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Life
of Our Monasteries and Churches
In Post-war Kosovo
Monks and Panzers - Life
secured by KFOR tanks
Decani Monastery
Urgent
- Aug 15, 2002
Albanians
Try to Steal Monastery Property
Misusing Court and Deceiving UNMIK
Decani Abbot
Fr. Teodosije asks protection from the institutional repression
of an Albanian court in Decani
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Abbot Teodosije
sent yesterday a letter to the Special Representative of the
UN Secretary General (SRSG), Mr. Michael Steiner, asking his
urgent intervention and protection of the Monastery from the
institutional repression by the Decani Municipal Court and Municipal
authorities.
Visoki Decani
Monastery therefore considers the decision of the Municipal
court in Decani as overt institutional repression against the
last remaining Serb community in Decani Municipality and a provocation
to the international authorities in Kosovo and Metohija. Supporting
the right of local Kosovo courts to adjudicate land issues concerning
the property of religious communities and former socially owned
enterprises would make a dangerous precedent which would inevitably
result in legal disorder and usurpation of large tracts of Serb
owned land', said Fr. Teodosije in his letter to the SRSG. MORE
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After the end of
war in June and arrival of KFOR Decani monastery was immediately put
under the protection of the Italian Army. At the moment the brotherhood
lives relatively normaly as much as it is possible in these conditions.
All Serbs who lived in the vicinity of the monastery were driven away
by the Albanian extremists. Several were abducted and killed.
Despite the fact
that the monastery sheltered 150 Albanians during the war and supplied
poor Albanians with food all the previous year (1998) ethnic Albanians
constantly threaten that they would destroy the monastery and finally
drive all Serbs away. At the moment the monastery is surrounded by tanks
and barbed wire. Italian soldiers are even based within the monastery.
The monks do not have freedom of movement and whenever they have to
travel they are transported in a bullet-proof Italian armoured car.
They cannot by any food in Kosovo and for any medical treatement they
must treavel outside of Kosovo. That is more or less how all our monasteries
live today in post-war Kosovo.
August
2001, The monasteries of Kosovo and Metohia still under KFOR protection
(click on each photo for a larger size image)
A KFOR tank in front of Decani Monastery, August
2001
Modern tanks around the medieval walls, August
2001
NIN,
Those Who Stayed Bishop
Artemije, his monks and nuns help Serbs to survive, Jan 27, 00.
Serbian Orthodox Church was the only Serb institution which stayed
in Kosovo and Metohija after the war.
Bishop
Artemije, COMKFOR and Jock Covey in Decani UNMIK and KFOR Priority
is to Protect the Monasteries. Serbian Orthodox Church appealed to UN
authorities and KFOR many times to protect the churches and monasteries
from Albanian militants.
Decani
Monastery Attacked by Mortars Serbian Orthodox Monasteries are
Exposed to Constant Pressure and Threats by Kosovo Albanian Extreemists.
Attacking a monastery like Decani with mortar grenades demonstrates
the wider goals of Kosovo Albanians in their quest for an independent
state.
AFP-
Serbian Orthodox monks defy pressures in medieval monastery June
27, 2000
Monks
Living Under Concentration Like Conditions Politika, June 22,
2000
KESTON,
Kosovo: Attacks on Decani Monastery, July 31, 00
KESTON,
Dynamiting of Orthodox Churches Continues, July 31, 00
KESTON,
Kosovo: Allegation That Orthodox Priests Blessed Paramilitaries Denied,
Aug 7, 2000 Texts
by the Keston institute exploring the conditions in which Serb Orthodox
monasteries live today in Kosovo. Attacks, threats, media hate speech
and slanders are used indiscriminately especially against the Orthodox
monastics.
Short
History of Decani Monastery a survey of centuries long history
of Decani.
Decani
Monastery from a Helicopter photo gallery showing the monastery
from the sky.
A Decani monk
inspecting the damage which Albanians made in the monastery pine forest
above Decani monastery, summer 2000
Above the
Monastery of Decani there is a natural park of the black pine
(Pinus nigra). This park with its beauty ranks among the most
beautiful forested areas not only in Kosovo but even wider. Majority
of pine trees are more than 350 years old. Monastery records state
that in the 16th century Decani monks planted first pine tree
park in the shape of cross. Later additional trees were planted
and the park today covers area of 15 hectars. Amidst the park
are the ruins of the medieval church of St. Nicholas with an old
Serb Orthodox cemetery. After the Second World War communist authorities
planned to turn entire monastery area into a tourist-recreational
area on the expense of the monastic life. They destroyed a part
of the forest to build one little hotel. In 1996 local Albanian
authorities began building a large new hotel which has never been
completed. Both of these facilities which are not used since 1990
seriously damaged upper part of the pine forest. Since the park
is situated on the monastery property, a part of which was illegaly
confiscated by communist authorities after the war, the monastery
managed to get this peace of land back in 1997. After the war
in Kosovo new Kosovo Albanian authorities want this land back
and plan further destruction of the forest for building of tourist
facilities and weekend houses. The monastery strongly opposes
this idea as the legal owner. Nevertheless, in summer 2000 Kosovo
Albanians suddenly brought buldozers in the park and destroyed
a few dozen of beautiful trees in order to build a large Water
rezervoir. It was only after an intervention of the Monastery
directly to the UNMIK chief in Pristina that this was stopped.
The photo above shows the destruction of the monastery pine forest
with a monk who came to inspect the area. This incident shows
that in Kosovo today there is not only a process of systematic
destruction of Serb Orthodox monuments but also destruction of
enviroment around our holy sites. Hundreds of Serb Orthodox cemeteries
are being polluted by garbage which Kosovo Albanians bring from
their cities and turn our graveyards into garbage dumps. As all
other acts of barbarism this also happens in the very presence
of UN Mission and KFOR troops in the area. |
Bishop Artemije - just
arrived to Gracanica manastery in a white UN helicopter
The Bishop is under constant guard of special UNMIK close protection
unit
Traveling only under KFOR escort
in Italian military vehicles
(click on the photo for a larger size image)
Getting ready for an early morning
trip, Aug 2001
(click for a larger size photo)
Location 1 - Area where the mortars
fell in the recent
attack, June 2000
Location 2 - Area where the Albanians devastated the monastery
pine wood
Bishop Artemije, COMKFOR and Jock Covey in
Decani, June 2000
Decani Monastery guarded by Italian KFOR
Without KFOR protection all Serb Orthodox monasteries and churches
would be destroyed by Albanians.
Budisavci metochion now guarded by Spanish troops
Italian Bersagliero guarding the Monastery in Pec
Serb Orthodox nuns live in total seclusion, guarded
by KFOR soldiers
If they leave their monasteries unguarded they may be
killed or abducted by Albanian extremists.
KFOR provides security during the visit of the Serb
Patriarch in Decani
Priests and monks in New Kosovo travel only in aromoured vehicles
The
freedom of Christians in Kosovo is totally fictional. Despite 40.000
NATO led troops and UN Mission Kosovo generally remains society
in which only Albanians are free to live, move and work.
Churches under 24 h. KFOR protection - Mitrovica
March 2000
Europe in the Second Millenium - Christian churches
guarded by soldiers
in the heart of Europe
KFOR provides security for the Serb Christian Orthodox
funeral
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Kosovo
today is the only part of Europe where Christian heritage
is exposed to merciless destruction and desecration by Moslems.
This systematic process of destruction of one centuries old
culture shows not only that the Albanian political leaders
are not ready to respect culture of others but that they themselves
do not have respect to the Christian heritage of our continent
in general. Not a single Albanian politician has made any
concrete effort to stop these barbarous acts but many have
even more encouraged their compatriots in acts of violence.
Slowly
Kosovo and Metohija province which bears a dominant Christian
cultural and civilizational identity is being turned into
a culturally and religiously clean Moslem society. While Moslems
all over the Europe enjoy full rights of their religion and
culture and keep building their mosques from London to Paris
and Berlin, Christians in Kosovo and Metohija live under dominant
religious and cultural intolerance of Albanian Moslems and
enjoy even less rights than oppressed Christians in Moslem
fundamentalist countries.
While
publicly praising themselves that Kosovo is becoming a part
of Europe, in their own courtyard Albanian political and intellectual
leaders create a new Jammahyria in the heart of Christian
Europe.
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A shrine under constant military protection
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