The Ministry of Arts, Culture, and Heritage has publicized its draft of a new legislation on preserving heritage items and culture.
The ‘Heritage Bill’ (Dhivehi) is now open for public consultation and sets out the criteria for such items,
The criteria is broad enough to include archaeological findings, buildings, crafted items, paintings, archives, books, writing, and other objects with historic value.
The draft bill stipulates that a list of heritage items be compiled and ranked in order of value, although the ministry is charged with drafting regulations to support the bill.
The draft provisions the establishing of a ‘Cultural Heritage Protection Agency’ which will set out 'tiers' under which the items are allocated, work with administrative offices, and advice the Heritage Minister.
In determining the historic value of heritage items, the draft bill provides that an item at least be dated 100 years, or have significant cultural value.
For buildings, the draft bill requires that it have been constructed before 1950, or have significant cultural value.
The draft bill also includes provisions preserving social and religious practices associated with local culture, as well as traditional sports and festivities.
Administrative offices have the prerogative to make submissions and recommendations to the agency, and local government councils are responsible for maintaining heritage sites in their jurisdictions.
The agency’s seven-member board will also set out penalties for damaging heritage items or vandalizing historic buildings; the draft bill also prohibits the export of such items.
A law on preserving heritage and culture in the Maldives is much anticipated, and introducing the legislation is one of the current government’s first 100-day pledges.
In 2012, several historical artifacts exhibited at the Maldives National Museum were destroyed by a group of men that stormed into the premises.
They had targeted and destroyed dozens of statues and items said to be most of what remains of Maldives’ Buddhist past.
