Serbian Orthodox Church

Information Service of
the Serbian Orthodox Church
March 16, 2005

ANNIVERSARY OF POGROM IN KOSOVO AND METOHIJA

His Holiness Serbian Patriarch Pavle has issued a call that tomorrow, March 17, 2005, on the anniversary of the pogrom against the Serbian people and its Church in Kosovo and Metohija, exactly at noon, all bells on all churches of the Serbian Orthodox Church in the Homeland and abroad should ring continuously for five minutes.

From the Office of the Serbian Patriarch

POGROM IN KOSOVO AND METOHIJA - MARCH 2004

Almost five years after the arrival of the UN Mission and KFOR in Kosovo and Metohija and an ongoing process of ethnic discrimination and attacks on the Serbian Orthodox population and its holy shrines, on March 17-18, 2004, Albanian extremists organized and carried out the biggest attack so far on Serbian enclaves and holy shrines of the Serbian Orthodox Church. The immediate cause for organizing the allegedly spontaneous Albanian demonstrations was a tragic incident in the village of Cabra (Chabra) near Kosovska Mitrovica where three Albanian children drowned on March 16. Prior to any investigation or verification, the Albanians accused the Serbs of being responsible for the tragedy, and on the same evening (March 16) Albanian language media issued a fervent call for mass demonstrations, which by March 17 would escalate into a mass lynching of the Serbian population. A subsequent established that the Serbs were not at all to blame for the tragedy at Cabra, and that Albanian extremist groups simply took advantage of this incident to launch an already prepared plan for the expulsion and ethnic cleansing of the remaining Serbs.

The results of the two-day-long rampage are highly discouraging. A total of 19 people were killed, including nine Serbs, while the rest were Albanians killed by international police and soldiers while defending themselves and the besieged Serbian enclaves. Almost 900 people were injured, among them 65 international members of KFOR and UNMIK police. A total of 4,100 people were chased from their homes, most of them Serbs; about 800 Serb and Roma homes and apartments were looted and torched; and 30 Serbian Orthodox holy shrines were either completely destroyed or heavily damaged. Two months after the March pogrom, the main organizers of the pogrom have not been identified or arrested; moreover, not one Albanian or international official has been dismissed or publicly called to task, despite the fact that during those two fateful days and nights, all Kosovo institutions, the UN Mission and KFOR command experienced complete collapse.

During those days the Serbs were practically left undefended before an onslaught of more than 60,000 Albanians, many of them armed. Only days after the pogrom, leading international officials, including NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer and Admiral Gregory C. Johnson, assessed that the campaign of violence and ethnic cleansing was well orchestrated. If this assessment is correct, as the entire investigation thus far and numerous analyses show, it is discouraging that two months after the eruption of violence, the persons who directly organized the pogrom have not been arrested. There are presently some 270 primarily indirect violators under investigation who were filmed destroying Serb property; however, the question looms large how many of them will ultimately be sentenced, taking into account that none of the Albanians are ready to testify for fear of reprisals.

The riots first began the morning of March 17, 2004, in Kosovska Mitrovica with the attempt of 800 Albanian demonstrators to force their way into the northern, Serbian part of the city. Although there was no organized resistance by UNMIK police at first, very quickly and with the help of armored vehicles and tear gas, UNMIK police pushed back the crowd into the southern part of the city and blocked the bridge across the Ibar River. French and Danish KFOR only showed up at the end and did not even take part in preventing the Albanian breakthrough. After failing to force their way into Northern Mitrovica, a group of about 200 predominantly young Albanians, among them several young men with characteristic Wahabi bears, were observed headed in the direction of the church of St. Sava in the southern part of Mitrovica, which was protected by members of a KFOR unit from Morocco. Without encountering any resistance from KFOR troops, the attackers broke into the churchyard and the church itself, destroying everything in front of them, and set a fire that demolished the entire interior of the church. In the meanwhile, members of KFOR evacuated the Serbian priest and his family so that the attackers, again without any resistance at all from KFOR, could also set fire to the parish home. According to existing video footage and photographs, the Moroccan soldiers stood and calmly watched the rampaging Albanians without demonstrating any sign of willingness to stop them in their campaign of destruction. Clashes in the Mitrovica area continued throughout the day and night with new attempts by the Albanians to force their way into the northern part of the city. According to UNMIK data, during these riots four Serbs were killed and 50 wounded. Also wounded were 35 members of police and some 160 Albanians. A dozen UNMIK vehicles were destroyed. The Albanians then attacked the Serb village of Svinjare (Svinyare), located between Mitrovica and Vucitrn (Vuchitrn); the entire Serb population of Svinjare was evacuated, and the Albanians then torched just about every Serbian house in the village.

By the afternoon of March 17, the violence had spread to the Pristina (Prishtina) area. Several thousand Albanians headed from the direction of Pristina across Veternik toward Caglavica (Chaglavitsa), where Serbs had blocked the road on March 15 after a young Serb, Jovica Ivic (18 ), was wounded by unknown attackers from an Albanian vehicle, which fled from the scene. In the meanwhile, the students of Pristina University, coming from rural and undeveloped parts of Kosovo known for their radical views and behavior, began a rampage within the city of Pristina itself. The students were invited to take part in the attack by the distribution of already prepared flyers calling on them to take part in demonstrations. The Independent Union of Students, which organized this mobilization, played a key role in attacks on Serb property throughout the greater Pristina area on March 17-18. The clash near the Serbian village of Caglavica looked like a medieval pitched battle, as one KFOR soldier described it. Strong police repelled the first Albanian attack and Swedish KFOR forces used water cannons, tear gas, stun grenades and even hand-to-hand combat. International forces blocked the road with a double cordon. Local Serbs also organized themselves to resist. However, despite the relatively strong international forces, the Albanians managed to set fire to several Serbian houses on the outskirts of the village. After six o'clock in the evening, approximately 5,000 students arrived from Pristina and with the rest of the Albanian throng pushed the international forces in the direction of Gracanica (Grachanitsa). A direct clash between several thousand Albanians and Serbs ready to defend the approach to Gracanica was imminent. Only later that evening was the escalation of violence stopped by the arrival of the US Marines, who dispersed the Albanian throng by throwing teargas from a helicopter. In the meanwhile, several hundred Albanians attacked the YU Program building in Pristina, including about 20 children. After stoning the building and tossing Molotov cocktails at it, the Albanians managed to break in, despite the presence of Kosovo police. The Serbs were evacuated at the last moment by the Irish KFOR contingent while the Albanians systematically looted and destroyed Serbian apartments. Several Serbs were beaten up. The Albanians were even throwing stones and Molotov cocktails and using snipers to shoot at international police who were trying to evacuate the Serbs.

As the violence spread in the areas of Mitrovica and Pristina, the riots infected almost every urban center in Kosovo and Metohija during the course of that day, March 17.

By the afternoon of March 17, large groups of Albanians had arrived in organized fashion in the Kosovo Polje area, where they began to attack Serbian houses and property. In the attacks the Serbian hospital in Bresje, St. Sava School, the only post office where Serbs could receive mail, and dozens of Serbian houses were burned down. Serbs were literally pulled from the flames by international policemen who were helpless to prevent the destruction of their homes. One has the distinct impression that the goal of the Albanian mob was to expel the Serbs; members of the Kosovo Police Service who pulled the Serbs from their homes headed the mass of Albanians, many among them armed with Kalashnikovs and hand grenades. The situation was similar in Lipljan, when 28 Serb houses were burned down along with utility buildings. It was only thanks to KFOR intervention at the last moment that the destruction of all Serb property in this once largely Serbian town was avoided. Orthodox priest Randjel Denic was wounded by a hand grenade tossed by the Albanians, who attacked two Serbian churches in Lipljan; when he withdrew into his parish home to wash the blood from his face as a result of wounds caused by grenade shrapnel, he was then arrested by Albanian policemen for supposedly trying to set fire to his own church. Many Serbs in Lipljan and Kosovo Polje were wounded, two were killed and hundreds were evacuated from their burning homes.

Demonstrations in Urosevac (Uroshevats) began on the afternoon of March 17. At first they were peaceful but soon the Albanian crowd was using hand grenades and Molotov cocktails to attack the Greek troops guarding the church of the Holy Emperor Uros (Urosh). Approximately 15 Greek soldiers were wounded defending the church, which luckily only sustained damage to the facade. At the last moment US troops arrived, who prevented the mass from breaking into the church, evacuated the wounded Greeks and about a dozen Serbs under a hail of stones and Molotov cocktails. The violence continued in Gnjilane, Vitina and Kamenica as well. In Gnjilane almost all the remaining Serbian houses were burned down but ultimately the church was saved. The Serbian churches in Vitina and Kamenica were attacked but did not sustain significant damage. All the Serbs from Gnjilane were evacuated; in Vitina only a few stayed near the church, which was placed under US protection. In Kamenica many Serbian houses were damaged, and several Serbs beaten up.

The biggest destruction of Serb property and holy shrines occurred in Prizren, until then considered to be one of the most peaceful urban centers on the territory in the Province largely due to the fact that there were hardly any Serbs left there. By about 3:00 p.m., the organizers of the violence in Prizren ordered the closing of all shops. In the meanwhile, an enormous crowd of Albanians gathered, many of them arriving in organized fashion by bus from outlaying parts of the city and surrounding villages. After an attack on the UNMIK building and an unsuccessful attempt by Argentine policemen to stop the masses, the crowd began the systematic destruction of Serbian Orthodox holy shrines and houses in Potkaljaja (Potkalyaya) (the old quarter of Prizren once inhabited by primarily by Serbs, few of whom now remain). First Sts. Cyril and Methodius Seminary was burned down; a Serb male refugee burned to death inside and later the burned remains of a woman were found in the basement.. The crowd then attacked the Bishop's residence with stones and Molotov cocktails, and German soldiers evacuated Fr. Miron Kosac from the site. After the Bishop's residence was set on fire, the crowd also broke into St. George Orthodox Cathedral and the smaller church of St. George (Runovic's church) located in the courtyard of the main church, and set them on fire. Other groups set fires in the churches of the Holy Virgin of Lyevish and Christ the Savior, and the church of St. Kyriake in Potkaljaja. German KFOR forces not only failed to react but even completely withdrew from their positions in the city. No one from the main KFOR base rushed to assist the members of the international police trying tot stop the masses. At approximately 9:00 p.m, a crowd arrived in front of Holy Archangels Monastery, located five kilometers south of Prizren, as German soldiers evacuated the brotherhood at the last moment. The Albanians broke into the courtyard and set fire to the monastery, which burned to the ground despite the presence of the German troops, who stood and watched the rampaging of the terrorists. Obviously the Albanians' goal was not to clash with KFOR but simply to expel the Serbs and destroy their property and holy shrines. During the course of that night and the next day, March 18, 2004, the Albanians systematically looted and set fire to Serb homes in Potkaljaja where the smaller churches of the Unmercenary Physicians (Sts. Cosmas and Damian) and St. Panteleimon were also set on fire. The entire historic Serbian quarter of Prizren was reduced to ashes. According to the testimony of some 30 Serbs evacuated by international forces before frenzied crowd to the German military base, where they remain today, heading the crowd were members of the Kosovo Police Service, who forcibly expelled the Serbs from their homes, not even allowing them to take the most basic necessities. Some of the elderly Serbs were brutally beaten KPS members and subsequently received emergency treatment at Prizren Hospital.

In Djakovica several hundred Albanians began to gather on the afternoon of March 17. At about 5:00 p.m. they attacked members of UNMIK police, torching and destroying police vehicles. In the evening the Albanian masses attacked the Serbian Orthodox church of the Most Holy Theotokos, where five elderly Serbian women lived in the parish home under the protection of Italian soldiers. The soldiers opened fire on the attackers and wounded nine Albanians. However, since no reinforcements came, the soldiers were forced to evacuate the Serbian grandmothers at the last moment under a hail of stones and Molotov cocktails to the nearby Italian military base, and then to Visoki Decani Monastery, where they remain today. After the departure of the soldiers and elderly women, members of the Kosovo Police Service were the first to enter the churchyard in Djakovica and open the doors for the crowd. During the course of the night, the church and parish home were not only burned down but completely leveled with the ground. Later the same night and the next day, several thousand Albanians systematically removed the very stones of the destroyed church as well as the stones of the church of the Holy Trinity, which had been blown up in 1999. In the meanwhile, Albanian extremists dynamited the church of St. Lazarus in Piskote (Pishkote) near Djakovica, and the church of St. Elijah on the hill near the village of Bistrazin, south of Djakovica. Not only was the church in Piskote completely obliterated but the Orthodox cemetery in the village was also destroyed.

In the town of Decani the Albanian masses began gathering on March 17 and first set fire to several UNMIK vehicles. Prior to this, at about 10:00 a.m. six mortar grenades landed in immediate proximity to Visoki Decani Monastery. In the nearby city of Pec, after rampaging in front of the UNMIK building, several thousand Albanians then attacked the neighboring Serbian returnee village of Belo Polje (Belo Polye), setting fire to all the recently restored Serb houses there, as well as the restored parish home where the Serb returnees were staying. Approximately 20 Serbs were evacuated at the last moment by Italian KFOR, which arrived too late to prevent the destruction of the recently restored village. Several Serbs sustained injuries as they ran from the burning parish home to the Italian transporters. The church, which had also been demolished and torched earlier, was again demolished and torched on the inside but the roof construction remained intact.

On the second day, March 18, 2004, the violence of the Albanian terrorists continued albeit with somewhat reduced fury. Most of the damage was done in the area of central Kosovo. In the evening of March 17, the old church of St. Nicholas in Pristina was attacked and burned to the ground, together with the parish home and an adjoining building used for baptisms. The remaining dozen or so Pristina Serbs, including Orthodox priest Miroslav Popadic, were evacuated from the flames of the parish home at the last moment as the crowd rejoiced over the spectacle of the church in flames. In Obilic, too, an organized campaign of destruction of Serb houses and apartment began during the course of March 18. Serbian houses were largely set aflame by Albanian children, who were led out of their classrooms in organized fashion and armed with Molotov cocktails. By the end of the day, 90 Serbian houses, 40 apartment sand some 30 other buildings had been reduced to rubble. The Albanians also burned down the unfinished Serbian Orthodox church in downtown Obilic by filling it with automobile tires and setting them aflame.

The torching of Serb houses continue on March 18 in the area of Kosovo Polje, where over 100 Serb homes were destroyed in two days. There were also new attacks in Lipljan but without tragic consequences. In Podujevo that afternoon a mob of about 500 Albanians attacked the Serbian church of St. Andrew the First-called above the town, which was under the protection of Czech KFOR troops. After the soldiers received orders to retreat, the crowd attacked the church, setting fire to it and using dynamite to blow up the altar section (sanctuary) of the church. The Albanian masses then began a horrific celebration at the nearby Serbian cemetery where, according to the eyewitness testimony of Czech soldiers, they tore open the Serbian tombs and scattered the bones in them, destroying crosses and grave markers with infernal hatred and demonic fury. In addition to the church, the bell tower was also blown up and a 1.2 ton church bell donated to the church by Serbian King Alexander Karageorgevich, was stolen. Soon thereafter Czech soldiers found the bell in an Albanian house and learned that the Albanians were planning to sell it for 32,000 Euro. On the second day, March 18, the Serbian cemetery in Urosevac was also systematically desecrated and destroyed. Three more Orthodox churches were also destroyed in the same area. Not far from Orahovac, the Albanians torched the church of St. Kyriake in Brnjaca (Brnyacha) near Bela Crkva. At the same time, the parish home was set on fire as confirmed by a KFOR report.

In the town of Decani in the afternoon of March 18, a group of several hundred Albanians headed in the direction of Visoki Decani Monastery with the intent of attacking the monastery. The Albanian mayor of Decani and members of international police who deterred them from the attack stopped the crowd at the last moment. At the same time, as mentioned above, a mass of Albanians also headed in the direction of the Serb village of Svinjare, located between Mitrovica and Vucitrn, some 600 meters from a French military base. Although KFOR and international police at first tried to prevent the Albanians from entering the village, they received orders to evacuate all the Serbs from the village instead. The Albanian masses then entered the village unobstructed, completely looted it and set fire to 150 Serbian houses. The bodies of two Serbs were later found in the rubble of the burning houses. In their fury, the Albanians even slaughtered domestic animals, especially pigs.

In the town of Vucitrn itself, the Albanian crowd attacked the church of St. Elijah and set fire to the church and the parish home, ending its pyre of destruction by desecrating the Orthodox cemetery. The church, already destroyed earlier, was completely unprotected by either members of KFOR or police. At the same time, another group of Albanians forced its way into a settlement of Roma and Ashkalis, and began to torch and destroy their homes. More than 200 Ashkalis were evacuated.

On the afternoon of March 18, several thousand Albanians headed in the direction of Devic Monastery near Srbica (Srbitsa) with the intent of destroying the monastery. The French soldiers, who had been protecting this holy shrine for five years, panicked and ordered the nuns to evacuate, i.e. they literally grabbed them by the arm and fled with them by helicopter in the direction of Mitrovica. The monastery was left completely unprotected and full of French KFOR equipment. The Albanians first completely looted the monastery, removing everything that could be taken, including parts of the wooden roof frame on the church; they then set fire to the church and all buildings in the monastery complex. The attackers used pickaxes to break the marble cove on the tomb of St. Ioannichius of Devic and tore apart the tomb's contents, finally setting fires around and inside the tomb. The Devic church was completely destroyed by flames with all sacred objects inside; the Holy Table was shattered. The walls still bear the acronyms of the Kosovo Liberation Army, the Kosovo Protection Corps, the Albanian National Army, and other terrorist organizations and groups. The looting of the monastery continued for days and everything surviving the initial attack was taken. In the meanwhile, Bishop Artemije of Raska and Prizren managed through last minute intervention with the French KFOR command to prevent international troops from leaving Sokolica Monastery after the nuns had already been forcibly evacuated. After Bishop Artemije, accompanied by Bishop Atanasije of Zahumlje and Herzegovina (retired) pleaded and received assurances from KFOR that Sokolica Monastery would be protected, the sisterhood was returned, and the evacuated nuns from Devic were brought there also. Unfortunately French KFOR and its chaplain gave false assurances that Devic Monastery had not been torched. It was not until the evening of Sunday, March 20, that Church representatives escorted by international police were able to visit the burned ruins of the monastery, and photograph the terrible results of the Albanian pogrom against this holy shrine.

The following day, March 19, the Serbian church in the village of Zivinjane (Zhivinyane) near Prizren was also dynamited.

The violence carried out against the Serbian population, its holy shrines and homes on March 17-19, 2004 was an organized, pre-planned element of the general Albanian strategy of completely ethnically cleansing Kosovo and Metohija. The Albanian extremists and their political mentors showed in practice that the idea of an independent Kosovo hides a monstrous plan for the creation of an ethnically pure territory where no Orthodox Christian holy shrine will be spared and no trace of centuries-old Serbian culture and spirituality will be tolerated. After five years of silently observing ethnic cleansing, including the destruction of 112 Orthodox churches, KFOR and UNMIK experienced complete collapse and ruin in these two days. All laws, institutions, military and civilian organizations simply ceased to exist. Armed gangs that torched and burned, attacking the unprotected Serbian population, ruled Kosovo and Metohija. The international mission found itself not just in the role of the silent observer but actual accomplice to ethnic cleansing because many incidents showed that its goal was not the protection of the Serb population, its property and its holy shrines.

Two months after the March 2004 pogrom, little in Kosovo and Metohija has changed for the better. The Serbs who were expelled still have not been able to return to their homes, and rebuilding of those homes destroyed has not even begun. Churches and monasteries still lie in ruins although the monks of Holy Archangels Monastery and the nuns of Devic Monastery, thanks to their determination, have returned to the burned ruins of their respective monasteries to live in portable containers and tents until they can be rebuilt. The main organizers and inciters of this terrorist and national chauvinist pogrom have neither been found nor arrested. At the time of this writing, police have managed to detain some 260 perpetrators directly involved in acts of vandalism. However, no Albanian leader, municipal administrator, minister or official of the Kosovo government has yet resigned. No one has been held accountable, even though it is common knowledge that Kosovo Albanian leaders, major Albanian media and most Albanian mayors contributed to the atmosphere of mass lynching with their war-mongering, nationalistic declarations, and in many cases were direct participants in the organization of the attacks.

In this March pogrom the Serbian community experienced yet another painful blow from which it will be difficult to recover. Most Serbs lack all confidence in KFOR and UNMIK's willingness to protect the remaining Serbs. Many Serbs who were expelled directly accuse the Kosovo police of taking part in the crimes, but not one representative of this organization has been held responsible. After March 17, 2004, the gradual departure of Serbs continued. It is every difficult to expect Serbs to return to their destroyed homes in Obilic, Prizren, Svinjare and Lipljan unless there is a change in the policy of the international community in Kosovo and Metohija. If we take into account that so far the reaction of the international community has been limited to rhetoric and that the number of KFOR troops has not increased significantly, there is reason to seriously doubt the sincerity of the international community in its declared intention to prevent further ethnic cleansing, the persecution of the Serbian population and destruction of their cultural heritage in Kosovo and Metohija. Belgrade's reaction has also been largely limited to verbal condemnation and providing humanitarian assistance that it has difficulty delivering to Kosovo and Metohija.

The Serbian government finally presented a plan for local Serbian autonomy in Kosovo and Metohija, which is an important bid to advance the position and rights of the Serbian population. However, under existing security conditions such a plan is difficult, if not impossible, to implement as KFOR does not effectively control the entire territory of the Province. Albanian terrorism is so rampant and well-defined that two months after the March pogrom, UNMIK practically no longer exists. In the meanwhile, attacks on Serbs and Serbian property continue; several more homes in Lipljan have been torched, and there has been an increase in the theft of Serbian property and livestock.

The general assessment is that a new escalation of violence against Serbs is not only possible but unavoidable, and that without a radical change in the policy of the international community toward Kosovo and Metohija, the very survival of Serbs in this region remains under a question mark. It is completely absurd that a territory where the international community has invested enormous sums of money and deployed strong NATO forces for the purpose of protecting multiethnicity and democracy is to become the most ethnically pure and most lawless part of the European continent. The policy of concession in the face of Albanian extremism and terrorism will boomerang on the international community, especially the European states, because an erroneous policy has created the foundations for building a terrorist state that will become a base for the destabilization of the entire Balkan peninsula and beyond.

SERBS KILLED DURING THE MARCH 2004 POGROM

According to information from the Coordinating Center for Kosovo and Metohija justice administration and human rights section, a total of nine Serbs were killed during the massive terrorist armed attack on Serbs on March 17, 2004. Eight died during the riots and one elderly woman died soon afterwards as a result of trauma sustained during the attack.

Kosovska Mitrovica:

1. Borivoje Spasojevic, b. Nov. 11, 1941 from K. Mitrovica, killed Mar. 17, 2004 in K. Mitrovica

2. Jana Tucev, b. Dec. 27, 1968 from K. Mitrovica, killed Mar. 17, 2004 in K. Mitrovica

Lipljan:

3. Nenad Vesic, b. July 4, 1950, killed Mar. 17, 2004 at 7 p.m. in front of his burning family home before his sister, Radmila Vesic, and their mother, Ljubica Vesic

Strpce:

4. Dobrivoje Stolic, b. 1955 from Drajkovac, killed Mar. 17, 2004 at 10:40 p.m. in the entrance to his home in Drajkovac, together with his son, Borko

5. Borko Stolic, b. 1984 from Drajkovac, wounded Mar. 17, 2004 at 10:40 p.m. in the entrance to his home in Drajkovac, died the following day of his wounds

Gnjilane:

6. Slobodan Peric, son of Milivoj, b. Sep. 3, 1952, physical education teacher in the village of Kusce, killed Mar. 17, 2004 at 8:50 p.m. in Kralja Petra Street

Kosovo Polje:

7. Zlatibor Trajkovic, b. Sep. 21, 1942 from K. Polje, killed Mar. 17, 2004 in front of St. Sava School

Prizren:

8. Dragan Nedeljkovic, b. 1943 from Prizren, burned to death on Mar. 17, 2004 in Prizren Orthodox Seminary

SERBIAN ORTHODOX CHURCHES AND MONASTERIES DESTROYED AND DAMAGED DURING THE MARCH 2004 POGROM

Prizren:

All Prizren churches and other buildings owned by the Serbian Orthodox Church remaining in Prizren were destroyed on March 17-18, 2004. More attacks, looting and destruction occurred in the days that followed.

1. Church of the Holy Virgin of Lyevish (Bogorodica Ljeviska), 14th c., torched, 12th-14th c. frescoes damaged, sanctuary desecrated, Holy Table broken, architectural details damaged

2. Church of Christ the Savior, 14th c., torched, frescoes damaged

3. Cathedral of St. George the Great-Martyr, 1856, torched and dynamited

4. Church of St. Nicholas (Tutic's church), 14th c., torched and desecrated

5. Church of St. George (Runovic's church), 16th c., torched, 14th c. frescoes damaged

6. Church of St. Kyriake in Potkaljaja, 14th c., torched

7. Church of St. Panteleimon in Potkaljaja, 14th c., torched

8. Church of Sts. Cosmas and Damian in Potkaljaja, 14th c., torched

9. Church of St. Kyriake in Zivinjane, dynamited

10. Holy Archangels Monastery, 14th c., torched and looted

--- Sts. Cyril and Methodius Orthodox Seminary in downtown Prizren, torched

--- Bishop's residence in Prizren and sexton's residence on premises, torched

Orahovac:

11. Church of St. Kyriake in Brnjaca, 1852, desecrated, priest's residence burned

Djakovica:

12. Church of the Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos, 16th c., and two priest's residences, torched and leveled with the ground

--- Holy Trinity Cathedral. Two bell towers that survived dynamiting of the church in summer 199 were leveled with the ground. The Albanians subsequently removed all the remains of the church.

13. Church of St. Lazarus in Piskote, damaged in 1999 and 2001, completely destroyed, cemetery destroyed, priest's residence damaged.

14. Church of St. Elijah near Bistrazina, damaged in 1999, completely destroyed by explosives

Srbica:

15. Devic Monastery, 15th c., completely torched. Tomb of St. Joanikije of Devic opened and desecrated, fires set in and around the tomb.

Pec:

16. Church of St. John the Fore-runner aka the Metropolitanate with priest's residence and apartments, torched

17. Church of the Most Holy Theotokos in Belo Polje, torched in 1999, restored in 2003 by returnees, again torched

Urosevac:

18. Cathedral of the Holy Emperor Uros, torched, cemetery destroyed

19. Church of St. Elijah in Varos, destroyed together with village cemetery

20. Church of Sts. Peter and Paul in Tainovici, torched, cemetery destroyed

21. Church of the Most Holy Theotokos in Sovtovic, destroyed together with Orthodox cemetery

Kosovska Kamenica:

22. Church in the village of Donja Sisasnica, damaged

Stimlje:

23. Church of St. Michael the Archangel, 1920, torched. Bell tower torched in Jan. 2004.

Pristina:

24. Church of St. Nicholas, 16th c., torched and destroyed, priest's residence destroyed, two old tombs near the church desecrated and human remains from them scattered.

Kosovo Polje:

25. Church of St. Nicholas, 1940, torched

26. Church of St. Catherine in Bresje, desecrated and looted

Vucitrn:

27. Church of St. Elijah, 19th c., previously looted and damaged, torched, priest's residence and church utility buildings destroyed together with the Orthodox cemetery next to the church.

Obilic:

28. Church of St. Michael, newly built, torched

Kosovska Mitrovica:

29. Church of St. Sava in South Mitrovica, torched TWICE in as many days, priest's residence in churchyard also torched

Podujevo:

30. Church of St. Andrew the First-called, 1929, dynamited and destroyed, bell tower destroyed, Orthodox cemetery dug up and human remains literally scattered

Source: "Memorandum on Kosovo and Metohija" by the Holy Assembly of Bishops of the Serbian Orthodox Church, Belgrade 2003 (2004)

SALES EXHIBITION OF ICONS AND FRESCOES
TO BENEFIT SERBS IN KOSOVO AND METOHIJA

On the anniversary of the March 2004 pogrom against the Serbs of Kosovo and Metohija and the torching and destruction of Orthodox Christian holy shrines, on March 17, 2005 at 6:00 p.m., a sales exhibition of icons and copies of frescoes from the churches and monasteries of Kosovo and Metohija will be opened in the Gallery of Frescoes in Belgrade, Cara Urosa Street number 20. The icons and frescoes, works by the students of the Serbian Orthodox Church Academy of Arts and Conservation from the class of Professor Goran Janicijevic, will be exhibited in the Gallery of Frescoes until March 24, 2005.

The exhibition will be opened by His Holiness Patriarch Pavle, and Protopresbyter-Stavrophor Dr. Dimitrije Kalezic will be delivering the welcoming remarks. After the opening addresses, there will be a discussion on the events of the March pogrom and the present day life of the Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija, as well as the book “Kosovo Lost?” published by IK Hriscanska Misao.

Also in the Gallery of Frescoes, Dr. Predrag Ristic, professor at the Serbian Orthodox Church Academy of Arts, will be lecturing on March 21 at 6:00 p.m. on the topic “Traces of Logos in the foundations of Holy Archangels”, and on March 24 at 6:00 p.m. Miroslav Stanojlovic, also a professor at the Academy, will speak on “Painting conservation work on the frescoes of the Church of the Ascension at the monastery of Milesevo (The Last Supper and St. Sava)”. While the exhibition is open short concerts will also be held by the choir of the Theological Faculty of the Serbian Orthodox Church (March 17), the choir of the churches of the Most Holy Theotokos - Ruzica and St. Paraskeva in Kalemegdan Park (March 21) and the Unity Choir of the church of St. George in Smederevo (March 24), which on that occasion will be joining the Association of Serbian Choirs.

All proceeds from icons and frescoes that are sold will be donated to the Fund for Kosovo and Metohija.

BISHOP IRINEJ OF BACKA TO TAKE PART IN LITERARY EVENING DEDICATED TO MATIJA BECKOVIC

His Grace Bishop Irinej of Backa has accepted the kind invitation of Radio Television Novi Sad and Orfeus Publishing of Novi Sad to participate in a literary evening dedicated to academician Matija Beckovic scheduled to take place on Friday, March 18, at 7:00 p.m. in Novi Sad’s Studio M. The Diocese of Backa invites all interested parties to attend this event.

From the Office of the Bishop of Backa

COMMUNIQUE
FROM ROUNDTABLE ON RELIGIOUS INSTRUCTION IN SERBIA

It is now the fourth year since our schools have reinstated religious instructions after a pause of several decades. Thanks to this, our schools have acquired the necessary spiritual dimension. In accordance with contemporary needs, religious instruction strives to be a modern and interesting subject relevant to the student. It is perhaps too early to gauge to what extent it is succeeding in this; however, in any case, it is necessary to continually track and enhance its delivery. Plans, programs and texts for religious instruction can be improved and made more appropriate to the students. Moreover, religious instruction is an especially delicate subject where it is by no means simple to present complex truths and experiences to children of elementary and secondary school age in a manner that is both clear and memorable to them.

The Ministry of Education and Sports, the Ministry of Religions, the Institute for School Textbooks and Instructional Materials, and the Government Commission for Religious Instruction in Elementary and Secondary Schools organized a roundtable held on March 15, 2005 in the Institute for Text Books about the plans, programs and textbooks for religious instruction which were discussed in a highly open and well-intentioned manner. Special attention was dedicated to the harmonization of plans, programs and textbooks among the various traditional churches and religious communities, as well as to the issue of harmonization of religious instruction in general with other school subjects and texts.

Main conclusions:

The confessional concept of religious instruction, enhanced by multi-confessional content, is most in keeping with the spirit of the religious culture of our lands.

Openness to cooperation of theologians with pedagogues, psychologists, sociologists, writers, artists and other participating experts will contribute to enhancing the quality of religious instruction.

The great importance of religious instruction is that in addition to theological education in the narrow sense it offers education and cultivation of the individual, thus representing an essential bridge between school and life.

Tuesday, March 15, 2005, 11:00 a.m.
Institute for School Textbooks and Instructional Materials, Belgrade

[Serbian Translation Services]