A national committee of UNESCO's advisory body issued a warning calling for a halt to the redevelopment of Tokyo's Meiji Jingu Gaien due to growing interest from foreign media, and held a press conference at the Foreign Correspondents' Club Japan.
Regarding the redevelopment of Jingu Gaien, which spans Shinjuku Ward, Tokyo, etc., the business operator is scheduled to start cutting down trees with a height of 3 meters or more from this month, but ICOMOS, an advisory body to UNESCO, issued a warning on May 7 calling for the redevelopment to be halted, saying that it is "a cultural asset unprecedented in the history of parks in the world."
Noting the growing interest of foreign media, ICOMOS' domestic committee held a press conference at the Foreign Correspondents' Club Japan on the 21st, saying, "The green space of Jingu Gaien is valuable in the city center."
In addition, there was a question-and-answer session with the overseas media in attendance, and a reporter from the Associated Press in the United States asked, "I heard that redevelopment is taking place all over the country, including Jingu Gaien, but what is your view of it?"
In response, Mikiko Ishikawa, director of the Japan ICOMOS National Committee, replied, "If the redevelopment of Jingu Gaien is allowed, I think the redevelopment will continue, especially in places where land prices are high in the city center, just as the breakwater will collapse."
ICOMOS has sent a warning document to the Tokyo Metropolitan Government and businesses, and is requesting a response by the 10th of next month.