Exploring Space in the Spirit of Kinship
vast lake which would assure the obliteration of 3,000 year-old temples and monuments — footprints of an ancient civilization known as Nubia . 31 In October of that same year , the Sudan sent a similar plea to UNESCO . 32 Neither country had the money or the capability to protect these historic sites .
The response was swift . UNES- CO spearheaded a global international effort to rescue the Nubian heritage that its Director-General , Vittorino Veronese , knew humanity could not afford to lose . As Veronese himself noted ,
1 . It is not easy to choose between heritage and the present well-being of people .
2 . Treasures of unrivalled value are entitled to universal protection .
3 . The rescue operations will not just preserve something which may otherwise be lost but will , in addition , bring to light to as yet undiscovered wealth for the benefit of all . 33
It became the greatest archaeological rescue operation of all time . Even as humans waged a bitterly Cold War , raced to the Moon and fought for civil rights , the call to preserve our history was not ignored . It is estimated that US $ 80 million was raised from 47
UNESCO-member nations and a number of private entities from around the globe . 34 International panels of experts from five continents convened to develop and then implement strategies to save 23 temples and architectural complexes — some of them relocated brick by brick . 35 In short , the international community came together to save treasures they recognized belonged , not just to Egypt or the Sudan , but to humanity as a whole .
In the words of UNESCO Director-General Amadou-Mahter M ’ Bow , the International Rescue Nubia Campaign “ will be numbered among the few major attempts made in our lifetime by the nations to assume their common responsibility towards the past so as to move forward in a spirit of brotherhood towards the future .” 36
B . The World Heritage Convention Protects Outstanding Universal Value
The success of the Nubia Campaign spawned other campaigns to save monuments of universal value including , among others , Venice and its Lagoon in Italy , the Archaeological Ruins of Moenjodaro in Pakistan and the Borobodur Temple Compounds in Indonesia . 37 More important , the Nubia Campaign created the foundation for
31 |
Veronese , supra note 11 . |
32 |
Hassan , supra note 12 at 82 . |
33 |
Id . at 80 . |
34 |
Id . at 83-4 . |
35 |
Id . at 84 . |
36 |
Amadou-Mahtar M ’ Bow , A Single , Universal Heritage , The UNESCO Courier , 4 ( March 1980 ). |
37 |
Hasan , supra note 12 at 89 . |
41 |