KOSOVO: 2006 A SUCCESSFUL YEAR FOR SERBIAN

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 PRISTINA 000020

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

DEPT FOR DRL, INL, EUR/SCE
NSC FOR BRAUN
USUN FOR DREW SCHUFLETOWSKI
EUR/ACE FOR DMAYHEW

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: SCUL KCRM PGOV PINR PREL YI UNMIK EAID PHUM
SOCI
SUBJECT: KOSOVO: 2006 A SUCCESSFUL YEAR FOR SERBIAN
ORTHODOX CHURCH RECONSTRUCTION

REF: A. 06 PRISTINA 24


B. 06 PRISTINA 853

C. 06 PRISTINA 663

D. 06 PRISTINA 352

E. 06 PRISTINA 985

SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED, PLEASE PROTECT ACCORDINGLY


1. (SBU) SUMMARY. In 2006, the Reconstruction
Implementation Commission (RIC) completed extensive
renovations on seven Serbian Orthodox religious sites damaged
or destroyed during the March 2004 riots. Work on an eighth
site will continue into early 2007 due to the complexity of
the works. The Kosovo government provided most of the
funding for the RIC's work. Serbian Orthodox Church leaders
have expressed their satisfaction with the work, much of
which was carried out by Kosovo Albanians. The RIC plans to
reconstruct 18 more sites in 2007, sixteen of which will be
funded by the Kosovo government and two by the European
Agency for Reconstruction. UNESCO will also undertake
reconstruction projects with donor funding. Kosovo's RIC
continues to be one of the most successful examples of
inter-ethnic cooperation. END SUMMARY.


2. (SBU) The Reconstruction Implementation Commission for
Orthodox Religious Sites in Kosovo (RIC) was established in
March 2005 to oversee the reconstruction of Orthodox Churches
damaged or destroyed in the March 2004 riots. The RIC is
chaired by the Council of Europe (COE) and includes
representatives from the Serbian Orthodox Church (SOC),the
Kosovo Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport (MCYS),Serbia's
Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments (IPM),and
Kosovo's Institute for the Protection of Monuments. Bishop
Teodosije Sibalic of Lipljan, based at Decani Monastery,
participates as the SOC representative. In 2005, the RIC
successfully completed "emergency interventions" on 31 sites,
to prevent further deterioration due to exposure to the
weather (Ref A). Additional information about the RIC,
including detailed descriptions and photos of each site, is
available at www.rickosovo.org.


3. (SBU) The RIC's 2006 work program consisted of extensive
renovations on eight sites identified as priority sites by
the Serbian IPM. On December 20, the RIC announced the
successful completion of work at seven of the sites: the
Monastery of Saint Joanikije at Devic (Skenderaj/Srbica); Old
Church of Saint George (Runovic) in Prizren; the Church of
Holy Virgin Ljeviska in Prizren; Saint Elias Church in
Vushtrri/Vucitern; Saint Nicholas Church in Pristina; Church
of the Presentation of the Holy Virgin Mary in Belo Polje
(Peja/Pec); and the church of the Assumption of the Holy
Virgin Mary (Gjakova/Djakovica). The RIC extended the
deadline for completion of work on an eighth site, the
Episcopal Church of St. George in Prizren, into 2007, due to
the complexity of the works. New domes on the roof of St.
George have already significantly altered Prizren's skyline.


4. (SBU) At St. Nicholas Church, works included internal
plastering on the church and parish house, repairing the
dome, and mounting internal scaffolding on the belfry.
Projects at the other sites included roof repairs, internal
plastering and drainage, stone cleaning, the repairing of
cracks, construction of a retaining wall, electrical
installation and other internal and external repairs.
According to the RIC, re-roofing at the Ljeviska church was
done on an expedited basis because someone stole the lead
roof on the previously-damaged church in October 2005.
(NOTE: Incidents involving theft and vandalism at cultural
heritage sites are ongoing throughout Kosovo (Ref B, Ref C),
and hard-line Bishop Artemije, head of the Raska and Prizren
diocese, cited this insecurity as his motive for refusing to
participate in the reconstruction efforts. END NOTE).


PRISTINA 00000020 002 OF 003



5. (SBU) Fedor Klimtchouk, UNMIK representatives to the
MCYS, called the RIC, "an excellent model of effective
cooperation," and highlighted the importance of high level
engagement and dialogue between the two ministers in Belgrade
and Pristina. He mentioned that most of the RIC's 2006 work
program was funded by the Kosovo's Provisional Institutions
of Self Government (PISG). During a November 21 press
conference, RIC chairperson Emma Carmichael said that those
funds totaled 2.3 million euros in 2006, and that the RIC
will ask the PISG for an additional 2.9 million euros for the
2007 work program. This will include extensive
reconstruction work on another 18 sites and the restoration
of damaged frescoes. Of those sites, sixteen are to be
funded by the PISG, while the remaining two -- Prizren's
Episcopal Residence and Orthodox Seminary -- will be funded
by the European Agency for Reconstruction (EAR). The
Episcopal Residence, burned by rioters in March 2004, is
Artemije's official residence. Artemije has lived at
Gracanica Monastery since 1999 due to security concerns, and
has often used his own status as an internally displaced
person (IDP) as an argument to fuel his fiery rhetoric,
including his refusal to accept a visit by PM Ceku on
Orthodox Easter in April 2006 (Ref D).


6. (SBU) Father Sava Janjic told us on December 29 that he
is "quite satisfied" with the reconstruction work carried out
by the RIC in 2006, calling it a "rare piece of good news" to
come out of Kosovo. He said that the work, much of which was
carried out by Kosovo Albanians under the supervision of Serb
architects form the Serbian IPM, was "very professional" and
added that the contracting companies were committed to
maintaining high standards. He said that Decani Monastery
officials were so impressed with one of the companies (a
Kosovo Albanian contractor based in Gjakova/Djakovica) that
they have hired the company to do some construction work at
Decani Monastery. Sava said that his one complaint was that
the 2006 work program started late -- in July -- and said he
hopes that the 2007 program will get underway sooner. He
said that because the RIC has been so successful under its
current mandate, he would like to see that mandate expanded
to include reconstruction of additional sites, beyond those
damaged or destroyed in March 2004. However, he pointed out
that any such revision of the RIC's mandate would require a
new memorandum of understanding (MOU).


7. (SBU) Klimtchouk mentioned that in addition to the work
carried out by the RIC, UNESCO is moving forward with plans
to undertake reconstruction work "on all types" of cultural
heritage in Kosovo. He said that in May 2005, donor
countries pledged USD 10 million for these efforts (including
one million from the USG). He said that in September 2006
UNESCO and UNMIK signed an umbrella MOU establishing the
framework for implementation, and added that supplementary
MOUs now urgently need to be signed for specific projects.
(NOTE: In mid-January, a UNESCO delegation will visit Kosovo
to meet with UNMIK and facilitate the supplementary MOU
necessary to start USG-funded projects, including work on
several Orthodox churches. END NOTE). According to Sava's
KiM Info Service, Belgrade's Coordination Center for Kosovo
and Metohija (CCK) (Ref E) is separately funding the
reconstruction of the Church of St. Sosmas and Damian in
Zociste Monastery (Rahovec/Orahovac Municipality); and the
Serbian government funded reconstruction works on the Pec
Patriarchate (in Peja/Pec) in 2006 worth 15 million dinars
(over USD two million).


8. (SBU) COMMENT. Kosovo's RIC continues to be an example
of multi-ethnic cooperation that is achieving visible
results. Quietly but with resolve, Kosovo's Serbs and
Albanians are working together to restore an important part
of Kosovo's cultural heritage. We will continue to follow
and support this process, both to preserve Kosovo's
irreplaceable historical/cultural patrimony, as well as to

PRISTINA 00000020 003 OF 003


encourage Serbs to remain -- and return. END COMMENT.


9. (U) Post clears this message in its entirety for release
to Special Envoy Martti Ahtisaari.
LASKARIS