Repairing Puning Temple in Shijiazhuang, Hebei Province WANG XIAO

Xingjiao Temple in Xi'an of Shaanxi Province, built about 1,300 years ago, experienced an instant rise to fame in April, not only because it houses the relics of Xuan Zang, a famous Buddhist monk and Chinese pilgrim to India in the seventh century, but also for a local government plan to remove large sections of the temple complex.

According to the original plan, two-thirds of the buildings in the temple, including around 80 rooms including monks' dormitories and a dining hall, would be pulled down to make room for greenery.

Although officials explained that the revamp will only focus on the surrounding complex built in the 1980s and 1990s, the project announcement was met with public opposition and triggered outrage online. According to the government announcement, the revamp is part of the site's preparations for an application for UNESCO World Heritage status, which will better protect it.

"Applying for UNESCO World Heritage status is good and can help protect cultural relics. But how come you destroy parts of the temple to protect it?" asked Zhang Junyu, a news commentator. "Are you really protecting the cultural relic, or rather destroying it?"

The event ended with Xingjiao Temple quitting the application. But the debate on the protection of cultural heritage sites in China continues to brew: In what ways should China's numerous cultural relics be protected in the context of rapid economic devleopment?

According to the third national survey on cultural heritage, China is home to around 770,000 historical relic sites. The huge number of such sites makes relic protection a challenging task in China.

Official efforts

On May 3, a total of 1,943 cultural heritage sites were added to the list of national key cultural units, a system launched by the State Council in 1961 to allow the Central Government to directly manage and protect relics. According to Li Xiaojie, the head of the State Administration of Cultural Heritage, publishing this list is one of the most effective ways to protect cultural heritage sites against illegal demolition and damage.

In past decades, 2,352 cultural heritage sites were added into the national list in six batches. This year marks the seventh batch, which has the largest number of sites in the list's history, and brings the total number of sites on the list to 4,295.  

"The number (4,295) seems like a lot, but it's actually a very small number and only accounts for 0.56 percent of China's total of 770,000 historical sites," said Li. "This is particularly true in contrast to the situations in other countries. For instance, in Egypt, over 20,000 cultural heritage sites are under the direct management of the Central Government."

In addition to the increase in the number of sites, the new list has also expanded its coverage of relic types from ancient buildings, grottoes and temples to include modern sites with social value, such as old banks and hydropower stations. Lu Zhou, Professor at Beijing-based Tsinghua University, noted that this change reflects an advance in China's understanding of cultural heritage.

After the new batch of sites to be added to the list was announced, celebratory coverage was prominently featured in local media outlets around the selected sites. To have local relics ranked on the list of national key cultural units is seen as a great honor in China. More importantly, it means more attention and financial support, as well as better legal protection, for the relics added to the list. According to official statistics, the state spent 12.7 billion yuan ($2 billion) on cultural heritage projects in 2012, a 30 percent increase over the previous year.

Provincial governments also devote financial resources to the relics listed on the provincial protection lists. But in underdeveloped regions, local government budget limitations mean that these funds accomplish little. Some have high hopes for the potential to raise private capital to fund site preservation, but many urge caution, saying that commercial investment can often lead to unintentional damage to artifacts. Meanwhile, according to the China Cultural Relics Protection Foundation, enterprises looking to get involved in philanthropy find donating to cultural relic preservation to be less attractive than other charity sectors.

"Cultural relic protection in China is dependent on public awareness," said Zhang Zhiping, who works at the Chinese Academy of Cultural Heritage. "Protection should not only rely on the government, but also on broader societal support."

Non-governmental support

Only a small proportion of China's old buildings are lucky enough to be labeled as historical relics by the government. Without legal protection, many old buildings with long histories and great cultural value are constantly at risk of being demolished. To solve this problem, the State Council promulgated regulations on the protection of cities, towns and villages with historic and cultural value in 2008, giving legal protection to sites not listed on the historical relic list. But this protection is limited.

"Many historical buildings in Guangzhou receive little attention and suffer severe damage. These buildings are our focus," said Peng Minming, the owner of an online shop. Last year, he joined the Guangzhou Society for Cultural Relic Protection, a volunteer organization devoted to the protection of old neighborhoods and buildings in the city, especially those left off of the government protection list.

The organization now has more than 1,000 members. On weekends, they wander through the city's streets, taking pictures of buildings with historic and cultural value. If any threat to a building is discovered, they instantly post photos on their website and contact the media to harness public opinion to repair or prevent damage. Meanwhile, they collect information to prove the historical value of buildings, hoping to raise government and public concern. Founded in 2012, the organization has successfully saved many old buildings from demolition.

Statistics show that around 40,000 relics have disappeared in China due to commercial exploitation in the last 30 years. This fact has aroused widespread concern in China. As public awareness has risen, many volunteers and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) have emerged to combat relic loss. According to experts, non-governmental efforts are starting to play an important part in the protection of China's cultural heritage.

Registered NGOs can be found in big cities like Beijing, Tianjin and Nanjing, but there are also many volunteer groups like the Guangzhou Society for Cultural Relic Protection. Without any membership dues or social sponsorship, such groups cannot be registered and they often work as an online organization.

"The words of the lowly carry little weight," said Peng, who is in charge of the organization's weibo (China's Twitter-like micro blog). He admitted that, without government recognition, they often face problems while investigating and collecting information. "But on the other hand, as we have no conflicts of interest, our point is plain and clear. It's easier to keep a neutral position," he said.

After years of effort, the strength of NGOs in China is coming to be more appreciated by the government. Earlier this year, the State Council declared a new policy saying that NGOs working in charity and welfare are allowed to register without having to meet any registration capital requirements.

"This can help pool greater social strength to protect the cultural relics in China," said Peng. CA