Cultural heritage kept alive
We’re keeping our traditions and our stories alive with whatever means we can because this is how we will survive as a people.
National Heritage Month (NHM) is celebrated in May and this year it fell in the wake of the pandemic. It created an opportune time to discuss the state of our cultural heritage as well as effects on preservation and conservation efforts, an oft ignored issue, during this crisis. The occasion was observed with talks and webinars tackling such topics.
The Department of Tourism (DoT) organized a webinar, “Paraparaan: Redefining the Use of Heritage Places for COVID-19 Survival” on 21 May, while ASEAN Heritage Alliance held the forum, “Conservation Practices amid a Pandemic: Southeast Asian Perspective” on 23 May.
The National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) held the webinar “That Thing Called Pamana: Conversation with Youth Advocates,” on 29 May as part of its celebration of NHM with the theme
“Mga Kuwentong Pamana (Stories of
Heritage).”
As with other sectors, it is undeniable that the coronavirus pandemic profoundly affected the heritage conservation sector. Conservation and research works were put on hold.
Since many heritage sites are also tourist destinations, revenues from tourism, which sustain maintenance work and contribute to conservation efforts, were lost as sites were closed down. On the other hand, the lessening of tourism/ human traffic means that heritage sites are lesser prone or exposed to wear and damage, especially for sites in fragile state.
Seeing new dimensions
The forum, “Conservation Practices amid a Pandemic: Southeast Asian Perspective,” organized by a newly formed regional heritage group in the Southeast Asian region, AHA, and hosted by the Philippines’ Heritage Conservation Society, “explored the relationship between the current pandemic and heritage conservation.
Khoo Salma Nasution of the Penang
Heritage Trust in Malaysia said the pandemic brought the realization of reconnecting with the environment and heritage projects that can be organized during this time can deal with urban gardening, strengthening of food traditions and pedestrianization of streets.
Strategies for heritage tourism
DoT’s webinar tackled the pandemic’s impact and how it reshaped tourism, sustainability and conservation programs. Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat said “while COVID-19 has closed down our heritage sites and put many aspects of our culture on hold, we’ll remember 2020 as the year we observe the Visita Iglesia tradition virtually, thanks to the 360-degree photos of our beautiful baroque churches online. We’re keeping our traditions and our stories alive with whatever means we can because this is how we will survive as a people.”
At present, heritage sites such as churches, universities and cultural destinations are adapting to the possibilities. Intramuros conducts online learning sessions, online museum and Visita Iglesia tours. San Agustin Church and Manila Cathedral are now conducting daily online masses. Universities such as the University of Santo Tomas is s providing a COVID-19 triage, virtual tours of cultural heritage facilities and sites, and maintaining a rooftop garden for the benefit of not only the university but also the Sampaloc community.
Healing by heritage
Arvin Manuel Villalon, a consultant of the NCCA Cultural Mapping Program, said heritage figures prominently in the way people cope with the pandemic.
He said that people turn to heritage, particularly intangible religious heritage, in dealing with anxieties due to lockdowns, and after the pandemic, heritage can help people regain a sense of normalcy.