While mandatory military service preoccupies much of the population, Myanmar’s junta is inviting public donations for restoration work in the World Heritage temple city of Bagan in central Myanmar.
Junta Culture Minister Tin Oo Lwin is overseeing the restoration of Bagan’s lakes and reservoirs, The Irrawaddy has learned. He has already had Mingalar (Auspiciousness) Lake, near Pwarsaw (East) village, restored on behalf of his boss, Min Aung Hlaing.
According to Bamar tradition, lake dredging is believed to help bring good fortune. But linked with Min Aung Hlaing – who has repeatedly proven his inability to govern the country – it is viewed as yadaya, a magic ritual performed to ward off misfortune.
A classmate of Min Aung Hlaing in the Defense Services Academy’s 19th intake, Tin Oo Lwin was appointed religious affairs and culture minister in August last year in line with the policy of successive regimes that favors military men over intellectuals.
He plans to have 46 lakes dredged in the first phase and 45 more in the second phase. Though the regime said the restoration work is adhering to advice from local and international experts and guidelines on heritage conservation, 20-ton excavators are being used as if to construct a large dam.
The dredging process started in February and is being conducted by the ministries of Border Affairs and Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation under the guidance of the Religious Affairs and Culture Ministry.
Only after experts criticized the absence of a heritage impact assessment did Deputy Minister of Religious Affairs Nu Mya Zan inspect the site and call for systematic work to be conducted.
The temple city was added to UNESCO World Heritage List in July 2019. A major tourist attraction in central Myanmar, Bagan features over 3,000 pagodas and temples dating from the 9th to the 13th centuries.
It was enshrined on the World Heritage List partly for its remarkably effective water management system. The nomination proposal explained its workings in detail, highlighting the famous “Mya Kan” or Mya Reservoir. UNESCO has already proposed further research on the water management of the ancient city, said archaeologists.
“The water management system was very systematic in the Bagan period. Reservoirs were built to distribute water from Mya Kan, and water was finally drained through the moat into the Ayeyarwaddy River. Mya Kan was constructed to prevent flooding during heavy rain, and also to supply water in times of drought caused by low rainfall,” said an archaeologist.
The use of heavy machinery threatens not only precious heritage but also soil layers used to retain water in the reservoirs. Piles of excavated earth have also been used to build embankments, defacing the original landscape.
Using heavy machinery is banned in World Heritage sites, said another archaeologist, adding that the regime is blatantly violating the integrity of the reservoir banks.
“They must do careful research on Bagan-period lakes before dredging them. They must avoid using heavy machinery as it can damage the layers of ground. And they must follow procedures and go slowly by examining each soil layer,” he said.
The previous military regime, which called itself the State Peace and Development Council, also renovated ancient buildings in Bagan via public donations. However, the results failed to meet international standards and were widely condemned for eroding Bagan’s value as a heritage site.
“The previous regime did rebuild Mya Kan. But water now drains from the reservoir because the retention layer was damaged by heavy machinery,” the archaeologist said.
While the intentions may be good, the way restoration works are being carried out risks further undermining the value of Myanmar’s cultural showcase, said experts.
In response to The Irrawaddy’s inquiry, Aung Aung Kyaw, director of the Archaeology Department under the Religious Affairs and Culture Ministry, said: “We plan to work by hand in reservoirs that are close to heritage buildings and use machinery in areas far away from heritage structures. We will make sure heritage buildings are not affected.”
He said the restoration work was aimed at reviving the Bagan-period water system, as well as preventing floods in the rainy season, supplying water and irrigation at dry times, and remedying the ecosystem.
The department said it consulted with Italian hydrologist Massimo Sarti, who conducted field surveys for the restoration of reservoirs. Four heritage impact teams led by directors have been conducting assessments since December, and the assessment is now 75 percent complete, Aung Aung Kyaw told The Irrawaddy.
“In some reservoirs that have not been dredged for a long time, it would take too long to remove the sediment layers by hand, so we have been using machinery. But we will guard against damaging heritage buildings,” he said.
Archaeologists say the temple city has been prone to flooding since 2021, blaming the construction of residential and religious buildings and walls that have blocked drains in the area.
Nearly 60 Bagan heritage buildings were flooded when Myanmar was hit by Cyclone Mocha in May 2023, according to the Ministry of Religious Affairs and Culture.
Bagan risks ending up on the World Heritage in Danger list if UNESCO considers the current regime is repeating the botched restoration efforts carried out by its predecessors.
One archaeologist said a crucial question was whether priority was being given to humans or heritage in Bagan.
“They are dredging with heavy machinery to supply people with water. People living in the heritage zone must follow the rules that are in place to protect heritage. They can conduct development work for the public but must ensure that it does not affect the heritage. If we have to choose only one, I urge them to choose heritage over residents in the 20-square-mile heritage zone.”
