運河是流動的文化

舉世聞名的萬里長城和京杭大運河，是古代中國人民創造的兩項偉大工程，是中華民族的歷史豐碑和永遠的驕傲，也是中國人民對人類文明的重大貢獻。保護好萬里長城和京杭大運河，是當代中華兒女光榮使命和義不容辭的職責。

長城是凝固的歷史，運河是流動的文化。在長城已成為世界文化遺產并得到初步有效保護的今天，我們要加倍重視京杭大運河的保護和申遺工作。京杭大運河不僅是一條積淀豐厚的文化遺產長廊，更是一條活著的、流動的、發展的文化經濟黃金通道。切實保護好京杭大運河，不僅具有豐碩的歷史文化價值，而且具有巨大的經濟社會價值。

京杭大運河自開鑿至今，雖經千百年歷史滄桑和社會演變，但其集航運、灌溉、防洪于一體的功能，仍然發揮著積極的作用。京杭大運河是南北物資運輸和長三角經濟的水上重要通道，有10萬多艘船舶長年在運河上航行，年運輸量相當于3條京滬鐵路。京杭大運河是南水北調東線工程的部分水道，借道運河，稍加整修，可以節約大量的人力物力財力和土地。京杭大運河文化遺存眾多，沿岸風光無限，景觀獨具魅力，旅游資源十分豐富。運河猶如一條晶瑩璀璨的項鏈，沿河各城市就是這條項鏈上的顆顆明珠，熠熠生輝，光彩奪目。京杭大運河是一條歷史的和現實的“經濟走廊”、“文化走廊”，成為沿河經濟的“孵化器”、城市發展的“助推器”、旅游開發的“金名片”。

歷史文化和經濟社會的雙重價值，召喚著國內外對這條流金淌銀的京杭大運河的高度關注。2006年5月，由陳奎元副主席帶隊，全國政協文史和學習委員會組織全國政協委員，并邀請文物、歷史、考古、水利、建設、規劃、南水北調等領域專家學者參加，全程考察了京杭大運河的保護和利用情況，在杭州召開了京杭大運河保護與申遺研討會，通過了《京杭大運河保護與申遺杭州宣言》，對京杭大運河的保護和申遺工作起到了揚旗擂鼓的作用。

當前，京杭大運河的保護和申遺工作有了一個良好的開頭，國務院已將京杭大運河公布為第六批全國重點文物保護單位，國家文物局也已將大運河列入重設的《中國世界文化遺產預備名單》，沿河不少地方也正在對運河實施保護和利用的綜合整治工程。但是，保護和申遺工作任務十分繁重，面臨問題也不少，如對保護和申遺工作的重要意義認識不足，尚未引起國家層面和沿河各地的足夠重視；長期以來，大運河的保護和整治，存在條塊分割、多頭并管的局面，缺乏整體保護規劃和統一管理協調機制；是整體風貌日遭毀壞，山東濟寧以北河段斷流已有時日，一些河段污染嚴重，堵航現象時有發生，部分古河道頻遭破壞，運河上的古代水工建筑以及與運河相關的重要古建筑“建設性破壞”不止，沿河民俗風情、民間藝術等非物質文化遺產日趨消亡。

我們憂慮地感到，如果對這些問題再不引起高度重視，那么這條流淌千年的“歷史之河、文化之河”，將繼續遭受自然退化、人為毀壞，直至消亡，那將是中華民族不可挽回的巨大損失。我們將愧對先人，愧對今人，愧對后人。為此建議：

建立統一協調機制，切實加強組織領導

成立以國務院領導同志牽頭的京杭大運河管理委員會，加強組織領導，統一協調保護、申遺和開發利用工作、避免條塊分割，政出多門；要盡快編制《京杭大運河保護總體規劃》，明確保護標準和重點；全國政協牽頭，成立由國家相關部門、有關專家、沿河政府和政協參加的京杭大運河研究機構，對京杭大運河及沿線開展全面調查，摸清文化遺產家底，協調和督促有關保護和申遺工作；按照《保護世界文化和自然遺產公約》的要求，盡快制定申報世界遺產的工作方案，積極推進申遺工作。

制定保護條例，依法推進保護

加大保護工作力度，必須有相應的法律保障。鑒于京杭大運河保護的緊迫性、嚴峻性，建議國務院盡早制定出臺類似《長城保護條例》一樣的《京杭大運河保護條例》，對京杭大運河保護的基本指導思想、原則、保護規劃編制、專項保護資金設立、保護工作監督檢查以及相應法律責任等作出明確規定，推動大運河的保護與管理工作，盡快走上法制化、科學化、規范化軌道。

統籌考慮保護利用，科學實施南水北調工程

進一步完善南水北調東線工程與京杭大運河古河道相銜接的設計方案，充分利用運河古河道，通過南水北調東線工程，實現京杭大運河全程通水，促進沿河各地經濟社會加快發展；在充分利用古河道的過程中，必須最大限度地減少或降低對運河歷史遺存和風貌的破壞，切實保護好運河的物質或非物質文化遺產，延續運河文脈，使今日造福社會的國家重點建設工程，成為明天珍貴的世界文化遺產的重要組成部分；結合南水北調工程，加大治污力度，全面修復運河生態環境，促進“人水和諧”，再現千年古運河的整體風貌。

廣泛動員各方力量，共同參與保護和申遺工作

設立京杭大運河文化遺產保護基金，鼓勵和支持社會力量參與京杭大運河的保護；充分發揮新聞媒體和互聯網的作用，加大京杭大運河保護和申遺工作的宣傳力度。建議中央電視臺籌拍《京杭大運河》專題紀錄片，向海內外宣傳京杭大運河的深厚文化內涵和獨特遺產價值；在第二個“文化遺產日”到來之際，在全國開展“愛我中華，護我運河”大型主題宣傳活動，賦予大運河以新的民族時代精神內涵，讓古老的大運河綻放出更加絢麗的光彩。

（本文作者為全國政協文史和學習委員會副主任）

The Great Wall and the Grand Canal， two great engineering miracles of ancient China， are historical monuments and everlasting pride of the Chinese nation. They are two great Chinese contributions to the world civilization. It is our glorious mission and obligation to well preserve them.

The Great Wall， which has been recognized as a World Cultural Heritage Site and successfully placed under essential state protection， can be compared to a standstill history while the Grand Canal showcases a flowing culture. We need to double our endeavors to protect the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal and make all the appropriate preparations for successfully getting the World Cultural Heritage status for the canal. The canal is more than a long corridor of great cultural heritage. It has been a golden waterway for dynamic cultural and social progress for neighboring regions over centuries. Protecting the canal is vitally important not only for maintaining its great historical and cultural values but also for promoting its great economic and social values.

The Grand Canal still plays a dynamic role in regional transportation， irrigation and flood control despite the great vicissitudes it has experienced over a millennium. An important waterway between Beijing and Hangzhou and within the Yangtze River Delta where goods are transported to and fro， the canal sees more than 100，000 ships navigate through it every year， carrying the freight 3 times than that carried by Beijing-Hangzhou railway. It also functions as part of a huge project of water diversion from the south to the north. By using the canal， the project can save a great deal of investment， labor and land. Teeming with scenes of natural beauty and cultural and historical interests， the canal strings all the cities along it like pearls on a glistening necklace. It has served as “an incubator”for economic and social prosperity and as a name card for tourism for cities along the canal.

The historical， cultural， economic and social significance of the canal has caught the great attention both at home and abroad. Led by Vice Chairperson Chen Kuiyuan and organized by the CPPCC Culture History Study Committee， a group of CPPCC members toured the Grand Canal from end to end in May 2006 in a field study of the canal’s preservation and utilization. At the invitation of the committee， a team of experts in various fields participated in the field study. A seminar was held in Hangzhou on the subject of preservation of the canal and application for the world cultural heritage site for the canal. At the seminar， a declaration was adopted to promote the preservation and application efforts.

A great headway has been made in the canal preservation and application for its world cultural heritage status. The State Council has included the canal in the sixth batch of key cultural heritage sites for state protection. The State Administration for the Preservation of Cultural Relics has also placed it on a revised list of the country’s candidates for world cultural heritage statuses. Comprehensive improvement projects have been initiated in some cities along the canal for the purpose of better preservation and utilization. However， the preservation and application task is arduous and there exist some thorny problems due to inadequate attention paid to the importance of the task. Consequently， over a long time， separate projects of preservation and maintenance have been conducted under different regional administration without integrated efforts and results; there has been no unified plan for preservation or mechanism for overall coordination and management; the canal as a whole has been on the serious decline; the section north of Jining， Shandong Province has been dry for a while; some sections have been seriously polluted; traffic congestion on the canal occurs here and there frequently; some sections of the ancient waterway have been vandalized repeatedly; some ancient water control projects on the canal and important ancient architectures related to the canal have been dismantled to make room for new urban projects; intangible cultural heritages along the canal such as folk lifestyles and arts have been deteriorating.

We are highly concerned that the millennium-old canal of history and culture would be continuously wrecked by nature and man until it dies if no urgent measures are taken to solve the above-mentioned problems. If the canal died on us， that could be too great a loss to the Chinese nation and we would be shamed to face our ancestors， ourselves， and our children. Therefore we make the following suggestions:

1. Set up an integrated coordination mechanism and strengthen organization and administration. A committee for the administration of Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal should be set up， which should be headed by the State Council leaders for the purpose of overall preservation， utilization， development， and application for the canal’s world cultural heritage status. Measures should be taken to avoid the situation in which each region manages its own canal preservation and utilization work in its own way. A research institute should be set up to engage national and local governments and CPPCC local branches， and experts in conducting an overall survey of the cultural heritage of the canal. The application plan for the world cultural heritage site should be completed as soon as possible in conformity with the Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage.

2. Formulate preservation regulations and promote preservation in accordance with the law. The law should be in place to ensure effective preservation. Given the serious and urgent situation of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal， it is suggested that the State Council issue regulations on the protection of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal in the pattern of the Regulations on the Protection of the Great Wall， specifying the guideline， principle， responsibility， formulation of action plans， fund sources， and supervision.

3. Make an overall planning for comprehensive utilization and protection and scientifically carry out the south-north water diversion project. Measures should be taken to improve the design plan to incorporate the canal into the south-north water diversion project for the purpose of fully utilizing the ancient waterway and reintroducing water into the whole canal， and speed up social and economic development along the canal. In fully tapping into the advantages of the canal， destruction to its historical heritage and appearance should be minimized. Effective measures should be taken to protect tangible and intangible cultural heritage along the canal. More actions should be taken to minimize pollution and restore the canal’s ecology.

4. Mobilize the people of all quarters to participate in the protection and application for the world cultural heritage status. A protection fund should be set up and the public be encouraged to engage in protection tasks. News media and internet should be brought into full play to publicize the protection and application campaigns. It is suggested that CCTV make a full-length documentary on the canal to publicize the cultural content and unique value of the canal as a cultural heritage. Activities should be held before the second Cultural Heritage Day by June 10th this year for a nationwide campaign for the love and protection of the canal.

(Translated by David)