Toronto - According to former Congressman Florencio "Butch" Abad, The Batanes Heritage Foundation, Inc., through its Batanes Vernacular House Restoration and Conservation Program, is seriously considering restoring the former Long-Range Aid to Navigation (LORAN) Station in Imnajbu, Uyugan.
Before doing so, however, the foundation would like to get more information, photos and historical data about the station. The Foundation would appreciate it, in case, retired US Coast Guard and Navy personnel who are familiar with the station or those married to Ivatans can help.
The bigger picture for the interest in the LORAN restoration
In another restoration project in Naydi Hill in Basco, according to Abad, the foundation thought that the structures, that art deco style row of three structures, were useless and better demolished than restored. But then the foundation found a way to restore them: one is now a cafe, the other an arts and crafts store (under restoration) and the other has not been touched yet although measures have been adopted so the structure does not deteriorate as much.
On the LORAN restoration, Abad said: If we can only save some or none at all, the foundation can at least put up a marker that explains to our children and tourists what the function of the facility was in the past.
On the bigger picture for the interest in the LORAN restoration, Abad said further: The Foundation is doing this because Batanes is presently going through a process of being inscribed in UNESCO's World Heritage List. In fact, the application dossiers were submitted about four years ago, but because the process is stringent and thorough, the application was only approved for validation last July.
archeological missions (there is one going on headed by Australian Peter Belwood and the Philippine National Museum, which can put Batanes in the world archeological map), the teaching of mother tongue or lingua franca (Ivatan and Itbayaten) in schools, the development of creative arts, like painting (our young painters recently sold their second batch of work in the e-Bay) and so on.
The Foundation is chaired by Rev. Fr. Emito de Sagon, OP.
Abad said: Batanes must be the only place in the country which can still anchor its development thrust on the richness of its heritage, the integrity of its environment and the strength of its social institutions.
Ivatans are now waking up to the value of our unique heritage, culture and history. What we need to do to ensure their conservation is to be able to reconcile doing heritage conservation work with developing livelihood opportunities. That is why we are exploring the development of eco-cultural tourism and complementary industries such as the creative industry (arts and crafts), wellness and environmental explorations, including archeological tours.
The principle is to ground our initiatives in this area on the cultural, environmental and historical wealth and strength of the islands. And there is really so much that can be explored and shared with visitors, Abad said further.
The BHFI's Batanes Vernacular House Restoration and Conservation Program's objective is not only to restore old houses but also the social infrastructure (like the kamaņidungan or the kayvayvanan) that helps maintain those unique houses, as well as, the source of materials for their construction and upkeep (like the payavutan or cogonal reserves, the paychiman or lime-making, etc..).
The Foundation wants to re-use the old houses, if they are no longer used by the owner or have been abandoned to the elements, as reading centers, community centers, art workshops or B&B inns for the people and the ever increasing tourists. The Foundation can enter into a contract of usufruct, whereby the owner keeps ownership of the house but allows the foundation to use it for a period of time in exchange for restoring and maintaining the house. The Foundation would be glad to get in touch with kaydians who still have old houses that they can make available for this project.
The other proposal of the National Museum is to use them as part of a chain of dispersed museums in the province where a cluster of the houses can feature Ivatan houses (their history, development, construction and prospects for the future). The foundation can also do one on the 2,000 year old boat-building, most likely in Sabtang. And so on. So many possibilities. The whole islands can then be a living museum, very educational for our children and visitors alike. You can organize walking tours to these places, Abad concluded.
So that is the bigger picture for the interest in the LORAN restoration according to Congressman Florencio "Butch" Abad. - vbc, September 2006 |
