Shush, one of Iran’s oldest cities and a UNESCO World Heritage site, is now facing a conditional permit that has raised serious concerns among cultural heritage experts. The permit, allowing an underpass to pass through the core of the World Heritage area, has sparked criticism from those who see it as a compromise between urban development and the preservation of historical identity.
According to Mirasbashi, while the controversy over the Joubji site remains unresolved, the Technical Council of Khuzestan’s Cultural Heritage Organization, responding to requests from the Ministry of Roads and Urban Development and the insistence of Shush’s parliamentary representative, has granted conditional approval for the north-south underpass project. The proposal is scheduled for review by the Ministry’s Technical Council on the first day of winter 1404.
“On 30 Mehr 1404, the proposal for constructing a north-south underpass at Shush’s main intersection was reviewed by the Provincial Technical Council. Conditional approval was granted, pending submission of the detailed plan and final ratification by the National Technical Council of the Cultural Heritage Organization. It was also decided that a cultural appendix for the project would be prepared by a consultant.”
Mirasbashi further reports that, according to Miras Aria, the final review meeting for the underpass project took place on Sunday, 21 Mehr 1401 (October 13, 2022). Attendees included Javad Vahedi, Deputy for Parliamentary, Legal, and Provincial Affairs at the Ministry of Cultural Heritage, Tourism, and Handicrafts; Mohammad Kaab Amir, representative of Shush and Karkheh; Mohammad Jorvand, Director General of Khuzestan’s Cultural Heritage, Tourism, and Handicrafts Department; and other senior ministry officials.
It was agreed that the project owner would submit the executive plan for the underpass to the Khuzestan Cultural Heritage Department. Following review and approval by the provincial Technical Council, the plan would be forwarded to the Ministry’s National Technical Council for final authorization.
In a strongly worded warning published by Mirasbashi:
“How many more cultural heritage disasters must occur, with Mr. Vahedi’s name prominently associated with each one, before you, the Minister, the Deputy, and other senior officials allow him to step aside? Are Mr. Vahedi, Mr. Jorvand, and the parliamentary representative trained archaeologists or heritage specialists who can unilaterally decide the fate of Iran’s most ancient sites?
Who evaluates the significance of a city dating back 7,000 to 9,000 years—the former capital of the Elamites and the Achaemenids—parliamentary officials or heritage experts?
Mr. Jorvand became Director General of Khuzestan’s Cultural Heritage Department only a year ago, while Mr. Vahedi and the parliamentary representative are similarly new to their roles. Mr. Darabi and the other members of the provincial Technical Council and provincial heritage office deputies are also in their first year. Does this mean they have never even heard of Shush? Do they not understand the concepts of Arseh and Harim (core and buffer zones), World Heritage registration, or the risks of removal from UNESCO’s list?
Which of senior officials, namely, Mohsen tousi, Director General of Historical Buildings, Sites, and Urban Textures; Alireza Izadi, Director General of Historical Monuments Registration; Farhad Azizi, Director General of World Heritage Sites; and Mohammad Ebrahim Zarei, President of the Cultural Heritage Research Institute—have they never heard of ancient Shush?
Is the Shush underpass a recent project that justifies allowing such a destructive intervention through the city’s heritage core? Pressure to implement the underpass has existed since the 2000s, yet the Cultural Heritage Organization resisted—until now.”
*”If the work of the Provincial Technical Council has reached the point of approving this project, why not resign? How can you justify allowing the very heart of Shush to be subjected to the heavy machinery of Roads and Urban Development? Could there be a greater disgrace?
Is this the same Shush where, in 2010, media pressure and archaeologists successfully halted the construction of a hotel within the site—yet now excavation is happening in the city’s core, and an underpass is set to pass through it?
Mr. Mohammad Hassan Talebian, take note! When 900 hectares of Shush were registered, with 400 hectares recognized as a World Heritage site, archaeologists recommended a larger protective zone, and countless assurances were given that the site would be safeguarded. Where are you now, as disaster looms over this very 400-hectare core?
Where are the Archaeological Association, the Iranian Archaeological Society, the Archaeological Research Institute, and archaeology departments across the country? Why are you silent? Why aren’t you stepping in to stop this project?
What has happened to this ministry that, instead of issuing a decisive response, the Provincial Technical Council approves the plan first, only for it to be reviewed later by the Ministry’s National Technical Council? Mr. Darabi, as Deputy of Cultural Heritage nationwide, and Mr. Salehi Amiri, as Minister of Cultural Heritage, you are accountable to the people of Iran and the nation’s history. Take immediate action to prevent this shameful cultural and historical disaster.”
