Al-Sultan Palace (Al Bagh) on the abyss brink [Archives:2002/32/Culture]

BY SALEH ABDULBAQI
YEMEN TIMES STAFF
The government has been emphasizing lately the significance of protecting the cultural heritage of Yemen in all means possible. This comes in a time the heritage is truly exposed to neglect and destruction by so many careless individuals and entities. Time has come for the government to prove its commitment by solid action because it does understand the problems and recognizes the dangers facing the Yemeni cultural heritage including smuggling and extinction.
It is a pity to see the ancient Al-Sultan Palace (Al Bagh) in Mukalla City of Hadramout being exposed to wreckage by some people, who attempted to use the palace for their own interest despite the knowledge of concerned or shall we say unconcerned- authorities. As a result of continuous negligence, the palace which represents the most important architectural feature of the governorate, was actually exposed to demolition and could have been totally destroyed if it were not for some faithful and honorable educated personalities of Hadramout who interfered on time to save the palace. Those individuals established a popular association called Hadramout Home for Heritage and History to protect such deep-rooted architectural buildings and sights. The association also called upon the local authorities to repair the damage caused to the palace and enable the association full access to the palace to ensure its safety in the future.
The association representatives also appealed through a letter to the Governor of Hadramout Mr. Abdulqadir Hilal to save this historical palace and disregard any attempts to convince him of using it for any other purpose. They assured him that they would want to introduce a model conforming to the efforts of the nation to protect Yemeni ancient heritage from demolition and extinction because a nation without past is a nation without future. They expressed their hope in that the governor would respond positively to those demands, which are also the demands of the residents of the area around the palace.



——
[archive-e:32-v:2002-y:2002-d:2002-08-05-p:./2002/iss32/culture.htm]