NO PLACE FOR A BAZAAR
IN THESE HALLOWED GROUNDS
COME Ramadan, one lucky trader will get to sell his wares on the same spot where the Union Jack was taken down on Aug 31, 1957.
This trader, along with those set to join the upcoming Ramadan bazaar in Jalan Raja here, will have the best seats in the house to one of the most iconic views in Malaysia — the Sultan Abdul Samad building.
And while a truce has been struck among squabbling stakeholders over the bazaar’s relocation from the back and sidelanes of Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman (TAR), heritage experts and
conservationists urge Kuala Lumpur City Hall (City Hall) to rethink the move as Dataran Merdeka’s iconic status is at stake.
Badan Warisan Malaysia president Elizabeth Cardosa said City Hall should reconsider whether the square was appropriate for a bazaar site.
“Excuse me, this is Jalan Raja. There’s a reason why it and Jalan Parlimen are protocol roads.
“It’s not a commercial street, you don’t bring markets and hawkers to a place of such historical significance. Imagine someone grilling satay or selling pisang goreng where (former prime minister) Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj stood.
“It (City Hall) drew the city plans. It should know the square is a heritage area. It’s surrounded by institutional buildings, it’s not a commercial zone,” she told the New Straits Times.
Cardosa said the authority took the square for granted by allowing it to host events which did not match its stature.
“Every other week, the road will be closed for something that has nothing to do with history or heritage. The irony is City Hall has it (the image of the square) on its logos, but it doesn’t understand its significance. So it ends up being trivialised.”
On March 18, City Hall announced that the Ramadan bazaar would be relocated to Jalan Raja after it found a middle ground with traders over the closure of Jalan
It’s not a commercial street, you don’t bring markets and hawkers to a place of such historical significance. ELIZABETH CARDOSA Badan Warisan Malaysia president
TAR.
Kuala Lumpur Mayor Datuk Nor Hisham Ahmad Dahlan said the bazaar would operate along a 0.2km stretch of marquee tents from the intersection at St Mary’s Cathedral to Lebuh Pasar Besar.
He said the tents would take up a 12m-wide space from the road shoulder next to the field, which would block a number of lanes.
As a result, the view of the Sultan Abdul Samad building would be covered by tents. However, there would be no stalls or tents next to the building.
International Council on Monuments and Sites Malaysia assistant honorary secretary Mariana Isa questioned the move as it could affect Dataran Merdeka’s functionality and significance to the public.
“It’s messy to say the least. I prefer if the bazaar is in Jalan TAR so that Dataran Merdeka remains free from congestion.”
On whether activities associated with congested places would degrade buildings in the area, she said partially pedestrianising the street might reduce the degradation.
“There will be less fumes from vehicles, especially from buses.
“But if they say they are only going to allow the sale of dry items and people end up frying things, it won’t make much difference.
“How are they going to enforce the ban on wet items and frying? And I don’t know how they are going to stop traders from setting up stalls across the street from where the heritage building is. I foresee littering, rubbish issues and, worse, vandalism.”
Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Datuk Mohamaddin Ketapi told the NST that the ministry did not have a say in the matter as the bazaar would be located on the street across the building, which was under City Hall’s purview.
“Only the building is ours. We, however, look forward to being consulted on this,” he said, adding that the ministry was not consulted before City Hall made the decision.
He confirmed that overtures were being made by the Federal Territories Ministry to transfer the care, maintenance and operations of heritage buildings in the area to the latter.
A source from the National Heritage Department said by right, plans and proposals for the bazaar should have gone through the department before a decision was made.
The source said this was so that it could review the logistics, such as the number of stalls as well as gauge the level of smoke and fumes that could be discharged.
“If there is a problem with residues and emissions, we won’t agree with the proposal. We have done studies to that effect. But the minister (Mohamaddin) has to say this. We just have an office here.”
He said if City Hall did not stick to its previous decision, there was little that the department could do.
The source was alluding to its 2014 ban on buses parked in Dataran Merdeka after City Hall said studies found that vehicle emissions degraded the façade of the buildings.
However, tour agencies’ feedback showed that the ruling was rarely enforced.