A city’s status and its civil society
By Edmund W. Cheng, Shu-yun Ma
January 2015 COVER STORY
In 2008, George Town was jointly listed with Malacca as a World Heritage Site. It was Malaysia’s third listing, and the first in the category of cultural heritage. But how did the award come to pass and what does it say about Penang’s vibrant civil society?It’s not easy getting a Unesco listing. Apart from the rigorous assessment criteria, the nomination process can be highly political – tourist income, public recognition and federal funding drive state governments to compete with one...
Edmund W. Cheng
is a doctorate candidate at London School of Economics and a lecturer at Open University of Hong Kong. Shu-yun Ma is a professor of government at Chinese University of Hong Kong.
Shu-yun Ma
