Commercialisation takes the charm off historical buildings
This article, part of a series on the erosion of heritage values due to the commercialisation of Melaka’s tourism industry, looks at its effects on historical buildings and the handicraft industry
MELAKA: From a successful entrepôt in the era of the Malacca Sultanate, the city of Melaka has evolved into a melting pot of Asian and European cultures.
Its historical bui ldings, ref lecting architecture that is strongly inf luenced by Portuguese, Dutch and British styles, draw tourists from all over the world. Melaka, along with George Town in Penang, were declared as Unesco World Heritage Sites on July 7, 2008.
Several tourists interviewed by Bernama in the Bandar Hilir area, where there are numerous places of interest, said they were mesmerised by the beauty and heritage of the historic structures but expressed their concern that the rapid commercialisation of tourism could undermine their heritage value.
The clash of the old and new is evident in the city as developers rush to build new hotels and infrastructure to meet the demands of the state’s booming tourism industry.
Mo d e r n v s h i s t o r i c a l structures
Josephine Smith- Pearson, a tourist from Essex, United Kingdom, found the A’ Famosa Fort and the Stadthuys building captivating and was impressed by how wel l preserved the structures were despite being more than 500 years old.
The 52 - year- old teacher, however, looked in disdain at the sprawling modern shopping complex and hotel that have emerged in the vicinity of the historical buildings.
“When a site is recognised as a Unesco World Heritage site, the area’s historical identity has to be preserved.
"Something is not right when a modern building is erected near a 500-year- old structure,” she said.
There has to be a way for the architecture of the new developments to blend into the historical surroundings so that the whole area would be more pleasing to the eyes, she said.
Smith- Pearson also observed that although Bandar Hilir’s historical enclave was rather extensive, it appeared that only a small portion of it was well conserved and drew the attention of tourists.
The rest of the area, in her words , seemed t o have an abandoned feel.
It also made her sad to see items of historical value such as the cannons, armoured vehicles and airplane exhibited in the Bandar Hilir area not being guarded tightly as they could be damaged by irresponsible tourists.
Melaka city’s World Heritage Site consists of two zones, namely a core zone covering an area of 45.3 hectares and comprising the main historical buildings from the Portuguese, Dutch and British eras; and the buffer zone covering 242.8 hectares.
The core zone includes the area around St Paul’s Hill and Stadhuys building, as well as Jalan Tun Tan Cheng Lock and Jalan Hang Jebat or Jonker Walk as it is more popularly known as.
The buf fer zone consists of Jalan Merdeka, Jalan Kota Laksamana, Jalan Munsyi Abdullah, Kampung Banda Kaba and Bukit China.
The two zones have about 3,050 buildings, including public buildings, private residences and houses of worship.
Of the buildings, some 900 are located in the core zone and the rest in the buffer zone. Loss of historical value Akemi Okada, a tourist from Osaka, Japan, is a big fan of the convergence of architectural styles and is especially fascinated with the shophouses fronting Jonker Walk whose designs portray Dutch elements, and St Paul’s church and A’ Famosa Fort’s Portuguese architectural style.
The 42-year- old physiotherapist said the a l lure of such a convergence of architectural styles was hard to find in other historic sites around the world.
She was, naturally, perturbed that some old bui ldings and shophouses had undergone renovation and, in the process, had lost their original charm and essence.
“I came across a building that was hundreds of years old and was renovated into a modern hotel. Its historical architectural design and value were all gone. I’ve also noticed some cafes and shops that were modified without assimilating their buildings’ original historic elements,” she said.
There was nothing wrong with remodeling an old bui lding, Akemi said, but it should not be done at the expense of its historical value.
“Look at Baba House at Jonker Walk... it is a good example of a shophouse that has been renovated into a hotel but with its architecture and history kept intact.”
Whi l e s h e a g r e e d t hat development was necessary a s modern fac i l i t ie s and infrast ructure have to be made available to meet the needs of tourists, she said the authorities must make sure that the historical buildings, particularly those located within the World Heritage Site, were renovated in accordance with the stringent guidelines imposed by Unesco. Foreign handicraft It is also ironic that while Melaka has a rich heritage of craf ts, local traders sel ling handicrafts and souvenirs at the various tourist spots are forced to sell cheaper items imported from China, Indonesia and India.
One of the traders, Mohd Mahadi Murad, 37, said although he would prefer to assist the local craft industry by selling their crafts, he had no choice but to sell imported stuff as they were a lot cheaper than their local counterparts.
“I’m a businessman, so I’ve to find low- priced stocks. That’s why almost 80 per cent of the souvenirs sold here are sourced from other countries.
“It troubles me to sell foreign crafts as I love the locally made crafts like the clogs, tops, ‘ keris’ and traditional rattan baskets made by the Baba and Nyonya community which are all of high quality.
"Unfortunately, tourists these days are not looking for such crafts. So, what other choice do I have except to sell imported items,” he said.
Mohd Mahadi said to enable the local crafts to compete with imported ones, the craftsmen concerned should consider producing them in small sizes so that they can be sold at lower prices.
The trader’s dilemma could be exemplified by a ‘gasing’ or top maker named Abdul Karim Talib who passed away in January this year at the age of 68 due to a heart ailment.
Abdul Karim, who was a third- generation top maker, had lamented that it was hard for local craftsmen like him to sell their products at popular tourist areas as they had to pay the tourism operators there commissions amounting to 30 per cent of their sales.
He had regretted the attitude of the operators who, he said, did not extend much support to top makers like him to penetrate the state tourism market.
Melaka recorded about 8.73 million tourist arrivals for the first six months of this year, compared with 8.14 million for the same period last year.
For the whole of last year, 16.79 million tourists visited Melaka and for this year, the state has targeted 17 million visitors.
In an effort to boost its tourism sector, the state government has declared 2019 as Visit Melaka Year. — Bernama