The Korea Heritage Service on Monday announced a series of countermeasures to protect Jongmyo, escalating its confrontation with the Seoul Metropolitan Government over high-rise redevelopment planned near the UNESCO World Heritage site.
Jongmyo, inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1995, enshrines the ancestral tablets of kings and queens from the Joseon period (1392-1910), and remains the most important Confucian royal shrine in Korea.
Its historical landscape and unobstructed sightlines form a core part of its outstanding universal value, which UNESCO has repeatedly emphasized must be protected.
Seoul’s redevelopment plan for Sewoon District No. 4 — located roughly 180 meters from the shrine — would allow buildings to rise over 140 meters, nearly doubling previous limits. Heritage officials and UNESCO have warned that such high-rises could intrude into key visual corridors and alter the traditional skyline that frames the shrine.
At a press briefing in Seoul, KHS Administrator Huh Min said the agency would strengthen the domestic legal framework to ensure “clearer and more stable” management of heritage protection.
“We will reinforce the legal foundations governing the World Heritage, Jongmyo, to enable more precise and stable institutional operation,” he said. “Last week we completed the designation of the 'Jongmyo World Heritage Zone’ under the World Heritage Act, and we will actively work with related ministries to swiftly revise subordinate regulations.”
The designation, finalized Thursday, covers 194,000 square meters and 91 land parcels surrounding Jongmyo. Approved by the Cultural Heritage Committee, it gives the KHS the authority to request impact assessments or intervene in projects deemed to affect the heritage zone.
Lee Yun-jung, director of the World Heritage Division, said the designation had been in the works since October 2024. Under the World Heritage Act, she noted, impact assessments may be requested “outside the heritage zone” when a project is likely to affect a UNESCO site.
“As a state party to the World Heritage Convention, we must follow UNESCO’s guidelines,” she said, adding that the Seoul city government had argued such reviews were unnecessary due to a lack of supporting domestic regulations. “We are trying to supplement that gap.”
Huh said the KHS recently received a formal letter from UNESCO’s World Heritage Center urging “strong action” and warning that high-rise construction in the Sewoon District redevelopment could damage Jongmyo’s integrity. The letter, dated Nov. 15 and relayed to Seoul on Monday morning, specifically cited Sewoon Districts 4 and 2 and recommended that Seoul “suspend project approval until a positive outcome is reached through a World Heritage impact assessment.”
UNESCO requested a government response within one month.
“We will thoroughly explain the situation to UNESCO, including all developments so far,” Huh said. “We will do everything to ensure Jongmyo does not lose its World Heritage status.”
The dispute widened after Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon accused the KHS of being “overly sensitive” and lacking a “comprehensive understanding of urban planning.” Responding, Huh expressed “regret,” saying the remark reflected “a misunderstanding” of the agency’s work.
“To say we focus only on preservation is excessive and unfair,” he said, adding that the KHS has long pursued both conservation and revitalization. Oh’s claim, he said, “requires an apology.”
Later in the afternoon, a Seoul city spokesperson denounced the KHS chief that he “should not mislead the public as if Jongmyo is at risk of losing its World Heritage status without accurately confirming and consulting on the specifics of Seoul’s plan.”
yoohong@heraldcorp.com
