Heritage tourism management in the World Heritage Sites, Malaysia: Legal and planning issues

The foundation of heritage tourism is heritage attractions. This paper will highlight two heritage sites in peninsular Malaysia that are of international acclaim namely Melaka and Georgetown Historic Cities. The two heritage sites have been declared as World Heritage Site by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) on 7 July 2008. These heritage cities are considered as the sources or supply for heritage tourism. It is irreplaceable yet it can be subjected to damage or destruction due to weather, aging, modernization and even due tourism impact. In order to meet the demands from the increasing numbers of tourists more hotels, food outlets, information counters, kiosks, shops and recreational facilities are being developed. Apart from that uncontrolled activities of tourists can also affect the monument and the ecosystems in the area. Thus, a good policy and management plan should be prepared in order to make sure Melaka and Georgetown will be protected from adverse impact of rapid development thus remaining in the World Heritage List. There are several legislations which have been identified to govern heritage tourism namely the National Heritage Act 2005 which directly related to the conservation of heritage site, the Town and Country Planning Act 1976, the Street Drainage & Building Act 1974, the National Land Code 1965 and the Uniform Buildings By-Laws 1984 is applied. Policies made at the state level will also be discussed. At the end of the paper, setback of the laws, challenges post to the area of heritage tourism and possible improvement will be highlighted.