INITIATE PROCESS OF PROPERTY RESTITUTION TO SOC IN KOSOVO AND METOHIJA

BELGRADE, MARCH 12 /SRNA/ - The president of the Serbian League Aleksandar Đurđev has launched an initiative for the National Assembly of Serbia to adopt a declaration on restitution of all the Serbian Orthodox Church's /SOC/ property in Kosovo and Metohija, and called for the initiation of an institutional process to correct this historical injustice.

He emphasized that the restitution of the Serbian Orthodox Church's property in Kosovo and Metohija is not merely an administrative issue, but a matter of historical justice, respect for international law, and the preservation of the spiritual identity of the Serbian people. In a written statement submitted to SRNA, Đurđev reminded that after the fall of communism, Serbia adopted a Law on Restitution and began the process of property restitution, but that in Kosovo and Metohija, where the largest number of Serbian holy sites are located, that process was never implemented. "This is a historical injustice that the state must correct," Đurđev emphasized, noting that all countries of Eastern and Central Europe that joined the EU had to resolve the issue of restitution of church property. Đurđev emphasized that the issue of the Serbian Orthodox Church's property and the fate of Serbian holy sites does not depend on the authorities in Priština or on the so-called state of Kosovo, but solely on the internationally recognized state of Serbia, its National Assembly and Government. "Kosovo and Metohija are not just a territory. It is a spiritual network of Serbian holy sites. Within an area of around 10,887 square kilometers, there are more than 1,300 Serbian Orthodox churches, monasteries, hermitages, and spiritual sites. This means that, on average, there is one Serbian holy site for every eight million square meters," Đurđev emphasized. Đurđev noted that some of the most significant monuments of Serbian spirituality and culture are located precisely in Kosovo and Metohija, such as the monastery of Dečani, the Patriarchate of Peć, Gračanica Monastery, and the Church of the Virgin of Ljeviš, which are not only religious buildings but also foundations of Serbian statehood, literacy and culture, as well as part of the world’s cultural heritage. He stated that there is also a strong basis in international law for the protection of the Serbian Orthodox Church's property, since UN Security Council Resolution 1244 clearly confirms Serbia's sovereignty and territorial integrity over Kosovo and Metohija. Đurđev emphasized that this Resolution did not abolish Serbia's sovereignty or the property legal order in Kosovo and Metohija, but rather introduced a temporary international administration that was not granted the right to permanently alter property relations. He stressed that an important legal conclusion follows from this: no institution established after 1999 has the legitimacy to permanently change ownership of land, monastic estates, forests, infrastructure, or cultural heritage in Kosovo and Metohija. "All such decisions can only be temporary administrative measures. This means that the property of the Serbian Orthodox Church could not legally cease to exist. It may have been usurped or placed under temporary administration, but it could not have been permanently confiscated without violating international law," he said. Đurđev also pointed to historical arguments, adding that the very term "metoh" indicates that a large part of that area was for centuries land belonging to Serbian monasteries, which is also documented in numerous charters issued by Serbian rulers. "Charters issued by rulers such as Stefan Nemanja, Stefan Dečanski, and Emperor Dušan represent legal acts of the medieval Serbian state. In them, monasteries were granted villages, fields, forests, mines, and other estates. The Visoki Dečani Monastery has a charter from the 14th century listing several dozen villages that belonged to the monastery," he said. According to him, these documents represent a kind of medieval property cadastre.