Government condemns threats to monastery

BELGRADE The Government Office for Cooperation with Churches and Religious Communities has strongly condemned the protests staged by local Albanians near Visoki Decani. The Serbian government official also condemned the attempts of extremists to enter the medieval Serb Orthodox monastery courtyard. Government condemns threats to monastery “The decision of the Supreme Court in Pristina to give back part of the land previously seized from the monastery is just a pretext for the demonstrations that are threatening the existence of the monastery that was inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List of and that are sending a clear message to the exiled people that they should not be returning to their homes,” Mileta Radojevic, director of the office, said in a written statement to the media. Radojevic said it is necessary to make sure religious rights are respected in practice in line with European standards in this region, adding that he believes that such actions do not contribute to the reconciliation between the Serbs and Albanians, something that Serbian Orthodox Church Patriarch Irinej spoke about in Prizren recently. The office is calling on local authorities and representatives of international bodies and organizations to take decisive measures and ensure the protection of Serbian spiritual and cultural heritage and create conditions for a more peaceful life for all citizens, the statement said. Tanjug

Government condemns threats to monastery

“The decision of the Supreme Court in Priština to give back part of the land previously seized from the monastery is just a pretext for the demonstrations that are threatening the existence of the monastery that was inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List of and that are sending a clear message to the exiled people that they should not be returning to their homes,” Mileta Radojević, director of the office, said in a written statement to the media.

Radojević said it is necessary to make sure religious rights are respected in practice in line with European standards in this region, adding that he believes that such actions do not contribute to the reconciliation between the Serbs and Albanians, something that Serbian Orthodox Church Patriarch Irinej spoke about in Prizren recently.

The office is calling on local authorities and representatives of international bodies and organizations to take decisive measures and ensure the protection of Serbian spiritual and cultural heritage and create conditions for a more peaceful life for all citizens, the statement said.