Rio’s Christ Redeemer among the New Seven Wonders of the World

Internetters from all over the world selected 7 New Wonders of the World: Chichén Itzá in Mexico, Christ Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro, the Great Wall of China, Machu Picchu in Peru, Petra in Jordan, the Colosseum in Roma and the Taj Mahal in India.

The statue Christ the Redeemer or Cristo Redentor on top of the Corcovado mountain in Rio de Janeiro has an altitude of 38 meters. It was designed by Brazilian Heitor da Silva Costa and the French sculptor Paul Landowski took five years for its construction before it was inaugurated on October 12, 1931. Christ the Redeemer has become a symbol of Brazil, of Rio de Janeiro and of the warmth of the Brazilian people, who receive visitors with open arms.

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) complained that this "only the opinions of those with access to the internet". So what and who cares? In theory, the internet vote may have had a democratic deficit, but who are the United Nations to complain? Just to show a few examples: The most cruel dictatorships have had voting rights in the UN General Assembly. The UN Security Council still reflects the world in 1946 with the UK and France having permanent seats while Brazil (a much larger country) has not. And the UN’s International Court of Justice commits political activism disguised as legal ruling by providing “advise” on areas where it has no jurisdiction.

Although done by people with internet access only, the selection of the New Seven Wonders of the World is probably more representative for the opinion of the world population than most decision making processes in the UN. The final outcome of the vote does not show any internetcentricity or Western ethocentricity: The youngest New Wonder of the World, the statue of Christ the Redeemer dates from 1931 and is the only selected wonder from the Industrial age. Only four of the New Seven World Wonders are located in a Western country (Brazil, Mexico, Peru and Rome) while only two of these wonders are constructed by Western cultures: Christ the Redeemer and the Colosseum of Rome.