UNMIK/PR/1360
PRISTINA - SRSG Søren Jessen-Petersen today welcomed the inaugural meeting of the Implementing Committee for the Reconstruction of Religious Monuments which took place at the Council of Europe’s (CoE) office in Pristina this morning. The Implementing Committee’s meeting follows the March 2005 signing of the Memorandum of Understanding between the Patriarch of the Serbian Orthodox Church and the Minister of Culture (PISG).
“This is a very positive sign that the process is now moving forward and it opens the way for the actual reconstruction work to start soon”, said the SRSG.
Minister of Culture, Youth and Sports Astrit Haraçia confirmed that the 4.2 million euros that had been allocated by the PISG for the reconstruction of sites damaged in March 2004 were readily available, adding that he planned to secure an additional 1.5 million euros for the reconstruction process.
The Holy Synod’s representative, Bishop Theodosije, said that the signing of the MoU had been a great step forward, as the delays over the past year meant that there had been further deterioration of the monuments. Bishop Theodosije noted that many of the monuments are part of the European and world cultural heritage and although they are the property of the Serbian Orthodox Church, they belong to all the people in Kosovo.
During the meeting, the CoE and the European Commission confirmed the appointment of international heritage expert Emma Carmichael as chairperson of the implementing committee. The PISG will be represented on the committee by Ministry of Culture officials Njazi Haliti and Osman Gojani and the Serbian government will be represented by Dragolub Todorovic.
The CoE will also fund a pool of international experts who will provide technical assistance.
At the meeting, UNMIK’s representative reiterated the SRSG’s full support to the reconstruction process and underlined the fact that UNMIK will continue to be actively engaged.