On March 19, an exploration team of eight people was penalized by the Ruoqiang County Cultural Relics Bureau for privately crossing Lop Nur. They have apologized for their actions through the media and subsequently set off on their journey home.
In fact, according to the "Implementation Measures of the Cultural Relics Protection Law of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region" (hereinafter referred to as the "Measures"), those who organize visits, tours, or explorations for profit may have their illegal gains confiscated and be fined between 20,000 and 100,000 yuan. Meanwhile, individuals or organizations that enter without authorization may be fined between 1,000 and 10,000 yuan and between 5,000 and 50,000 yuan respectively. However, in this case, there was no evidence to prove that the eight tourists had entered the Loulan Cultural Relics Protection Area without permission, making it impossible to impose financial penalties on them.
Jiao Yingxin, director of the Ruoqiang County Cultural Relics Bureau, stated that the bureau has only a dozen or so staff members, the Lop Nur area has a dry climate and treacherous terrain, and the Loulan Cultural Relics Protection Area covers an extremely vast area — just the ruins of the Loulan Ancient City alone span over 100,000 square meters. Even staff from protection stations face great danger when entering.
Therefore, usually, the staff only find out after the explorers have left the protected area, which makes it impossible to gather evidence or hold anyone accountable.
Jiao Yingxin said that the leader of the eight explorers had previously led nine people into the Loulan Cultural Relics Protection Area last year, but the cultural relics bureau only learned about it after they had successfully crossed Lop Nur.
The "Measures" also stipulate that entry into cultural relics protection units that are not open to the public is prohibited for visits, tourism, or exploration. Those who need to enter for scientific research must hold a scientific research project plan along with corresponding approval documents, submit them to the regional cultural relics administrative department for review and approval, and be accompanied by a cultural relics supervisor.
However, in recent years, some groups and individuals under the guise of "tourism and exploration" have frequently entered unopened sites such as Loulan and Niya, adding further human-caused damage to these ecologically fragile ruins. Jiao Yingxin explained that even walking through the protected area can cause harm. The Lop Nur region experiences strong winds and sandstorms, and foot traffic can loosen the surface dry soil, which is then blown away by wind and sand.
Wang Tienan, chairman of the Urumqi Mountaineering and Exploration Association, said that in recent years, many people have entered Lop Nur, including tour groups from within Xinjiang and from other regions. Most of these groups cross Lop Nur without entering cultural heritage sites, and most do not register with the cultural relics authorities.
At the same time, he hopes that travelers across the country will enhance their awareness of cultural relics protection and avoid entering protected areas casually.