By Ama H. Vanniarachchy
The Department of Archaeology (DoA), Sri Lanka celebrated its 134th anniversary on 7 July 2024. An event to mark this significant day was held at the Sri Lanka Foundation, on the following day, titled, ‘The National Archaeology Symposium’.
The keynote speech of this National event was delivered by Dr. Gamini Wijesuriya, one of the 58 World Heritage pioneers and the International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property (ICCROM) 2021 Award recipient. This award was presented to Dr. Wijesuriya, in recognition of his contributions to the field of cultural heritage both in his home country of Sri Lanka and internationally, and towards ICCROM’s development as an organisation. With over 40 years of experience in world heritage, living heritage, and people-centred conservation approaches, Dr. Wijesuriya’s contributions have been invaluable.
An architect and an archaeologist, Dr. Wijesuriya has dedicated his entire career to the conservation and management of heritage worldwide. His diverse experience includes roles as Director of Conservation for the Government of Sri Lanka, which he considers as the foundation of his illustrious career, Principal Regional Scientist of the Department of Conservation in New Zealand, and Project Manager for ICCROM.
Dr. Wijesuriya is a national asset. He is a gem that Sri Lanka has not yet taken the service to the fullest. If the DoA or the Central Cultural Fund (CCF) takes the initiative and makes the best use of the knowledge, and experience of Dr. Wijesuriya, it would greatly benefit the country and the upcoming heritage management professionals of Sri Lanka.
Dr. Gamini Wijesuriya’s keynote speech
A keynote speech is not an ordinary speech. As per definitions, a keynote speech is a speech that sets out the central theme of a conference. The keynote speech involves informing and educating the audience, motivating and inspiring individuals, setting the tone and creating a theme, building credibility and enhancing brand image, and facilitating networking and collaboration. Dr. Wijesuriya’s keynote speech was insightful and profound to the fullest. Not a single word of this speech was to be left out.
Hence, Dr. Wijesuriya’s speech should have been the highlight of the National Archaeology Symposium 2024. Yet, instead, as it has been for over the past couple of years, the DoA has lost its focus on preserving the country’s heritage and messed up its priorities, which once again showcased in this National Archaeology Symposium. Inviting Dr. Wijesuriya to deliver the keynote speech at the National Archaeology Symposium 2024 is greatly admirable. Instead of mainly focusing on the keynote speech by an internationally-renowned and acclaimed heritage professional, the National Symposium was focused on many other petty matters, which cannot be seen as bearing ‘national’ level importance.
This is not to degrade or disregard the service and hard work of others. However, it is sad to see that the National Symposium on Archaeology has lost its ‘national-level’ standards. The entire event focused on publications that were written by officers of the DoA, which is surely admirable, yet the question is was it really necessary to be felicitated during the opening of a national-level event? Secondly, the opening of the symposium focused on felicitating those who handed over some artefacts that were discovered in their private property, to the DoA. yes, indeed it is admirable. Yet again, is it necessary to honour them during the National Archaeology Symposium’s opening? It also sounded rather inappropriate to title this event as ‘awarding of prizes and certificates to those who have contributed to the preservation of heritage’. Well, the DoA strongly needs to have a better understanding of the terms ‘heritage’ and ‘preservation of heritage’.
The DoA also should have a better understanding of what a ‘national-level’ symposium should be.
Below is a summary of Dr. Wijesuriya’s insightful keynote speech.
Given the time allocated was 30 minutes, he wanted to focus on two issues, setting the tone if not this time but in the future symposia addressing the young archaeologists, the majority of whom are in managing Sri Lanka’s heritage. Research presented by the young was more about archaeology and less about heritage and its management which has many gaps to address. Archaeological research focusing on understanding past societies is important for the public good, but those related to applied disciplines like ours should focus on underpinning heritage management. Archaeology has its own development and goes to the extent of recognising that the discipline has a social role and a political context. In the recent past, archaeologists have engaged in the heritage discourse. However, heritage management is a set of actions that provide for identification (including research), legal protection, documentation, preservation, interpretation and presentation, public access, maintenance and providing benefits to the society. For those engage in heritage management focused on research should work on addressing gaps, emerging trends and new learning areas.
For this purpose and to address the young, he addressed the following two issues.
1. Heritage management sector has evolved considerably which young professionals should be aware of.
2. There are new learning areas that future research should focus if managing our heritage to be more effective.
To justify that, Dr. Wijesuriya started with the concluding remarks made in an article on ‘Future of Heritage Management in Sri Lanka’ published recently (based on a lecture given in 2008) in the Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society. “Finally, I would suggest that Sri Lanka, 76 years after independence, still lacks a comprehensive definition of heritage and a comprehensive list of the country’s national heritage. The heritage sector needs to be rescued from the secularisation, centralisation, and archaeology which has grown more rapidly since 1998 since the colonial era.”
Dr.Wijesuriya also said that a new management system should be established and more effective management approaches should be adopted to preserve the country’s heritage. We need not only a definition of heritage that is more suitable for Sri Lanka but also a commitment to overhauling the entire heritage management system.
“I suggest that this can only be achieved through a transparent, participatory, and inclusive process that addresses existing misunderstandings and gaps to identify the necessary changes in institutions and human resources in the field to understand and ensure what we mean by heritage.”
Such amendments should focus on ensuring the effective management of Sri Lanka’s six cultural World Heritage Sites, which can serve as leading examples to guide the conservation and management of other heritage sites.
While emphasising that the global heritage sector has matured and grown tremendously, there is an urgent need to update our knowledge approaches and heritage management systems, said Dr. Wijesuriya.
“I am not suggesting that an international model of heritage conservation and management should be applied unrestrictedly in Sri Lanka, but I would like to emphasise the importance of contextualising knowledge from within the country and beyond its borders, and to guide collaborative, collective decision-making; defining and managing our heritage. We have a rich foundation to build on in Sri Lanka and I believe it is time to reconsider all aspects of our heritage management – legal, institutional, and resource (human, financial, intellectual).
In particular, we should;
Conduct a comprehensive review of laws, institutions, and resources related to our heritage, using our accumulated knowledge to explore the potential for community-centred approaches
Make decisions about heritage involving all concerned parties through transparent processes, and when appropriate, learning from experiences elsewhere in the world.
Ensure systematic organising and ensuring of World Heritage matters.
Encourage professional development and career opportunities for young professionals.
Develop a strategy to build the capacity of not only practitioners but also of policymakers, and communities and to expand the capacity of relevant networks.
“In my view, this is the only way to ensure a satisfying, productive, and sustainable future for Sri Lanka’s heritage sector. Over the past six years, I have addressed these issues in multiple ways.”
Transition from national
to international
He then went on to explain the role he played in the DoA as the Director of Conservation, giving a brief summary of his work, including challenges faced.
“The basis of my professional development was the work of the Department. It was a gradual learning process from focusing on the preservation of the material source to recognising the need for a holistic approach through my final project, the Temple of the Tooth. It captured the importance of identifying stakeholders, respecting living dimensions, and considering the tangible and intangible in conservation.
“After 17 years of dedicated service to Sri Lanka’s heritage sector, I moved to the civil services in a so-called first-world country – New Zealand. There, natural and cultural heritage was preserved under one organisation.
“My job was to provide the latest scientific knowledge to the heritage management team. Science should support conservation and management. I was able to experience, for the first time, how communities were empowered to engage in the conservation and management of their heritage.
“I then joined as a project manager at ICCROM, where I worked for 14 years. This move was driven by a desire to expand my influence on a global scale and learn from different heritage contexts. At ICCROM, I led various projects that emphasised the importance of capacity building and knowledge sharing. The next task was to act as an official advisor to UNESCO on World Heritage matters.”
The opportunity to collaborate with international experts and institutions broadened his perspective and enabled him to bring a wealth of valuable knowledge to Sri Lanka. These collaborations have highlighted the importance of a holistic and inclusive approach to heritage conservation and management.
‘’At ICCROM, I had the opportunity to revisit the entire discourse, understand the gaps, and address them. There was a global need to address them.”
According to Dr. Wijesuriya, It was an opportunity to revisit the heritage discourse together with everyone else. It helped to challenge the Western hegemony, including the decolonisation of heritage and conservation.
He said that it wasn’t easy as on the day he introduced the ‘communities’, two seniors had raised two questions.
How can communities manage heritage?
What would happen to us if communities were to take over our jobs?
“End of the period, we convinced them and the world. Global focus was on heritage and its management in which archaeologists can play a crucial role.”
Returning to the two points he raised at the beginning of his discussion Dr. Wijesuriya focused on the evolution and new areas of learning. “In the global platform this field has evolved significantly with the addition of new trends, approaches, and tools. These are beginning to shape the future of heritage management globally.”
The major change he emphasised was the move from efforts made to protect only material parts of the heritage to the full spectrum of heritage including people-centric values and intangible and to ensure heritage has a role to play in the lives of the people.
“Looking ahead, we face challenges in the field of heritage conservation. To address them we need to focus on new learning areas where researches should focus and influence the management systems.”
Dr. Wijesuriya said, “For young professionals entering this field, my advice is to be passionate and curious. Look for opportunities to learn from different contexts and always prioritise the ‘values’ and ‘significance’ of the heritage that you are working to protect. It is not an easy path. But if you focus on learning new trends, new areas of learning, and fighting for progress, you can all be a part of managing our legacy.
“I emphasise the importance of passion, commitment, and continuous learning as keys to success,” said Dr. Wijesuriya.
“Decades ago, I was one of you. My strength was working in the Department. It was a challenging journey. The authorities of this country have failed to recognise me or my successors despite having rendered great service in the management of our heritage. But my story will tell you that nothing can stop you from progressing and contributing to your heritage,” Dr. Wijesuriya said.
“Heritage conservation is not just about preserving the past; it is about shaping the future while preserving the cultural and historical foundations of our societies,” concluded Dr. Wijesuriya.
A word from the writer…
We need to bring back these good times to the DoA. Ironically, today we have hundreds of degree holders, dozens of masters and PhD holders in the DoA; the quantity has risen drastically, and simultaneously, the quality has dropped, dearly.
The opening programme of the National Archaeology Symposium should have been themed accordingly. Instead of the monotonous research paper presentations, it should have been an innovative, novel, and out-of-the-box research symposium. The organisers should have made it a point to highlight the outstanding and prolific career of Dr. Wijesuriya and set an example for the young professionals present there. Dr. Wijesuriya is an idol for all young Sri Lankan heritage professionals.
We missed making the best use of an internationally-renowned heritage professional such as Dr. Wijesuriya decades ago; we should not repeat the same mistake once again.
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