KUALA LUMPUR – The government has no plans to designate Kg Baru in Kuala Lumpur as a Unesco World Heritage Site, said Dr Zaliha Mustafa.
The minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Federal Territories) said this was because the recognition from Unesco itself would prevent the department’s development plans for Kg Baru.
“Furthermore, there are some criteria of Kg Baru that cannot match the criteria required by Unesco,” she said during Minister’s Question Time in the Dewan Rakyat.
Elaborating on the recognition process, Dr Zaliha said the process for a site to become a World Heritage Site involved initial acknowledgment by the National Heritage Department, subsequent national recognition from the Tourism, Arts and Culture Ministry, and finally, global recognition by Unesco.
She was responding to Jamaludin Yahya (Pasir Salak-PN), who asked about the potential gazetting of Kg Baru in Kuala Lumpur as a Unesco site.
Dr Zaliha, however, stressed that the government’s continuous development plans for Kg Baru were ongoing under Perbadanan Pembangunan Kampong Bharu (PKB).
“Among the guidelines used by PKB to develop Kg Baru are its cultural and preservation value, innovative planning in developing the land, conservation and regeneration of the land for a quality environment and sustainable habitability, and most importantly, maintaining the interests of the Malay people.
“Since the establishment of Kuala Lumpur as a Federal Territory in 1974, there have been a few areas on Malay Agricultural Settlement land that are still actively developed,” she added.
Apart from that, Dr Zaliha has said there are now only a small number of houses with traditional features that remain in Kg Baru, which are “Rumah Limas.” “Rumah Johor,”, and long-roofed houses that are privately owned.
“There are also some buildings with historical value, such as Kg Baru’s Sultan Sulaiman Club located at Jalan Dewan Sultan Sulaiman, which is now under the care of the Selangor government and has not been listed as a heritage site by the Heritage Department,” she added.
PKB has drawn up a 20-year plan for Kg Baru for the development of the 125-year-old Malay enclave.
To address this, Dr Zaliha said that the government, in its efforts to enhance the business infrastructure of Kg Baru, had designated Jalan Raja Alang as a shopping street selling various traditional Malay crafts to attract and promote tourism.
“Additionally, Jalan Raja Muda Musa has been designated as a food haven, offering a variety of Malay foods for sale,” she added. – March 13, 2024