CARDINAL MCCARRICK VISITS BOSNIA

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 SARAJEVO 001806 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR UNDERSECRETARY BURNS E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/20/2017 TAGS: BK PGOV PHUM PREL SUBJECT: CARDINAL MCCARRICK VISITS BOSNIA REF: A. ZAGREB 763 ¶B. ZAGREB 766 Classified By: DCM Judith B. Cefkin. Reasons 1.4 (b),(d) Summary -------------- ¶1. (C) Washington Archbishop Emeritus Cardinal Theodore McCarrick visited Bosnia August 14 to 16. While in Sarajevo Cardinal McCarrick met with Croat member and Chairman of the Tri-Presidency Zeljko Komsic, Islamic Community leader Reisu-l-Ulema Mustafa effendi Ceric and Jewish Community President Jacob Finci. He also spent time with Bishop Cardinal Vinko Puljic and had a lunch roundtable with Acting High Representative Gregorian, OSCE Mission Director Davidson and emboffs. During his meetings Cardinal McCarrick emphasized that Croats are an integral part of the multiethnic fabric of Bosnia and need "special attention" from the state. President Komsic said that Bosnia Croats often adopt a defensive posture out of insecurity and his goal is to show Croats that the whole of Bosnia is open to them. Reis Ceric said that Croats must change their approach to civic participation and assert their rights rather than demand that they be bestowed by the state. End summary. President Komsic -------------- ¶2. (C) On August 15, Washington Archbishop Emeritus Cardinal Theodore E. McCarrick met with Zeljko Komsic, Chairman and Croat member of the Tri-Presidency. In welcoming Cardinal McCarrick, Komsic noted that the Concordat between Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Vatican was scheduled to be ratified by the Bosnian Presidency on August 20 and could serve as a model for Bosnia's formal relations with other religious institutions. Komsic noted that Bosnia's multiethnic character is fundamental to its future. The war was an aberration of that fundamental character, Komsic said, adding that the Catholic Church had played a key role in preserving that multiethnic character after the war. He noted that members of the U.S. clergy, in particular, had played a vital role in the postwar period which mirrored the overall role of the United States in the reconstruction and reform process. In that context, Komsic said that Bosnia wants the United States to remain "as present as possible" for the remainder of the Euro-Atlantic integration process. ¶3. (C) McCarrick replied that he had been visiting Bosnia for twenty years and he had concluded that the three constituent peoples must remain together in Bosnia for the country to survive. He likened Bosnia to a three-legged stool, saying that if one of the legs disappears, the stool will fall. The Croats, as the smallest of the constituent peoples, need the special care of the Presidency and state to remind them that they are needed and valued in Bosnia. Komsic said that, as the smallest of the constituent peoples, Croats are deprived of protection mechanisms under the current constitution. The constitution lacks sufficient mechanisms for protection against discrimination. Croats "have complexes" about their role in Bosnia and, as a result, tend to stick together because of their small numbers. This results in a "porcupine effect" with Croats often adopting a hostile and defensive posture. Komsic said his goal was to open up this Croat core and show them that the whole of Bosnia is open to them. ¶4. (C) To this end, Constitutional reform needs to open up society and there are various proposals on the table, Komsic said. Dayton was the right agreement for its time but it is now in need of reform. Last year's Bishops Conference constitutional reform proposal should be considered and kept in mind but is not currently viable for political reasons. Bosnia is facing a political challenge in its European future, Komsic said. The Bosnian people support this future but are unaware of and unprepared for the reforms and difficult decisions that it will involve. Reis Ceric -------------- ¶5. (C) On August 16, McCarrick, accompanied by Sarajevo Bishop Cardinal Vinko Puljic, met with Islamic Community leader Reisu-l-Ulema Mustafa effendi Ceric. Reis Ceric said that Bosnia's Islamic Community is comfortable with the draft Concordat and hope that it will encourage Croats to stay in Bosnia. Ceric noted he has good relations with Cardinal Puljic and that they enjoy an active dialogue on issues of importance to their respective communities. He also urged SARAJEVO 00001806 002 OF 002 that he and Puljic go together to visit returnee communities to promote inter-religious dialogue and tolerance between the Bosniaks and Croats living there - a proposal the Reis said he had made previously, but which the Cardinal had failed to take him up on. He also invited the Cardinal to come speak to medressa students. ¶6. (C) Of the three Constituent Peoples, only Bosniaks had never called for their own ethnic or religious state, Ceric said. This is because Bosniaks are aware that in Bosnia isolation is death. Nonetheless, Serbs and Croats are always prodding and testing Bosniaks in order to push them to adopt a separatist ideology. No one can afford to let a multicultural Bosnia fail. The West, especially the United States, must help the Bosniaks, as they did in Srebrenica, and we, in turn, will help you, Ceric said. ¶7. (C) Ceric said he did not understand why Croats are leaving Bosnia. After the collapse of totalitarianism in Eastern Europe, no one can expect that freedoms and rights are to be handed down by the state but rather they must simply be asserted. Croats must remain and make their own place here and assert their presence of their own accord. McCarrick replied that confidence building measures, such as granting building permits for new churches, could help Croats reach that goal. A proposed church in the Sarajevo district of Grbavica, for example, has been pending for ten years. Ceric and Puljic engaged in a long direct conversation on the Grbavica church after which the Reis said the Islamic Community understands the position of the Catholic Church. The Cardinal also said he would follow up on the Reis' proposal for joint visits to returnee communities. ¶8. (C) As a fledgling democracy, the line between politics and religion is often blurred in Bosnia, Ceric said, noting that the educational system is heavily influenced by ethnic and religious content. Politics and religion blend together, and religious leaders, such as himself or Bishop Peric, are routinely consulted on political issues. Bosniaks remain very insecure after the war. Turning to the Bishops conference, the Reis said "secret meetings of Croat bishops scare us." McCarrick replied that Croats feel the same way. Nonetheless, Ceric said, Dayton created a very successful peace that, unlike other armistices, has not seen a single return to violence. After the war Bosnia remains a recovering society where the only winner has been cooperation and dialogue. Jacob Finci and the Jewish Community -------------- ¶9. (C) Cardinal McCarrick also met with Jacob Finci, President of the Jewish Community. Finci cataloged the social and demographic difficulties facing the Jewish Community and Bosnia as a whole. He highlighted unemployment and emigration as the chief challenges to the future of the Jewish Community. Of a total of approximately 1,000 members, including 170 Holocaust survivors, about half are elderly pensioners. He noted that this phenomenon mirrors demographics in Bosnia citing a statistic that three quarters of young Bosnians hope to emigrate. Finci said the Interreligious Council is working well and he was personally working towards the goal of a more activist Council in promoting such goals as truth and reconciliation legislation. Comment -------------- ¶10. (C) Unfortunately, due to holiday travel schedules, McCarrick was unable to meet with Croat political party leaders. He nonetheless seemed pleased with his discussions in Sarajevo. The conversations highlighted the complexities of the current political-social dynamics in Bosnia, and pointed out that all three constituent groups feel misunderstood and under threat, each for different reasons. All his interlocutors agreed with the importance of keeping the Croat community present and engaged in Bosnia. The Embassy has actively engaged on religious freedom issues, including the Grbavica church. We assured Cardinal McCarrick that we will continue our discussions on this and other possible confidence-building measures. End comment. MCELHANEY