Govt To Nominate Royal Belum State Park, Leaning Tower Of Teluk Intan As World Heritage Sites

KUALA KANGSAR (Perak, Malaysia), Dec 22 (Bernama) -- The Tourism and Culture Ministry is in the midst of filing an application to nominate the Royal Belum State Park in Gerik and the Leaning Tower in Teluk Intan as UNESCO-sanctioned World Heritage Site. Its minister, Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz (left), however, said many aspects were still being studied in order to provide strong justification that would support the nomination of the two sites. "In order to be taken to Unesco, there are certain requirements that must be met...this will take some time, but we are confident that we will succeed," he told reporters after opening the 'Nilai-Nilai Murni dan Semarak Warisan' Carnival at Dataran Sungai Perak Indah here Saturday. The minister said if the two sites succeeded in getting the recognition, Perak would be the first state in the country to have two world heritage sites. So far, the Historical City of Melaka, George Town of Penang, Gunung Mulu National Park in Sarawak, Kinabalu Park in Sabah, and the Archaeological Heritage of the Lenggong Valley in Perak had been declared as UNESCO World Heritage Sites, he said. Meanwhile, Mohamed Nazri said Perak had 79 heritage sites altogether, the highest number among other states in the country, which were protected under the National Heritage Act 2005. He said among the sites that had been gazetted were the Ubudiah Mosque, the Malay College Kuala Kangsar, Istana Kenangan in Kuala Kangsar, St. George Church in Taiping and the Dutch Fort on Pangkor Island. (photoBernama) -- BERNAMA