The Definition Myth: Why Heritage is a Fact, Not an Appointment. Part 1 in a 5-part series A Citizen’s Guide to the National Heritage Act 2005
Series: A Citizen’s Guide to the National Heritage Act 2005 Part 1: The Definition Myth: Why Heritage is a Fact, Not an Appointment. For too long, the people of Penang have been told a legal lie: that a building or an ancestral tomb is only "heritage" if the government says it is. This Definition Myth—the idea that heritage requires administrative "permission" to exist—has become the primary weapon of destruction. Under the cover of this fallacy, we have witnessed the heartbreaking erasure of our collective memory. We have seen the 1884 Foo Teng Nyong Tomb desecrated, the demolition of Khaw Bian Cheng’s 20 Pykett Avenue, the clearing of Kampong Siam and Asdang House, and the loss of the Tan Hup Sooee grave. We watched the 1903 Raffles Memorial House fall (a bitter echo of the 1803 Runnymede House before it), and most recently, the shocking destruction at 87 China Street. But the law tells a different story. The National Heritage Act 2005 (Act 645) recognizes heritag...