PETRA, December 10 (JT) — The government on Saturday held a press conference in an attempt to garner support for Petra's bid to become one of the New Seven Wonders of the World (N7W).

Minister of Tourism Osama Dabbas and Jordan Tourism Board Director Mazen Homoud briefed an audience of journalists at the Petra Movenpick Hotel on a promotional campaign designed to boost awareness of Petra within the Kingdom and beyond.

In order to encourage citizens to support Petra's bid, the government has so far set up a hotline (090009300) where people can register their votes, which can also be cast at www.visitjordan.com. But they are now also seeking to expand voting participation to more remote areas of the country.

“We plan on driving several vans with computers around areas of the country where people don't have Internet connection in order to help them vote for Petra,” Homoud said.

He also told the press that the Tourism Board intends to distribute hundreds of CDs, flyers, and free mobile phone cards at Jordan's 21 universities in an attempt to highlight Petra's status as a competitor in the event as well as provide financial help in order to get Jordanians to vote for the site.

Votes can be cast online, by telephone, or by SMSing the word “Petra” through MobileCom and Umniah (92381), and Fastlink (91181).

Petra has advanced beyond the preliminary rounds of the N7W competition and is now vying for the award against 20 other man-made wonders, including the Pyramids of Giza, the Acropolis in Athens and Britain's Stonehenge.

The finalists were drawn up from a list of 77 candidates by a panel of expert judges, including architects Zaha Hadid from the UK, Tadao Ando of Japan and Cesar Pelli from the US, and chaired by the former head of the UN's cultural agency (UNESCO), Professor Federico Mayor, according to Graphic News.

Next July — on the seventh day of the seventh month of 2007, and following a six-month, five-continent tour by judges to the 21 sites — the new seven wonders will be unveiled in Lisbon, Portugal.

The campaign to revive the concept of man-made wonders is the brainchild of Swiss film producer, author and aviator Bernard Weber, who launched the initiative in 2000 to identify the buildings and monuments that “have truly global meaning as part of our common cultural heritage,” Graphic News reported.

Unlike the ancient wonders, chosen in 200 BC by one man, Philon of Byzantium, the selection of the new wonders has involved more than 20 million votes in what Weber describes as a “completely unprecedented global grassroots election.”

Half the profits from the campaign will be donated for the restoration and preservation of buildings and monuments around the world, the agency said.

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