An ongoing project to reinforce a section of the citadel wall, which is under threat from illegal housing as well as the ravages of time. (Photo: VNA)Thua Thien-Hue (VNS/VNA) – Authorities in the central province of Thua Thien-Hue is having aheadache removing illegal residents from the citadel’s walls located in Hue city.
The problem stems from a lack ofland sources for resettlement as well as budget to compensate relocatedresidents.
A report by local authorities saidthe city is struggling to find land to resettle the residents. Most do not wantto settle far from the city centre.
During a visit by Chairman of theprovincial People’s Committee Phan Ngoc Tho, members of the community told Thothat the resettlement apartments built in Huong So ward did not meet livingstandards, so they refused to move.
Tho ordered related agencies tospeed up the work as earlier this year the central government defined it amajor task for the local government in Thua Thien-Hue in 2018.
Meanwhile, the provincial People’sCommittee said the estimated cost to evacuate about 15,000 people from the wallis 2.2 trillion VND (95 million USD), a significant burden on the local budget.
A report prepared by the committeesaid there are total 3,800 families living on top of the walls, which werebuilt by the Nguyen Dynasty (1802-1945) to protect the former citadel.
Social surveys show that thesecommunities appeared around 1975, as residents attempted to settle after thewar and Independence Day. In 1999, heavy flooding hit Hue and sent morefamilies to the citadel walls after their homes and boats were destroyed.
According to Hue MonumentsConservation Centre, a local government body that manages relics built by thedynasty, the citadel wall is recognised by UNESCO as part of the heritagestatus offered to the monument system belonging to the dynasty in Hue.
The centre’s director Phan Thanh Haisaid living on the wall is a violation of laws protecting heritage sites. “Theweight of the families living on top of the walls causes damage andsubsidence,” he said.
The residents have different ways ofoccupying the wall. The majority of them construct temporary houses on top anderect wooden ladders to reach them. Many others have built concrete structures,with some even looking likes villas, breaking part of the wall to make entrancealleys.
Others have made use of collapsedsections, clearing the debris for housing or demolishing the wall themselves toconstruct homes. Residents living near the wall have also used space on top forfarming.
The wall was originally built withthick brick walls, at a width of 2m, with soil in the middle.
Local authorities designed measuresto evacuate the residents from the wall in 1993, when Hue first received theUNESCO title for its monuments. However, such efforts have been unsuccessful.
In 2011, the province People’sCommittee allocated funds for the conservation centre to move more residents,but it managed to relocate just 220 families.-VNS/VNA
The problem stems from a lack ofland sources for resettlement as well as budget to compensate relocatedresidents.
A report by local authorities saidthe city is struggling to find land to resettle the residents. Most do not wantto settle far from the city centre.
During a visit by Chairman of theprovincial People’s Committee Phan Ngoc Tho, members of the community told Thothat the resettlement apartments built in Huong So ward did not meet livingstandards, so they refused to move.
Tho ordered related agencies tospeed up the work as earlier this year the central government defined it amajor task for the local government in Thua Thien-Hue in 2018.
Meanwhile, the provincial People’sCommittee said the estimated cost to evacuate about 15,000 people from the wallis 2.2 trillion VND (95 million USD), a significant burden on the local budget.
A report prepared by the committeesaid there are total 3,800 families living on top of the walls, which werebuilt by the Nguyen Dynasty (1802-1945) to protect the former citadel.
Social surveys show that thesecommunities appeared around 1975, as residents attempted to settle after thewar and Independence Day. In 1999, heavy flooding hit Hue and sent morefamilies to the citadel walls after their homes and boats were destroyed.
According to Hue MonumentsConservation Centre, a local government body that manages relics built by thedynasty, the citadel wall is recognised by UNESCO as part of the heritagestatus offered to the monument system belonging to the dynasty in Hue.
The centre’s director Phan Thanh Haisaid living on the wall is a violation of laws protecting heritage sites. “Theweight of the families living on top of the walls causes damage andsubsidence,” he said.
The residents have different ways ofoccupying the wall. The majority of them construct temporary houses on top anderect wooden ladders to reach them. Many others have built concrete structures,with some even looking likes villas, breaking part of the wall to make entrancealleys.
Others have made use of collapsedsections, clearing the debris for housing or demolishing the wall themselves toconstruct homes. Residents living near the wall have also used space on top forfarming.
The wall was originally built withthick brick walls, at a width of 2m, with soil in the middle.
Local authorities designed measuresto evacuate the residents from the wall in 1993, when Hue first received theUNESCO title for its monuments. However, such efforts have been unsuccessful.
In 2011, the province People’sCommittee allocated funds for the conservation centre to move more residents,but it managed to relocate just 220 families.-VNS/VNA
VNA
