Never again. UNESCO sites of memory, between cultural heritage protection and prevention of gross violations of human rights.

In 2023 the UNESCO World Heritage Committee (WHC) adopted Guiding Principles and a Mechanism to Notify a Contestation for candidatures of sites of memory associated with recent conflicts presented for inclusion in the World Heritage List (WHL). The new rules refer also to sites linked to gross violations of human rights. In 2021, for similar reasons, there had already been a controversial change to the general guidelines of the Memory of the World programme. The recognition by the WHC of the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of sites of memory associated with recent conflicts is a challenge within the World Heritage Convention. The use of the so-called “associative criterion” for OUV recognition for this type of site is particularly risky, as it involves interpreting the site in light of potentially divisive historical narratives. This extremely extrinsic nature of the OUV is not adequately supported by common technical references developed through the implementation practice of the convention, hence decisions of the WHC could be perceived as highly political and biased, thus undermining at the same time ongoing reconciliation processes and the credibility of the WHL. The Guiding Principles are a step to develop such a common technical language. They are focused on inclusivity, both at the domestic and the international level, to identify the necessarily positive of OUV of places of memory associated with very negative events. If on one hand the convention is not easily applicable to this kind of sites, on the other hand, the ‘mirrored values’ of their OUV are particularly relevant and centered on the commitment of “never again”.