The first of the Five-year 2001-2005 Tokyo International Seminar on the Conservation of Asian Cultural Heritage - Public System for the Protection and Evolving Role of Cultural Heritage took place in Tokyo, Japan from 18-22 March 2002. The immediate purpose of the first year's Seminar was "to define the Seminar's overall framework and its related comparative studies on national system for the protection of cultural heritage, notably covering legislations and their history, administration, categories of heritage and their historic background" (cf. the preprinted Proceedings, Detailed programme and List of Participants are available separately).
Furthermore, the objective of the Five-year Seminar is in the following four directions, namely:
(1) To promote understanding of diverse cultures mainly through exchanging experiences in the Public and Private System applied to the protection of wide-ranged cultural heritage;
(2) To present a set of proposals to overcome fundamental problems in the protection of cultural heritage, which arise within each country and beyond, addressing their causes as much as possible;
(3) To promote international collaboration in developing short- and mid-term strategies in the field of cultural heritage management, in local, national, regional and international levels;
(4) To facilitate each country's reflection of useful experiences gained notably through the Seminar to their own national System.

DG's Opening Remarks
Watanabe Akiyoshi, DG of Tokyo National Research Institute of Cultural Properties welcomed the participants. He then underlined that the sphere of cultural properties has recently been widened and the term of cultural heritage has often taken the place of the former. In other words, the cultural heritage is taking an integral part of the modern lives and natural and cultural environment. Furthermore, the interaction of cultures among countries is the historic reality. He expressed his hope that the present Seminar, notably through the deeper understanding of national laws and their applications, would contribute toward the enhancement of spiritual solidarity of the participating countries and the world.

Part I: Seminar Objective vis-a-vis Achievement
The Seminar was preceded by a two-day field visit to the historic area of Nikko, 100 kilometers northwest of Tokyo, to see an example of the Shrines (on the World Cultural Heritage List), Temples and the Former Royal family's residence in Nikko and other national heritage including their surroundings. Then, during the three days of the Seminar, the participants heard, with their satisfaction, the country reports presented by the representatives from the nine participating countries, namely China (Lu Zhou), India (Amita Baig), Iran (Adel Farhangi Shabestari), Japan (Saito Hidetoshi and Okada Ken), Korea (Kang Woobang), the Philippines (Emelita V. Almosara), Sri Lanka (Jagath Weerasinghe), Thailand (Ronarit Dhanakoses) and Vietnam (Nguyen Quoc Hung).
Through these reports and additional explanations, the participants learned about the present system for the protection of cultural properties and its framework in each of these countries. The participants were also informed of the background concerning the relevant laws from the time of its establishment to the present together with the major problems related with these laws. In addition, these reports presented visions, including concrete plans for the immediate future. Since the topics that the organizer had suggested before the Seminar covered a large area, it is feared that perhaps the paper presentators might have some difficulties in answering all of the issues to be clarified. Nevertheless, the organizer expresses its heartfelt gratitude to all the participants for having submitted their detailed reports and for providing with many reference materials.
It was useful to obtain these reports and materials for the better understanding of the present system for the protection of cultural heritage in each of the participating countries, both at the national and local administrative levels. Sharing such information formed the essential foundation for the subsequent discussions, and thus it should be counted as a significant result of this Seminar.
In conclusion, it is unanimously agreed that the theme of the next Seminar (November 2002) will be regarding "the system for the protection of cultural heritage and its application - system, people, function and funds".
It is recalled for record that, in the five-year plan of the Seminar and its accompanied studies that were initially proposed, the theme of the second year 2002 was to be on "the system for the protection of cultural heritage and society" or, in other words, the relationship between the cultural heritage and the provincial, ethnic groups, environment and economy. This will be moved to the third year's topic.
At the end of the present Seminar, the organizer presented his additional explanation about the points clarified during the present Seminar and again to be clarified from the next year will be concerning the national law for the protection of cultural property in each country. More precisely, it should be known:
(1) What should be protected? To what extent and how?　For Example:
(a) How different is, in each country, between the framework conceived for intangible cultural heritage and that for tangible heritage. Besides, whether the Japanese concept of natural monuments and places of scenic beauty as cultural heritage is understandable or not.
(b) What are practical differences in the use of the words "protection," "preservation," and "conservation" when these are used to refer to the same concept of "protecting" cultural properties. Are there differences in the content of protection. What is to be considered the "value" of cultural properties and is to be maintained for the sake of the "heritage protection". Since culture and cultural properties ultimately change and develop in the course of time, are we to protect them upon the understanding that they will continue to change.
(2) The second question was regarding the delicate reflection, in relation with the relevant national laws, of the country's cultural and historical characteristics and its present political system. Are these characteristics and systems sufficiently reflected to the heritage protection, or if not, should the present heritage protection systems be changed or are they being changed.
In this connection, due consideration should be made on the similarities and differences between the countries represented here and on the characteristics of each country.

Part II: It was proposed that further studies should be carried out immediately, if possible before the next conference, on the selected major points concerning the existing law and system. More precisely, an additional study should be carried out to examine whether and how the present law (of each country) reflect the national cultures. (For instance, Thailand has made reference to the Venice Charter, when its law was drafted.)
It should be defined how the relevant categories of cultural heritage in accordance with the national heritage laws relate themselves with the national culture and other social and cultural background. Based on the homework in each country, these issues will be closely examined during the second Seminar (November 2002).

Part III: Immediate Perspective concerning the Existing Law and System
The representatives of each country presented additional points concerning their immediate perspective concerning the existing law and system. They are as follows, in the order of their presentation.

THAILAND (Ronarit Dhanakose):
(1) STANDARDS: It is felt that the present legislations and regulations in most of the Asian countries probably be based on Western concept of heritage and protection. They do not fit or match to the Asian cultures, in some respects. If any of the global standards should be flexible to accommodate comfortably the Asian cultures, or each of them. "Intelligence" or "wisdom" may be an example of the Asian cultures, in his view.
(2) NETWORK FOR COLLABORATION: A good networking between the participating countries and other international organization will be useful to refine the global standards as well as the Asian ones, if necessary. This international and regional collaboration will be essential to deals with important matters at the national level as well.
(3) EDUCATION PROGRAMME: Education, through its practical programmes, is the most important tool to raise the spiritual level of individuals collectively. It naturally facilitates the better participation and sustainability in all aspect of cultural heritage protection.
(4) PEOPLE'S PARTICIPATION PROGRAMME: Related to education, peoples' participation programmes should be included as an important part of it. When people get understanding and realizing of the value of their cultural heritage, they will automatically participate in such kinds of cultural heritage protection and also conservation programmes with all their heads and souls.
(5) COOPERATION PROGRAMME: This is directly related with the international and regional collaboration. Good collaboration will be necessary at the intra-national and micro levels, too.
(6) FUNDING RESOURCES AND ORGANIZATIONS: Funding resources through organizations, both foreign and national, will be just like a food for human being or fuel for a car, and just appropriate amount of money will be sufficient. A suitable form of funding organizations, depending on each country's condition, would be helpful to create a stable level of working, networking, proper education, participation and cooperation programmes.

INDIA (Amita Baig):
(1) Documentation of tangible and intangible heritage should be examined in relation to and within the context of the existing law and system.
(2) Dissemination of and access to information should be studied and mandatory.

SRI LANKA (Jagath Weerasinghe):
(1) The participants should come into some kind of consensus or agreement on items to be dealt with, practices and duties to be considered within the discipline of cultural properties conservation. One should clearly understand the entire range of things, activities and practices that can and should be considered within the discipline of cultural property from natural beauty to contemporary arts. This is to enrich the law and regulation for future.
(2) I just try to post myself between Amita (above) and Emelita (below) about conservation programme to respect the public side and information. In other words, the public should be kept informed and involved so that they can actively participate in the conservation process.

THE PHILIPPINES (Emelita V. Almosara):
(1) Capacity building and education should be studied both in each country and together. It is also tantamount to say that international collaborations and exchanges both in materials and human resources should be studied.

IRAN (Adel Farhangi Shebestari):
It would be useful that international conventions, guidelines and recommendations, as well as international collaboration, could be reflected in the principles concerning the national law and system, as appropriate.

Words of Gratitude
On behalf of the foreign participants, Kang Woobang thanked the host (Japan) for its invitation and arrangements, which made the present inter-country, work possible. He then pointed out that we should learn the importance of our own culture and heritage as well as those of the neighboring countries so as to respect each other. The Asian countries have common cultural background and also diversity, both of which are important for the rapidly changing society in modernization and globalization. He further underlined that written laws and common laws are equally important since written laws are sometimes legalize common practices. This is the case for cultural heritage management.

Annex: List of Main Participants and Representatives:
Akiyoshi Watanabe, DG of TNRICP
Hidetoshi Saito, JPN Representative, TNRICP
Ken Okada, Principal Organizer, TNRICP
Representatives and/or Chairs:
CHINA: Lu Zhou
INDIA: Amita Baig
IRA: Adel Farhangi Shebestari
KOREA: Kang Woobang
THE PHILIPPINES: Emelita V. Almosara
SRI LANKA: Jagath Weerasinghe
THAILAND: Ronarit Dhanakose
VIETNAM: Nguyen Quoc Hung
JAPAN:Yoshifumi Muneta and Hideo Noguchi