Protect Pok Fu Lam village to preserve cultural heritage
It is difficult for many people, including most Hongkongers, to understand the significance and values of Pok Fu Lam village, as it can appear to represent simply a hodge-podge of squatter sheds and shelters.
It is difficult for many people, including most Hongkongers, to understand the significance and values of Pok Fu Lam village, as it can appear to represent simply a hodge-podge of squatter sheds and shelters.
The village's negative physical appearance is due to government squatter control policies from the 1970s, which give villagers no incentive to improve their properties.
According to the World Monuments Fund, its watch list is "a call to action for cultural heritage around the globe that is at risk from the forces of nature and the impact of social, political and economic change".
Pok Fu Lam village is one of the last remaining historical villages on Hong Kong Island and has been placed on the watch list by the fund because it is facing pressure from urban redevelopment plans.
It is an organically evolved cultural landscape encompassing a traditional Chinese village grouping of densely packed vernacular residences within a landscape of significant institutions from its colonial era, such as Bethanie sanatorium, Douglas Castle, Pok Fu Lam Reservoir and the remains of the old Dairy Farm.