BEIJING, July 2, 2009 -- A three-day conference on preserving China's world cultural heritage and promoting cultural development in the country opened in Lhasa on Wednesday.

The 14th session of the Joint Conference of Chairmen of Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference for World Heritage in China was attended by 146 experts from 27 Chinese cities and regions.

Photo taken on June 4, 2009 shows Potala Palace in Lhasa, southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region. A three-day conference on preserving China's world cultural heritage and promoting cultural development in the country opened in Lhasa on Wednesday. (Xinhua Photo)
 

During the meeting, representatives exchanged views on how to take advantage of political consultative conference to further protect and manage the world cultural heritage in China.

There are three world cultural heritage sites in Tibet. The Potala Palace in Lhasa, with a history of more than 1300 years, was placed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1994. In 2000 and 2001, the Jokhang Temple and Norbulingka Monastery were added to the list as extensions to the sites.

Meanwhile, Tibetan Opera and the Epic of King Gesear are also applicants for UNESCO's human beings' intangible cultural heritage.

Cherishing and protecting China's world cultural heritage plays a key role in enhancing Chinese people's confidence, pride, sense of identity and belonging, said Dorje Tsedrop, deputy secretary of Lhasa City Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and mayor of Lhasa.

Tourists visit the Jokhang Temple in Lhasa, capital of southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region, June 24, 2009.  (Xinhua Photo)
 

It can also help foster our national spirit and promote patriotism, he added.

In recent years, Lhasa has stepped up efforts in maintaining its world cultural heritage. In April, the government of Lhasa issued a plan for 2009 to 2020 to protect the world cultural heritage sites.

"The Lhasa City is dotted with numerous cultural relics and monasteries of various scales," said the mayor. Lhasa's rich cultural relics and increasing prominence of the city require us to make greater efforts in managing the heritage to make the world know Chinese culture better.