Preserving the intangible living heritage in the George Town World Heritage Site, Malaysia

Abstract

ABSTRACTCommunity groups in historic cities and their generational socio-cultural practices are important living heritage that carries educational value. Hence, historic cities, particularly those which are inscribed as the UNESCO World Heritage Site, are usually famous tourist destinations. Nevertheless, the potential of heritage tourism tends to attract capital (re)investments that would trigger evictions, displacements and gentrification. A case in point is the George Town World Heritage Site (GTWHS) in Malaysia, in which a case study was conducted to assess the impacts of inscription on its intangible living heritage. The findings unfold that the listing has generated unprecedented capital appreciation, rent spike, and an increase in the transactions of pre-war shop houses. Inevitably, they have triggered gentrification in the GTWHS, in that the original inhabitants and their traditional trades have been replaced with new residents and tourism-related businesses. Furthermore, the street art, instead of the heritage, has boosted its tourism industry, enabled some locals to make tourism money, and revived the historic core. This paper examines how gentrification has undermined the intangible living heritage that partly projects the Outstanding Universal Values for the GTWHS, and why it should be safeguarded for the knowledge of the future generations and heritage tourists.