The Chinese government has launched a 2.6-billion-yuan (US$333
million) project to protect Shanhaiguan Pass at the eastern end of
the Great Wall, the Ministry of Culture has
announced.
The one-year project involves two sections: 1 billion yuan for
on site building repairs, and 1.6 billion yuan for the protection
of cultural relics.
Shanhaiguan Pass, about 26 kilometers northeast of Qinhuangdao
City in north China's Hebei Province, stands at the eastern end of
the Great Wall, which starts at Jiayuguan Pass, in northwestern Gansu Province, and stretches for 6,000
kilometers to end at Shanhaiguan, on the shores of Bohai Bay.
Dong Yaohui, Deputy President of the China Great Wall
Association, said the Shanhaiguan Pass and other parts of the Great
Wall had suffered extensive natural and human damage in recent
years. Only 30 percent of the wall built during the Ming Dynasty
(1368-1644) remained standing.
Construction of Shanhaiguan Pass began in 1381 and was completed
in 1402. It comprises 26 kilometers of wall and 129 watchtowers.
They were a militarily strategic point in the defense of
Beijing.
However, 3,300 meters of the 4,600-meter wall around a garrison
town outside the pass gate have collapsed. Many battlements and
watchtowers on the Shanhaiguan Great Wall section have been
damaged.
"Apart from repair and protection, we will step up publicity to
raise awareness of protection among tourists," said Shi Xiaofeng,
director of cultural relics protection bureau of Qinhuangdao
City.
The annual tourism revenue from Shanhaiguan Pass is expected to
top 500 million yuan in 2006 with over three million tourists
awaited.
The city government of Qinhuangdao is planning to open a
Shanhaiguan Pass museum to teach tourists about its history and
culture.
"We need to balance the development of tourism and protection of
the Great Wall, so we will also strengthen control and supervision
of stores, restaurants and other commercial facilities inside the
scenic zone of the Shanhaiguan Pass," Shi said.
The Great Wall is unique in its size and complexity. Different
sections meander thousands of miles, passing through provinces and
autonomous regions, including Gansu, Ningxia, Inner Mongolia, Shaanxi, Shanxi, Hebei and Liaoning, in north China. Construction of the
Wall began during the Warring States Period (475-221 BC), when
separate sections were built in scattered strategic areas.
Like other sites of historical interests around the world, the
Great Wall is threatened by damages caused by nature and human
activities.
"The size of the Great Wall poses difficulties in protection
since a large portion is located in poor, remote areas where few
people reside," said Li Shuwang, deputy head of the special zone
management committee on Beijing's Badaling section of the Great
Wall.
Only a few sections have opened to tourists, and the remainder
stand on high remote mountains. "This is a fact we must face in
protecting the Great Wall," Li said.
A hip-hop party held on Beijing's Jinshanling section of the
Great wall in July last year caused outrage at the possible
damageit caused.
China's first ever regulation on the protection of the Great
Wall, banning commercial activities, came into effect early this
month.
Individuals who break the regulations can be fined between
10,000 and 50,000 yuan (US$1,282 to US$6,410) while institutions
can be fined 50,000 to 500,000 yuan (US$6,410 to US$64,100).
The regulation, promulgated by the State Council, prohibits
taking soil or bricks from the Great Wall, planting trees, driving
motorcycles, carving on the wall or building anything that does not
help protect the Wall.
Chai Xiaoming, Deputy Director of Cultural Heritage Protection
at the State Administration of Cultural Heritage, said the
regulation is as vital as the repair projects since it provides a
legal basis for the punishment of those who deface the ancient
wonder. It also helps promote heritage protection awareness.
The Great Wall is under state key protection in China. It was
put on the list of UNESCO World Heritage sites in 1987.
(Xinhua News Agency December 31, 2006)
