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extended. Many of these techniques are based on common sense and good housekeeping. However, these must
inevitably be reinforce d by the results of current research, and access to specialist information is vital if an informed
approach is to be taken (Read, 1994).
Knowing and identifying problems of conservation in a tropical environment and considering developments is
hard to understand and pinpoint. The emphasis ought to be laid on preventive conservation (Dartnall, 1988). After
all prevention is better than cure. This holds especially true for developing countries that cannot allocate sufficient
financial means to preservation. At the same time the more prosperous countries consider preventive conservation
as a major cost-saving measure. Indeed, because preventive conservation considers the welfare of whole collections
instead of the treatment of individual objects, it allows the more efficient use of limited resources for the benefit of
a larger part of our m aterial heritage. P erhaps that is why preventive conservation, the management of the
environmental conditions under which collections are housed and used, has made large strides in research and
application (GCI-website).
Unfortunately, not all managers are convinced of the necessity of preventive conservation. During her stay in
Malaysia Margaret Child noticed that librarians at the National Library were not interested in spending the funds
necessary for developing an infrastructure that would allow a programme to gain momentum and mature. Rather,
they wanted to achieve faster results. Basic preservation efforts such as simple repair or protective re-housing, used
in a consistent and co-ordinated program, are more effective than ad hoc initiatives (Child, 1997).
Many precautions can be taken right at the start in the construction and design of the building (see section on
Building). Storage conditions also offer many opportunities to prolong the life span of the objects (see section on
Storage). See also ARAAFU, 1991; Beck, 1996; Brandt, 1994; Guillemard et al., 1990; Maidin Hussin, 1985;
Raphael, 1993; Read, 1994; Souza, 1993 and 1994; Staniforth, 1997; Torres, 1996.
2.3 Preservation in Developing Countries
In developing countries with low economic performance, it is understandable that neither facilities nor the political
climate exist to safeguard the cultural heritage in preference to higher prio rity needs (M asao, 198 7). Despite this as
early as 191 8 the All India Conference of Librarians, held in Lahore, Pakistan and presided over by the Librarian
of the Imperial Library, Mr. Chapman, passed a resolution on ‘Preservation of Book Paper’ (Banerjee, 1997).
Nevertheless it took many years before preservation was recognised as a vitally necessary component of collection
development (Lan Hiang Char, 1990).
One of the early advocates, and perhaps propagandists, of tropical librarianship and tropical conservation was
Wilfred J. Plumbe. In his capacity as librarian of the University of M alaya (Malaysia) and later of the Ahmadu Bello
University in Nigeria he published a number of articles and books on the specific problems of safeguarding archival
and library materials in the tropics. H is bibliograp hy of 1958 is now outdated, nevertheless the updated reprint from
1964 shows that it was in great demand and probably the only one of its kind at that time (Plumbe, 1958 and 1964b).
Plumbe noticed in 1964 that there was a need in many tropical countries for book pathology centres where insect
pests could be identified promptly, and where advice on their control, and on other aspects of book preservation,
could be readily obtained. He also noticed the need for re-examination of book preservation problems by publishers
and the book trade in general. Both ideas, though almost 40 years old, could be reconsidered today (Plumbe, 1964a).
His book on tropical libra rianship from 1987 is actually a compilation of articles, mainly from the 1960s (Plumbe,
1987a).
Another pioneer in this respect was the French archivist Yves Pérotin who in 1966 published a manual on
‘tropical archivology’, which he considered a sub-discipline of archivology seen from an exclusively material point
of view. He stated clearly that the manuals so far had been written in non-tropical countries. T hey dealt with
questions in the terms that were valid for their own climates as if they were suitable for the whole world. The book
consists of two quite distinct parts: general archivology and tropical archivology proper, written by different authors
with extensive experiences in the tropics. This manual of tropical archivology was certainly of great value at the time
and provided archive keepers in tropical countries with simple, practical information (Pérotin, 1966).
Over the past 40 years conservation has developed into a true profession w ith educational levels as high as
university. Almost everywhere, the preservation of cultural heritage is a subject readily discussed at meetings, but
practical measures are often slow to follow. It should be remembered that it takes longer to organise a national
service for the protection of cultural heritage than it does to build a large facto ry, and those who are anxious to
preserve the vestiges of the past must be extremely patient (Co remans, 1965). Because of intensive use of microfilm
technology in Southeast Asia preservation treatment of the originals has, in some cases, not been a high priority, and
long-term sustainability has not received sufficient attention (Dean et al., 2001). That is why it is of the utmost
importance to revitalise public awareness of the value of traditional literature. Acceptance of a preservation project
and active participation of local people in preservation work is a prerequisite for success (Hundius, 2000). The state
might be willing to invest in safeguarding their national heritage only when people themselves recognise the
significance of their writing traditions. In practice these experiences are in agreement with those in nature
conservation projects (see also Kishore, 1992; Redmond-Cooper, 2000).
Unlike in the West some collections in tropical regions are still privately owned (Banerjee, 1997). This creates
obvious problems of access and also of preservation. It is not an easy task to convince the owners of the necessity
of preventive measures (Arnoult, 2000).
2.3.1 Artefacts from the tropics
It will be clear by now that a conservator, doing his work in the tropics, encounters typical problems his colleagues
in temperate zones do not have to face. These problems can be divid ed into those resulting from the specificity of