Korea Elected as UNESCO World Heritage Committee Member State... Active Until 2027

On the 22nd (local time), South Korea was elected as a member country of the World Heritage Committee, which reviews and decides on the inscription of UNESCO World Heritage sites.

According to UNESCO, at the World Heritage Convention General Assembly held that day, South Korea filled one vacancy within the Asian regional group among the newly elected World Heritage Committee member countries. Accordingly, South Korea will serve as a member country of the World Heritage Committee from this year until 2027.

This is the fourth time South Korea has joined the World Heritage Committee. Previously, South Korea served as a member country three times: from 1997 to 2003, 2005 to 2009, and 2013 to 2017. The World Heritage Committee is composed of 21 countries out of the 195 State Parties to the World Heritage Convention, with member countries distributed by region. Although the official term for member countries is six years, by convention they serve only four years.

The World Heritage Committee reviews the World Heritage lists submitted by each country and selects cultural heritage, natural heritage, and mixed heritage sites. In this process, various criteria such as historical, cultural, and natural significance are considered. Additionally, while managing the World Heritage list, if already inscribed heritage sites face threats such as war, earthquakes, natural disasters, pollution, or indiscriminate development, the Committee takes emergency measures for their protection.

Currently, the World Heritage Committee is reviewing whether to inscribe the Sado (佐渡) Mine in Japan, a site of forced labor of Koreans during the Japanese colonial period, as a World Heritage site. The management status of Japan’s modern industrial facilities, including the Hashima (端島, also known as 'Gunkanjima') coal mine inscribed in 2015, is also under review. By joining the World Heritage Committee, South Korea is expected to actively express its position against Japan, the concerned country, during the review process. Japan was elected in 2021 and will serve as a member country until 2025.