Decision 46 COM 7B.33

Gusuku Sites and Related Properties of the Kingdom of Ryukyu (Japan) (C 972)

The World Heritage Committee,

1. Having examined Document WHC/24/46.COM/7B,
2. Recalling Decision 45 COM 7B.166 adopted at its extended 45th session (Riyadh, 2023),
3. Takes note of the conclusions of the June 2023 World Heritage Centre/ICOMOS/ICCROM Reactive Monitoring mission that the fire that occurred at the property on 31 October 2019 had minimal impact on the significant attributes of the property and its Outstanding Universal Value (OUV), and requests the State Party to implement fully the mission’s recommendations;
4. Acknowledges with appreciation for the State Party’s efforts and approach to recovering the property and ensuring that its integrity and authenticity are maintained;
5. Notes that the “Disaster Mitigation and Fire Prevention Measures for the Northern Hall and Southern Hall and other structures of Shuri-jô Site” are being developed, requests that, upon completion, the State Party submit this document to the World Heritage Centre, in one of the working languages of the Committee, for review, and encourages furthermore that these fire protection measures be implemented in the recovery and the reconstruction of the replica buildings and be extended to other buildings on the Shuri-jô site;
6. Encourages the State Party to incorporate a multi-hazard approach that addresses risks from all potential hazards into the disaster risk management plan when it is next updated;
7. Welcomes the fact that the State Party used the post-disaster reconstruction as an opportunity for educational outreach, allowing visitors and local community to learn not only about the recovery process, but also about the conservation work required for the property, encourages the State Party to continue involving the community in the recovery process, providing educational and interpretation materials to visitors, and invites it to submit a good practice case study, to be made available to other World Heritage stakeholders on the World Heritage Centre’s website;
8. Finally requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 December 2025, an updated report on the state of conservation of the property and the implementation of the above, for review by the World Heritage Committee at its 48th session.