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BOOK ON RESTORATION OF OLD HAVANA
LAUNCHED
A truly remarkable experience
• City Historian Eusebio Leal praises
the quality of writing
BY MIREYA CASTAÑEDA —Granma
International staff writer—
The
book Una experiencia singular. Valoraciones del
modelo de gestión integral de La Habana Vieja,
Patrimonio de la Humanidad (A Remarkable
Experience. Assessments of the Integral Action Model
in the Old Havana World Heritage Site), is a
significant resource for understanding the
restoration project devised and put into practice by
the City Historian’s Office.
Co-published by Boloña and UNESCO, the book is a
tremendous documentary work (graphics, statistics,
tables, plans) and of photographic wealth detailing,
in a comprehensive fashion, the work carried out by
the City of Havana Historian’s Office (OHCH) over
the last 10 years.
At
the press launch, in the beautiful Lombillo Palace
in Old Havana’s Plaza de la Catedral, City Historian
Eusebio Leal expressed his satisfaction at the
publication and highlighted that for the first time
UNESCO experts had written about the experiences of
the city’s historic quarter.
“Through the true and verifiable documentation,” he
affirmed, “we can see that the restoration project
in Old Havana is sustainable and the analyses by the
UNESCO experts are accompanied by recommendations
for other countries showing the project as a viable
experience.
According to advance information, Sylvio Mutal,
principal international consultant in the field of
Conservation, Development, Management and
Operation of Programs in Cities/Historic Centers,
wrote: “The integral program in Old Havana, managed
and administrated by the OHCH, can be considered
both successful and commendable¼ and raises the idea
of the creation of a special fund for Historic
Cities which could be administrated by local
organizations at a city level or special agencies
like that of the
OHCH¼This
could be an adaptation of the management style that
the City
Historian’s Office in Havana operates.”
For
his part, Fernando Carrión, another UNESCO expert,
believes “more than just a triumphant case or a
model which can be repeated in other cities, the
renovation of Old Havana is a successful policy that
demonstrates how, in a situation of tremendous
diversity, it is feasible to find solutions within
the problems themselves,” adding that “the Old
Havana restoration project is one of the few in
Latin America that corresponds to the project of
national development.”
Leal
pointed out that, with respect to the financial
aspect, they were unable to seek money from outside
sources. “Cooperation on the project never achieved
a significant percentage – in addition to having
been victimized – and highlighted the fact that “99%
of Old Havana’s economic sector is the property of
the nation.”
Without doubt, a special aspect of the Cuban
restoration project is the care taken to deal with
social questions. “It is not just an archeological
project, it’s more complex, because this is an
inhabited city. The fundamental aspect is
restoration without removing people, of not
converting (Old Havana) into a city for tourists.”
Una
experiencia singular. Valoraciones del modelo de
gestión integral de La Habana Vieja, Patrimonio de
la Humanidad
demonstrates 10 years of success for this project
headed by Eusebio Leal who, as is customary,
described it as a continuation of “the intellectual
endeavor of Emilio Roig de Leuchsenring (his
predecessor) for conserving the relics of the past.”
The book will be launched on September 29 at the San
Francisco de Asis Lesser Basilica by Leal and Herman
van Hooff, director of UNESCO’s regional office.
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