The horse chestnut tree which Anne Frank wrote about in her famous Second World War diary can survive another five to 15 years, according to tree experts, Dutch media reported Friday.
The Amsterdam city government and the Anne Frank Foundation, owner of the popular tourist attraction the Anne Frank House, want to cut down the 160-year old chestnut tree, saying it is seriously ill and poses a danger to the public and property.
But plans to fell the tree in December sparked nationwide anger, with many opponents saying the living testimony to the Jewish girl's story should not be destroyed so easily. A court decided later that the tree can stay pending further analysis.
The eight tree experts -- four representing the local council and four chosen by the tree protection foundation -- agreed that the tree has been attacked by fungus, but it can be kept alive for at least five more years and possibly as many as 15.
The cost of keeping the tree, including a steel support system, is estimated at some 10,000 euros a year.
Meanwhile, the Anne Frank House announced on Thursday that it received a record number of visitors in 2007.
More than one million people, mainly from the United States and Britain, visited the house on the Prinsengracht in Amsterdam where
Anne Frank and her family hid from the Nazis between June 1942 and August 1944.
Source: Xinhua
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