy ... for promoting the island".
From towns and villages embraced by the Tramuntana, various mayors have had their say. Puigpunyent: "it (the inscription) will attract tourism thanks to international knowledge of the richness of the mountains". Alaró: "it is a mark of quality that will bring in tourism with different values". Estellencs: "it is an impulse for tourism of sustainable development".
You want to ask the mayor of Estellencs what on earth he's talking about. Does he really know? Sustainable development, sustainable tourism. Much is said, and very little understood and very little notice taken. Vicens also remarked that the tourism industry has little interest in cultural matters.
One fear with the award is its political and structural element. The now ex-leader of the Council of Mallorca, Francina Armengol, was apparently euphoric at the news. It was all down to good work done by the land department on her patch. She may no longer be president of the Council but she can bask in the reflected glory.
Note that it wasn't the tourism department, and in any event the new Bauzá government is taking away tourism promotion duties from the Council, an eminently sensible thing to do, but if the Tramuntana award was a feather in PSOE's cap and not one of the Delgado tourism ministry at the regional government, then political territorialism may yet well help to fritter away any benefit that UNESCO might have offered.
The convention for World Heritage Sites concludes by saying that inscription increases "public awareness of the site and of its outstanding values, thus also increasing the tourist activities at the site". UNESCO does its bit by announcing the sites and through its various programmes, but it isn't its task to create increased tourist activities. In the case of the Tramuntana mountains, it is presumably the task of the tourism promotion agency within the tourism ministry. But if there indeed isn't much by way of a strategy for promoting cultural tourism, then how effective might any efforts be, assuming there are any? And money, for tourism promotion, is thin on the ground.
There is some talk of the assistance that will now be forthcoming from UNESCO as a result of the inscription. But this isn't financial assistance for promotion. Indeed financial assistance of any sort is open to question. The UNESCO heritage fund is suffering because of under-funding, while priorities for what cash there is are for sites that are at risk or in countries where money really is in short supply, such as in Africa. The Tramuntana don't fall into either category.
It would be nice to believe that the awarding of world heritage status would make a significant difference and that tourism would shoot up as a consequence. Nice to believe, but there'll be a mountain of previously ineffective promotion to climb in order to make us really believe.
Any comments to andrew@thealcudiaguide.com please.
The one advantage the mountains have over another Mallorcan item of world heritage, the Sibil·la chant, is that you can see them. They are tangible and not, as was the case with the conferring of UNESCO status on the Sibil·la, an "intangible cultural heritage of humanity".
A drawback of being able to see them, however, is that, as mountains go, they aren't very impressive. The Puig Mayor is Ben Nevis plus 300 feet or so. But size isn't everything. It is what lies within the range that is more important than its scale: the maintenance of tradition and customs; religion; agriculture; flora and fauna; the villages; the documentary work of Archduke Luis Salvador. It is all these, plus the measures that have been taken to protect the mountains, that make the Tramuntana a worthy recipient of the heritage status.
The benefit to tourism should be a very obvious one. With a world heritage stamp slapped onto them, the mountains are revealed, ever more, as an alternative to Mallorca's sun and beach. But will the award amount to much? If you take culture and heritage to be one and the same thing, you have to wonder whether this new status will genuinely create a benefit. The music expert Francesc Vicens summed things up well when the Sibil·la got its award: "Much is spoken about cultural tourism, but I believe that the term has been used a great deal but without planning or a strategy ... for promoting the island".
From towns and villages embraced by the Tramuntana, various mayors have had their say. Puigpunyent: "it (the inscription) will attract tourism thanks to international knowledge of the richness of the mountains". Alaró: "it is a mark of quality that will bring in tourism with different values". Estellencs: "it is an impulse for tourism of sustainable development".
You want to ask the mayor of Estellencs what on earth he's talking about. Does he really know? Sustainable development, sustainable tourism. Much is said, and very little understood and very little notice taken. Vicens also remarked that the tourism industry has little interest in cultural matters.
One fear with the award is its political and structural element. The now ex-leader of the Council of Mallorca, Francina Armengol, was apparently euphoric at the news. It was all down to good work done by the land department on her patch. She may no longer be president of the Council but she can bask in the reflected glory.
Note that it wasn't the tourism department, and in any event the new Bauzá government is taking away tourism promotion duties from the Council, an eminently sensible thing to do, but if the Tramuntana award was a feather in PSOE's cap and not one of the Delgado tourism ministry at the regional government, then political territorialism may yet well help to fritter away any benefit that UNESCO might have offered.
The convention for World Heritage Sites concludes by saying that inscription increases "public awareness of the site and of its outstanding values, thus also increasing the tourist activities at the site". UNESCO does its bit by announcing the sites and through its various programmes, but it isn't its task to create increased tourist activities. In the case of the Tramuntana mountains, it is presumably the task of the tourism promotion agency within the tourism ministry. But if there indeed isn't much by way of a strategy for promoting cultural tourism, then how effective might any efforts be, assuming there are any? And money, for tourism promotion, is thin on the ground.
There is some talk of the assistance that will now be forthcoming from UNESCO as a result of the inscription. But this isn't financial assistance for promotion. Indeed financial assistance of any sort is open to question. The UNESCO heritage fund is suffering because of under-funding, while priorities for what cash there is are for sites that are at risk or in countries where money really is in short supply, such as in Africa. The Tramuntana don't fall into either category.
It would be nice to believe that the awarding of world heritage status would make a significant difference and that tourism would shoot up as a consequence. Nice to believe, but there'll be a mountain of previously ineffective promotion to climb in order to make us really believe.
Any comments to andrew@thealcudiaguide.com please.
Monday, June 27, 2011
MALLORCA TODAY - Tramuntana mountains get world heritage status
The Sierra Tramuntana mountain range in Mallorca has today been confirmed as having been given world heritage status by the UNESCO committee which has been convening in Paris to adjudicate on new entrants to the heritage list.
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