Hapcheon-gun Progresses Smoothly in Pursuit of World Heritage Listing for Okjeon and Gaya Tumuli Clusters

Passed Completeness Review of UNESCO World Heritage Nomination for Gaya Tumuli Including Okjeon Burial Mounds

Panoramic View of Okjeon Tumuli Cluster in Hapcheon County

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Choi Soon-kyung] Hapcheon-gun, Gyeongnam announced on the 8th that the 'Gaya Tumuli' world heritage nomination submitted by the Cultural Heritage Administration last January has passed the completeness review by the UNESCO World Heritage Centre.

The Gaya Tumuli nominated for registration include seven sites: Hapcheon Okjeon Tumuli, Gimhae Daeseongdong, Haman Malsan, Goryeong Jisandong, Goseong Songhakdong, Namwon Yugok-ri and Durak-ri, and Changnyeong Gyodong and Songhyeon-dong.

The completeness review is a process in which the UNESCO World Heritage Centre examines whether the submitted nomination form meets the formal requirements. Passing this process leads to the full-scale world heritage registration evaluation procedure.

According to the operational guidelines for implementing the World Heritage Convention, nomination forms that pass the completeness inspection by the World Heritage Centre undergo document review by advisory bodies, on-site inspections, and two rounds of comprehensive discussion evaluations from March of that year to the first half of the following year.

The Gaya Tumuli is expected to go through these procedures starting this month, and the decision on registration will likely be made at the 46th World Heritage Committee scheduled to be held around July 2022. There is also a possibility of adjustment depending on the COVID-19 situation.

An official from Hapcheon-gun said, “In preparation for the on-site inspection in September, various projects such as restoration and maintenance work, installation of personnel counters, and cultural heritage signboards are underway at Hapcheon Okjeon Tumuli, and these will be completed before the on-site inspection.” He added, “We will do our best to ensure there are no setbacks in the on-site inspection and registration preparations by closely cooperating with the Cultural Heritage Administration, the Gaya Tumuli World Heritage Registration Promotion Group, and the relevant local governments for the world heritage registration of the Gaya Tumuli.”