Post-Inscription Safeguarding of Duong Lam Ancient Village Heritage

Abstract

In 2005, Duong Lam became the first old village in Vietnam to be registered as a national historical and cultural relic by the State. From that, all activities related to monuments, such as remodeling and building new houses, shall comply with strict regulations of the Law on Cultural Heritage. The conflicts in Duong Lam between safeguarding and development, between honouring the heritage and the rights of the heritage owner community are always smoldering and at risk of bursting out into conflicts. The peak of that was in 2013, when a number of Duong Lam villagers lodged petitions to "return" the title of a national level relic to the State. Using ethnographic materials, this research focuses on analysing the conflicts arising in Duong Lam after being inscribed as heritage, and the conflicts between heritage safeguarding and the people's needs and rights. The paper points out that the title of "heritage" needs to benefit the entire community of heritage owners, not just a small group. That will help avoid post-inscription conflicts.