- Rehabilitation Works
- Public Awareness & Community Development
- Highlights of our Activities
- About our Calendar
The mission of the Centre for Cultural Heritage Preservation at Dar Mansour (CCHP), established to carry the legacy of Bethlehem 2000 Project, is to provide a sustainable mechanism for the protection and management of cultural heritage resources in the Bethlehem District and to enhance awareness of cultural heritage in the public conscience.
In order to enhance cultural heritage as part of the sustainable development of the Bethlehem District, we have adopted a holistic approach which satisfies economic and social objectives as well as high quality cultural tourism needs. This approach requires, first and foremost, that all current and future rehabilitation projects as well as those projects completed under Bethlehem 2000, be kept up in a manner to guarantee their sustainability. It also entails heightened awareness among the local public of the value of cultural heritage as a national and economic asset.
We believe that we are the first such organization to deal with the issue of public awareness in the field of cultural heritage with a scientific and systematic approach and the implementation of our campaign, which spreads out over the next five years, should start a process worthy of duplication all over Palestine.
In spite of the continued closure of the Bethlehem District, stagnant tourism and economic strangulation and intermittent incursions of Israeli tanks, which inflicted important damage to much of the works accomplished for Bethlehem 2000, we have managed to establish a strong base for our operation and accomplish our programme of works with little delay. While our current projects have contributed modestly to the job market, all our planned projects are geared to add substantially to the job creation effort and to help alleviate the current crisis.
It is our privilege to share with our readers our achievements of the last year through this first issue of the CCHP news quarterly. We hope that our work in the field of cultural heritage preservation, in the future, will continue to bear the mark of excellence that will earn it the respect of the local community and guarantee it international recognition.
Rehabilitation Works
Since March 2001, when the Centre for Cultural Heritage Preservation (CCHP) was established, we have implemented two important projects: the rehabilitation of an old building in Hosh al-Syrian to be used as a children's library and the completion of Phase II of the rehabilitation of the old core of Beit Jala. These projects are a continuation of development works in cultural heritage initiated by Bethlehem 2000 Project, the umbrella organisation under which the CCHP operates.
Mar Aphram Children's Library
Funded by the Flemish Community (Kingdom of Belgium), this project included the rehabilitation of a 420 square meters old building in Hosh Al-Syrian for adaptive reuse as a children's library and activity center; provision of furniture, equipment and books; training of staff in Belgium. We have executed the rehabilitation works, which were completed in January 2002, in coordination with UNESCO. These works included the restoration of the building, namely the rehabilitation of façades, plastering, new floors, and mechanical, sewage and electrical works, which were given special care due to the advanced stage of deterioration of the building.
The project provided job opportunities for a variety of specialized workers including carpenters, masons, electricians, plasterers, pointers and others. The opening of the library is scheduled for April 2002.
Entrance to Hosh Al-Syrian
As part of the incremental development of Hosh Al-Syrian, a historic quarter in the heart of Bethlehem and of significant architectural value, we have rehabilitated the 60 meter stretch of alleyway, of 3 meters average width.
With the previous restoration of Dar Mansour and the completion of Mar Aphram library, the project completes the restoration of a whole urban space within the old core of Bethlehem.
Beit Jala Old Core, Phase II
The second phase of the rehabilitation of the old core of Beit Jala aimed at transforming the historic area into an attractive space with modern amenities. Funded by the Government of Austria, this project covering a 3500 sq. metre area is an important component of the incremental development of the historic core of Beit Jala. This project should start the process of preservation of private homes and shops among the owners and inhabitants of the old quarters. We are currently preparing for the implementation of Phase III.
Public Awareness and Community Development
An investigation of the current situation in community awareness has brought to our attention the need for a comprehensive campaign. We have found that a few awareness programmes have been implemented at varying levels yet none of these expounds the importance of cultural heritage for the healthy survival of society or articulates the role of the different groups within the public as advocates for its preservation. We have also noted that none of these programmes aimed at transferring ownership of the project to the target group. Our market research has led us to a selection of target groups among the public: schools; neighbourhoods and quarters; women's groups; NGO's, institutions and associations working with children and youth; decision makers among local authorities and public institutions; tourism related business owners. A campaign project has been designed for most of these groups and the implementation of the project with the schools and some quarters within the old core will hopefully start within the next two months. A pilot project under implementation in Hosh D'eik will serve as a model for community involvement.
Introducing CCHP to the Community
During the first few months after the establishment of our centre, we met on several occasions with the inhabitants and shopkeepers of the neighbourhood, briefing them on the importance of cultural heritage, our work in the field of preservation and the role they could contribute as a community. We also met with working teams and engineers from the Municipalities of the Bethlehem District to introduce our work to them and draw their attention to the need of close cooperation to maximise on the success of our projects.
Beit Jala Old Core
The rehabilitation works for Phase II are almost complete and an awareness campaign involving the community of all the old core, designed according to the Hosh D'eik model, will start as soon as possible. It will be the first time that an awareness project is implemented immediately after the completion of works and the project will involve the inhabitants in safeguarding their refurbished quarter and initiate a process of street associations.
Hosh D'eik as a Pilot Project
Hosh D'eik is an old quarter in Bethlehem that has been rehabilitated as part of the preparations for the new millennium through UNDP funding. Two years after the works have been completed the hosh does not reflect the work and effort invested into its rehabilitation.
The implementation of the campaign in this quarter is on-going with the support and participation of the Municipality and in partnership with Beituna at-Talhami. We hope to be able to inaugurate the renewed quarter next month.
Socio-economic Survey
We have commissioned the Social Sciences Department at Bethlehem University to conduct a survey among selected groups of the Bethlehem public. The resulting report will help us assess perceptions of cultural heritage among the Bethlehem public and its readiness and willingness to get involved in community issues. It will also provide us with the necessary guidelines to implement our campaign, which aims to render the public more conscious of their civic rights and duties; and empower them to contribute to the development of their communities. This survey is sponsored by UNDP.
Highlights of our Activities
10 to 12 September 2001: Participation at the conference “More than 2000 Years in the History of Architecture, Safeguarding of our Architectural Heritage”. UNESCO, in partnership with Bethlehem 2000 Project, planned an international congress to be held in Bethlehem in October 2000 as part of the millennium celebrations and in parallel to the rehabilitation works that were completed and on-going. Due to the portentous events sweeping the area since September 2000, the Congress was transferred to Paris and was held in UNESCO Headquarters.
The Director of CCHP participated as part of the Bethlehem 2000 Project delegation, headed by Dr. Nabeel Kassis, Minister and Coordinator General, who gave a keynote address at the Plenary Session. The Congress provided an overview of researches, studies and state-of-the-art of knowledge in different fields of architectural heritage related to the conservation and restoration of monuments, buildings, historic towns, archaeological sites and other structures built from the earliest times till the end of the 19th century. Bethlehem 2000's experience in cultural heritage preservation was presented in a session.
17 November 2001: A one-day workshop on "Concepts in Planning Public Playgrounds for Children as part of Community Development"
22 November 2001: A one-day workshop on "Steps in Planning a Community Awareness Campaign" this workshop came in the context of UNDP's support of our community development initiatives.
30 Jan - 3 Feb 2002: participation at FITUR, an international tourism fair held yearly in Madrid. The Centre coordinated the participation of Bethlehem 2000 Project and the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities as well as the various activities held in the Palestinian booth.
This participation is a continuation of ethlehem 2000's strategy to promote Palestine as a viable destination by its own right and promote its rich cultural heritage, which reflects thousands of years of history.
It is also our contribution to the many efforts being made to expand the outreach of Palestinian tourism to markets, market segments and companies abroad.
CCHP 2002 Calendar
The concept of our calendar is a novelty in our region and has been very well received among the local public and the international community. It portrays vernacular features of buildings in the Bethlehem District printed on recycled paper produced by The Waha Centre for People with Special Needs in Beit Sahour. At the same time, it reflects the responsible attitude towards the environment, which we are promoting within the community by drawing attention to the relationship between the architectural heritage and the environment; its olive wood rings interpret local craftsmanship, which has been severely hit as a result of the current blockade and the slump in tourism.
