The Niah Caves, located some 120 kilometres from Miri city, should be another world heritage site in Sarawak for its uniqueness, Chief Minister, Tan Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud said.

Speaking to launch an International Seminar on Bornean Archaeology here last night, he said by being a world heritage site, Niah Caves could enhance Sarawak's status in the world stage after similar accolade was achieved for the Mulu Caves.

He said archaeologists from as far as Nevada University in the United States had been showing their interests towards Niah Caves as early as in 1957 where 122 skeletons found were brought there to be studied.

"Though they have prepared some reports on the burials (of the skeletons), none has been published. I would like to propose that the burials be brought back to Sarawak," he added.

He said the burials being the heritage of Sarawak and Malaysia should be brought home to facilitate researchers to carry out further study and analysis.

Taib said that he would seriously study the State Museum's requests for the organisation's restructuring process to accommodate more human resources for their research sections, in particular archaeology.

He said due consideration would be given on the museum's requirement of a proper artifacts collection centre so that the state's important heritage would be preserved better.

Hailing the effort to organise the international seminar, which grouped archaeologists from several Asean countries, Australia and the United Kingdom, he said such event should be held on a more regular basis.

"This would result in a clearer and complete picture of the past heritage of human race that used to inhabit and roam the Malay Archipelago," he added.

Source : Bernama