PEOPLE

――Mr Suga, as a member of the Industrial Project Team of the Office for the Promotion of World Heritage Listing, please tell us what you see as the problem.　

The most important feature of the Sites of Japan’s Meiji Industrial Revolution is that each component part does not have a complete value in itself, but is a testimony to the fact that only one country in the non-Western world achieved industrial modernization and industrialization in its own country over a hundred years ago, and that the historical facts behind each testimony are of remarkable and universal value. This point needs to be understood. Compared to World Heritage Sites that excel in artistic and spectacular qualities, they are inevitably plain or half-hearted, and thus, it is quite difficult to achieve regional revitalization through the economic effects of attracting visitors.

There are several issues that need to be addressed in order to learn from the achievements of our predecessors and to pass them on to future generations, and one direction is the issue of interpretation. I think 'Interpreting Our Heritage' by F. TILDEN is very illuminating on this subject. He is mainly concerned with natural heritage, but states that the essence of interpreting is to devise motivational devices that evoke an intrinsic interest in the visitor or visitors. I think it is essential to prepare scenarios for different interest groups such as history, science, internationalization, economics, literature, people or regions, and scenarios for different age groups of young people. If we regard the 'Sites of Japan’s Meiji Industrial Revolution' as a kind of intellectual theme park and a great intellectual teaching tool, we can come up with a variety of interpretation ideas.

In terms of regional revitalization, many of the exhibition facilities at the heritage sites have asked elderly people to serve as guides. That is fine, but during holidays and summer holiday periods, could it be possible to recruit volunteers from high school and university students? Volunteering is not completely free of charge, but rather a way of contributing to the local community, giving credits as social experience, and in some cases, monetary compensation could also be considered. As they are forced to study in order to give explanatory guidance, I hope that this will result in fostering a core group of interested people and, through them, expanding the age range of the interested group. We cannot expect any economic effect, but I think it will contribute to revitalization.

――In March 2020, the Industrial Heritage Information Center was opened in the annex of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications No. 2 Building in Shinjuku Ward. It consists of three zones: 'Introductory Exhibition: An Invitation to the Sites of Japan’s Meiji Industrial Revolution,' 'Main Exhibition: The Miracle of the Industrial State,' and 'Reference Room.' I think it serves as a source of information, but what do you think?　

I also visited the center. At the moment, however, the majority of visitors seem to be people with a strong interest in industrial heritage and Japan's modernization. I think it is necessary to promote the existence of the Industrial Heritage Information Center.

I think the current exhibition at the center gives a backbone to the story of Sites of Japan’s Meiji Industrial Revolution, which can sometimes become a hometown pride at the regional level. In the future, I think it would be better if the links between the three industries—iron and steel making, shipbuilding, and the coal industry—, as well as between the component parts, could be emphasized a little more, or explanations from a more science-oriented perspective could be provided.

Furthermore, I would like to see an exhibition of the historical documents themselves, even if they are only reproductions.

What is most important is that the Sites of Japan’s Meiji Industrial Revolution was inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List as a World Cultural Heritage site, and the project should not be considered complete with the establishment of this center to fulfil the promises made at that time, but as a source and a compilation of historical heritage that always needs to be evaluated from a new perspective. We hope that the center will continue to function as a source and a compiler of new perspectives.

In addition, the Heritage of Japan’s Meiji Industrial Modernization cannot be visited, either in space or on the web, unless one is aware of its existence. Recently, I have noticed that while there are all kinds of information available on the internet, represented by YouTube, there is also quite a lot of intellectual stuff that seems to be popular. A university series by a former comedian living in Singapore seems to be quite popular, and there are also those that teach scientific theory and mathematics in an easy-to-understand manner, purportedly in the style typical of a prep school. It caught me by surprise the other day to find one introducing Dr. Tadao Umesao's 'Ecological History of Civilization.' I think that the current method of transmission of the Industrial Information Center may be too orthodox, and that it may be necessary to consider various ways of uncovering new layers of interest from among the unspecified public.

――There is also the issue of how to maintain the component parts.　

The question is can the local authorities and owners of the areas where the component parts of the Sites of Japan’s Meiji Industrial Revolution are located maintain their respective assets? That said, if the size of the assets is large, I believe they will face a difficult situation financially. There are also problems, such as the fact that in some municipalities, the people in charge of World Heritage sites are transferred in an early cycle, meaning that it is difficult to create specialists of that field.

Nevertheless, there are probably ways out of this problem if we can apply our wits. One is to address the pros and cons of adhering to the conventional method of restoration and conservation of cultural assets in terms of how to maintain the component parts. As mentioned earlier, the component parts of the Sites of Japan’s Meiji Industrial Revolution are only of value as witnesses to history, and individual component parts themselves do not have great value in their own right, so as long as their function as witnesses is not compromised, there should be more flexibility in how they are maintained.

In addition, if a property is not a nationally designated cultural asset but is registered as a World Heritage component part, I think there is still room for consideration of the tax treatment of the costs incurred by the owner for restoration, etc. However, I am not an expert in corporate taxation, so I admit I may have a misguided view.

Moreover, if a company is the owner of a component part, it is likely to be recorded as a cost of the plant to which the asset belongs, but I think there could be a bit of contrivance in the accounting process within the company.

In any case, practical wisdom is required to reduce the cost burden on owners and to motivate them to preserve the asset.

Photos: Nippon Steel Corporation, Kyushu Works Yawata Area