The number of government agencies that participate in post-disaster work can vary from 25–100 (Blaikie, Cannon, Davis, & Wisner, 2014). Health, housing, and emergency planning officials have all often regarded it as their particular task. Kumar (1997) highlighted politics as one of the main factors of reconstruction and Calame (2005) found that reconstruction was tied to political incentives and discernible political priorities. Large-scale destruction and the need for mass housing projects and restoration of urban infrastructures boost the government’s role in the reconstruction process of post-war cities (Félix, Branco, & Feio, 2014; Taheri Tafti & Tomlinson, 2013). On the other hand, some parts of the reconstruction process are implemented with financial assistance from foreign countries and international relief agencies (Chwastiak, 2014). For example, in attempting to understand the link between politics and reconstruction, it is critical to understand the business alliance between Rafiq Hariri, the post-war Prime Minister of Lebanon, and the Solidere development project (explained in 2.6.7). Hariri’s rise to political leadership was based on his ability to market an aggressive plan for the economic recovery of Lebanon (Charlesworth, 2007).
In these cases, governments play the main role in the distribution and management of the funds. Moreover, in most post-war cities, due to immigration and unreturned populations, local councils have not been strong enough to contribute effectively to the master planning of the reconstruction; hence, these plans are often prepared in the capital city and sent to the districts and post-war cities for implementation (Taheri Tafti
& Tomlinson, 2013).
Regarding tourism development as the second aspect of this research, government policies play a main role while researchers such as Hall (2009), Jenkins and Harvey (1982), and Brohman (1996) have explored the effect of government involvement in tourism development. Hall (2000) outlined seven roles for government in tourism:
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coordination, planning, legislation and regulation, entrepreneurship, providing stimulation, social tourism, and interest protection. Ioannides (1995) defined two broad roles of governments in sustainable tourism development. One initiative is establishing a forum enabling the tourism industry suppliers to coordinate their activities and the second initiative is a major role for the government as a tourism booster.
The WTO (1998) defined the guidelines for tourism development for central and local authorities. The guidelines stipulated that governments should take a lead role in establishing tourism policy and that tourism policy should reflect the overall development policy of the country or region. Elliot (1983) claimed that the tourism industry could not survive without government because governments are the providers of political stability, security, and legal frameworks; and have a main role in the financial framework that tourism requires. Leask and Rihova (2010) demonstrated the role of government in both revitalization and tourism development through the central government’s role in the provision of funds to support the development of tourism policy. In addition, the principal political decision-makers are governments in which decisions such as visa requirements will affect the relationship between nations. These relationships have an important effect on tourism development plans.
Finally, the above discussion highlights the relevance of the role of government policy in tourism development and post-war reconstruction as one of the main concepts in this research that affects both tourism and reconstruction plans. Government policy also covers other related subjects such as the priorities of master plans for reconstruction and tourism.
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2.7.2 Architecture
The first perceptions of an urban city’s attractions are through its buildings and social spaces based on both physical assets and a series of experiences built around those assets. Buildings and architectural styles are the best left remnants to tell the story about what happened during the past while these assets create the first image for tourists in urban areas (Wilson, 2002). Using architectural buildings, landscapes, and landmarks to motivate tourism and solidify an urban identity is not a new phenomenon (Ye &
Tussyadiah, 2010). Various cities embark on tourism development plans to make new landmarks and buildings as a symbol of the city or cultural heritage. Tourism also motivates residents to conserve their cultural heritage and has a positive impact on architectural traditions and ancestral heritage (Rowe, D.Smith, & Borein, 2002).
In new tourism development plans, landmarks are the most significant destinations for tourists. A key shared value between reconstruction and architecture in post-war cities is the war related landmark and war monument, which is generally a project in the urban reconstruction of post-war cities to preserve the history of war in the urban area (Nguyen & Le Van 1997). For example, Arandjelovic and Bogunovich (2014) illustrated that the Parliament building in Berlin is an architectural model for a new capital reconstructed as a post-war tourism attraction. Hagen (2006) claimed that preservation of its medieval architecture after the Second World War and the growth of modern tourism in Rothenberg has come to occupy a special place in the memory landscape of Germany as a symbol of rootedness, community, and continuity with a bygone era. He claimed that these symbolic landscapes most often represent national images and facilitate the performance of national identity.
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Based on these attraction, past events of war are kept alive in the common memory through physical representation in public areas and urban landscapes (Gurler & Ozer, 2013). These monuments reflect the psychological and sociological requirements of the societies on the landscape. Similarly, they have the role of retaining alive the memories and history of a city’s experience in the war era. They are built at major intersections and urban squares, and promoted as tourist attractions.
In summary, architecture is characterized by an enduring presence that forms built environments and exerts an important impact on a destination’s image in the minds of visitors of a post-war city. Thus, the focus on architecture and landmarks has to be understood from the point of view that reconstruction and tourism are tied to the concept in two aspects. Firstly, reconstruction often involves the conservation of the war’s effects on some specific buildings with the aim of providing a tourist attraction.
Secondly, post-war landmarks function as a memorial of the war era.