[Mediu] ICOMOS votes in support of Rosia Montana heritage

[Stephanie Roth (Alburnus Maior)]

   The 16th General Assembly of ICOMOS, meeting in Quebec, Canada, in
October 2008 resolved that:

   4. Alburnus Maior (Romania)
Regarding the Roman site of Alburnus Maior in Rosia Montana, an
outstanding mining settlement and cultural landscape in Romania, as a
potential World Heritage Site,  With reference to:
   - The Resolution n° 20 of the 13th General Assembly of ICOMOS held in
Madrid, Spain,
   - The Resolution of the 14th Extraordinary General Assembly, held in
Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe,
   - The resolution of the ICOMOS Conference, held in Pécs, Hungary,
22-27 May 2004,
   - The ICAHM Statement on the mining concept at RoŸia Montana in Lyon,
France, at the European   Archaeological Association Conference on 9
September 2004,
   - The Resolution of the 15th General Assembly of
 ICOMOS, meeting in Xi'an, China, in October 2005,
   - The resolution of the XXIII World Congress of the UIA €“ the
International Union of Architects, in Torino in 2008, and
Taking into consideration:
   - The official statements of the Romanian Academy, those of all the
religious communities involved and also those of professional bodies,
such as the European Council of Architects and the Romanian Chamber of
Architects,
   - That the Ministry for the Environment and Sustainable Development of
Romania interrupted the  licensing procedure for the mine proposal and
suspended the evaluation of the environmental impact study prepared by
RoŸia Montana Gold Corporation,
   - Recent irrevocable court decisions in Romania that annulled an
archaeological discharge  certificate issued earlier to exploit the
Carnic Massif and also ascertained the illegality of RoŸia Montana's
urban plans, and also
   - Recent information about steps taken for starting mining operations
in RoŸia Montana and also other similar threats upon the
archaeological, architectural and historical heritage of the cultural
landscape of the Apuseni Mountains,
   The 16th General Assembly of ICOMOS, meeting in Quebec, Canada, in
October 2008 resolves to:
 - Reiterate its deepest concern about the planned mining operations that
have led to and threaten to continue the destruction of the
archaeological site of Alburnus Maior in Rosia Montana, Romania, and its
surroundings,
   - Call for the urgent intervention of the National Authorities to
ensure the appropriate protection  of the site,
   - Call for further evaluation of the significance of the site as a
cultural landscape and its archaeological, architectural and
ethnographic heritage together with its spiritual values in the context
of the cultural heritage of Europe and the world, and
   - Express once again its will to collaborate with the Romanian
authorities and other organizations to achieve these actions and calls
for the involvement of the relevant ICOMOS International   Scientific
Committee and UNESCO for that purpose.