Europe appeals for peace” “

The tragic death of three Albanian children, drowned in the Ibar, the river that divides the city of Kosovksa Mitrovica, unleashed the new spate of violence in Kosovo that, according to the UNO, has caused 31 victims and some 500 injured since 17 March. According to the account of a fourth boy who survived, they had been pushed into the river by some Serbian youths who had chased them with a dog. The event triggered a violent Albanian reaction: 280 Serbian homes were torched, 30 Orthodox churches and monasteries burnt down, a further 11 damaged, 163 arrests were made by the international police, all of them demonstrators detained on suspicion of offences committed during the disorders (arson, theft, vandalism, curfew violation). The arson attacks also spread to other towns in the Region. Hundreds of Serbs were evacuated by UN police and by soldiers of the KFOR multinational force. In a statement issued on behalf of the EU, the Irish Presidency condemned the clashes, and declared that “the immediate priority is to restore calm and create a secure, democratic and multiethnic Kosovo with a place in Europe”. “rETURNING TO THE PATH OF CO-EXISTENCE AND RECIPROCAL RESPECT”. “Justice and natural law on the one hand, God and the divine law on the other, ask that in this moment of hatred and violence the language of passion may be calmed and the language of peace and of the active search for the civilization of love may once again be spoken”: this is one of the key passages in the message published on the evening of 18 March by the catholic bishops of Serbia and MONTENEGRO. The statement was issued at a time when grave public disturbances and clashes between Serbs and Albanians were occurring in various towns of the country, triggered by the “powder keg” of Kosovo. “We feel profound sadness about these events – continues the message of the Catholic bishops – which have caused death, injury, violence and destruction. We are close to the Serb Orthodox Church and to the Islamic community, due to the destruction of holy places taking place. Churches and mosques – say the bishops – are places that transcend human categories, because they represent symbols of faith, places of prayer and centres of values that are enduring and that help us on the path of the civilization of love”. The Serb bishops emphasize that the churches and houses burnt and destroyed “represent acts to be firmly condemned because they also destroy the chance of returning to the path of co-existence and reciprocal respect”. Lastly the bishops appeal to the national and international authorities to strive to “find a peaceful solution for this and the other grave problems in our country”. risk of renewed “ethnic cleansing” . An “appeal to the Albanians in Kosovo and Metohija and to their leaders to stop their insane gestures, for their own salvation and the salvation of their future” was also made by the serb orthodox church, on the occasion of the convocation of the extraordinary session of the Holy Synod of bishops. In their statement the Orthodox bishops emphasise that “violence, injustice and hatred have never produced anything positive for anyone”. Addressing the Orthodox faithful of the country, the bishops invite “more intensive prayer that peace may once again reign among us and throughout the world”. The statement continues by urging that “during these turbulent times, everyone should avoid any form of insensate and crazy vendetta, such as those acts of revenge committed by imprudent persons against mosques in Belgrade and Nis. We must defend ourselves from evil and from doing evil, but not in an inhumane way or – God defend us – by perpetrating brutal acts in return”. The Orthodox bishops deplore in their document the continuous acts of violence now taking place, despite the presence of KFOR forces since 1999. They also point out that these acts have been particularly perpetrated against churches and monasteries, as well as against the houses and properties of the Serb minority. The statement speaks of “planned total ethnic cleansing and the destruction of all the spiritual and cultural traces of the Christian presence of the Serb populations in Kosovo and Metohija”. According to the Orthodox bishops, there’s a risk that a “passive attitude of the international forces may contribute to the escalation of the terror”. THE SOLIDARITY OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCHES. In a “telegram of support” to the Serbian Church, the greek orthodox church has expressed its “deep anxiety” about the situation in Kosovo and said it was “ready to give all its possible help to the people of Kosovo and to the Serb Church”. The world council of churches (wcc) has also sent a letter to His Holiness Pavle, Orthodox Patriarch of Serbia. The Churches and religious communities – write Samuel Kobia and Keith Clements – “must reject any attempt, from any quarter, to use religion as a motivating factor for conflict” and should “raise their voice” to confront the “new wave of violent intolerance and extremism”. The WCC expresses its grief “at this outbreak of conflict which is not only inflicting immense suffering here and now, but threatens to create even more difficulties for the long-term peace of Kosovo and the region”.