MACEDONIA: SECULARISM CALLED INTO QUESTION AS

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 SKOPJE 000120

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

STATE FOR EUR/SCE, DRL/IRF

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PREL MK
SUBJECT: MACEDONIA: SECULARISM CALLED INTO QUESTION AS
GOVERNMENT PLANS CONSTRUCTION OF CHURCH AND MOSQUE


1. (SBU) SUMMARY: Controversial GOM decisions to use
taxpayer money to fund the construction of an Orthodox church
in the main city square of Skopje, and to reconstruct a
mosque in Tetovo, have sparked political gamesmanship and
debate on preserving state secularism. Concerns about the
impact of the decision on inter-ethnic relations and the
government budget have temporarily taken a back seat to
dissonance within the ethnic Albanian community and among its
political parties on the appropriate response to the
decision. While motives behind the government push to fund
the church and the mosque reconstruction are being debated,
these potentially extra-constitutional decisions have
resulted in protests invoking the name of Mother Teresa, and
opposition party pleas for Vatican intercession. End Summary.

Murky Details -- Decided Behind Closed Doors
--------------


2. (SBU) A January 22 closed-door government meeting
resulted in a controversial decision, based on a proposal
personally submitted by PM Gruevski, to fund the construction
of an Orthodox church in the main city square of Skopje.
There is some question about whether the decision was
unanimously agreed by all the cabinet ministers present, as
asserted by a government spokesperson at a press conference
on the issue, or was simply presented as an informational
item to the ministers and then recorded as a decision of the
government.


3. (SBU) An international tender for bids for the design and
construction of the church has been opened and will close in
late March. Publishing the tender required Minister of
Culture Arifhikmet Xhemaili, a member of junior government
coalition partner DPA (ethnic Albanian),to sign the
decision. Casting doubt on whether the government move
enjoyed DPA support, Xhemaili was notably absent for several
days following the decision, and apparently was unwilling to
have his name associated with the initiative. Deputy
Minister Slobodan Despotovski eventually signed the decision
on January 29th, allowing the tender to move forward. The
Ministry of Culture also established a working committee
responsible for selecting the best bid and for ensuring the
winning contractor starts construction this summer. The
committee notably lacks guidelines on budgetary limits for
the project, which has raised local media concerns.

A Church for Me, a Mosque for You
--------------


4. (SBU) In another closed-door cabinet meeting just a week
after the January 22 decision to construct the church in the
city square, the government supported a DPA initiative to
fund the reconstruction of the Charsia Mosque in the mostly
ethnic Albanian city of Tetovo, about 25 miles from Skopje.
Following the government,s decision on the church, the
Islamic Community of Macedonia (ICM) further complicated the
picture, lobbying for equitable funding for reconstruction of
the historic Burmali Mosque, just across the Skopje city
square from the site planned for the church. Despite the
ICM's ties to DPA, it appears that the government preferred
to offer funding for the reconstruction of the mosque in
Tetovo as a concession to DPA for its tacit support of the
church construction. The Head of the ICM eventually welcomed
the government,s decision on the Tetovo mosque, despite his
earlier hopes for a reconstructed Burmali Mosque.

A Little Secularism, Please
--------------


5. (U) Political and civic leaders, as well as media
commentators, have sharply criticized the government
decisions, expressing concerns about preserving secularism in
Macedonia and about the budgetary impact of the moves. In a
recent poll, editors of Macedonia's largest print and
electronic media outlets called the government's decision to
fund the construction of the church in the city square the
"bleakest" event of January, citing concerns about the
anti-secularist move and criticizing the government's failure
"to offer any information to the public, to reveal any data
on the financial costs, or to explain the need for such an
object."

SKOPJE 00000120 002 OF 002




6. (SBU) Opposition leaders, most notably from the largest
ethnic Albanian party DUI, are exploiting the
behind-closed-doors decision for political benefit at a time
when talk of early elections dominates the political
airwaves. DUI has openly critiqued Minister of Culture
Xhemaili for giving DPA's tacit support for the decision on
the church and has drafted, but not tabled, a no-confidence
measure against the minister.


7. (SBU) While some opposition leaders are hoping to reap
political benefits from criticizing the government,s
decision, others, both ethnic Macedonian and ethnic Albanian,
are genuinely worried about what these government decisions
might signal. In a recent discussion with POLOFFS, DUI VP
Teuta Arifi indicated that she is strongly opposed to
government funding of churches or/or mosques, and is lobbying
her colleagues in parliament to oppose the construction
plans. She also has written editorials critical of the
anti-secularist decisions. Other opposition leaders,
including from SDSM and the Liberal Democratic Party, have
criticized the government not only for abandoning
constitutionally-mandated secularism, but also for being
out-of-touch with key budget priorities in a country with
extremely high unemployment and poverty rates.

Secularist Voices: Talking to the Pope about Mother Teresa
-------------- --------------


8. (U) The ethnic Albanian NGO "Wake Up," which has close
ties to DUI, opposes the church construction on a site that
is clearly marked as the location of Mother Teresa's
childhood home. It has recommended instead that a replica of
Mother Teresa's home be built on the site. Wake Up activists
claim that two previous government budgets included funding
for such a memorial to be built at that location. The
organization remains firm in its position that government
funding for the construction of either churches or the
mosques is unconstitutional, and would cause strife among
Macedonia's ethnic and religious groups. The group held a
small, peaceful protest to express that view in the city
square on February 9th.


9. (U) Wake Up's proposal for the memorial house also is
being used in the political debate between ethnic Albanian
parties DUI and DPA. DUI used the issue of Mother Teresa's
memorial home as the basis for a letter to Pope Benedict XVI
asking him to "show support and solidarity for our initiative
aimed at preventing the religious tensions that would emerge
from the construction of this Orthodox religious building,
which will also...disrespect the actual existence of the
Catholic tradition in Macedonia."

Comment
--------------


10. (SBU) The GOM decisions to fund construction of a church
in the Skopje city square and a mosque in Tetovo have
generated strong opposition on several fronts. While some
parties are benefiting from political gamesmanship on the
issue, others are genuinely concerned that the decisions
could signal a move away from secularism in a country where
ethnic and religious issues are delicately balanced. It
seems unlikely, however, that political and civic opposition
will succeed in stopping government funding for the projects
given the Prime Minister's personal determination to proceed.
Currently enjoying strong approval ratings, the government
is more likely to push to include the extra-constitutional
and anti-secularist projects in its list of "accomplishments"
before moving toward likely early elections following the
NATO summit in April. End comment.


MILOVANOVIC