VZCZCXRO8418
RR RUEHAG RUEHAST RUEHDA RUEHDF RUEHFL RUEHIK RUEHKW RUEHLA RUEHLN
RUEHLZ RUEHPOD RUEHROV RUEHSR RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHSQ #0120/01 0451610
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 141610Z FEB 08
FM AMEMBASSY SKOPJE
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 7041
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE 0204
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC
RUEKDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHINGTON DC
RUESEN/SKOPJE BETA
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 2196
RHEHNSC/WHITE HOUSE NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 SKOPJE 000120 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EUR/SCE, DRL/IRF 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL MK
SUBJECT: MACEDONIA: SECULARISM CALLED INTO QUESTION AS 
GOVERNMENT PLANS CONSTRUCTION OF CHURCH AND MOSQUE 
 
¶1.  (SBU) SUMMARY:  Controversial GOM decisions to use 
taxpayer money to fund the construction of an Orthodox church 
in the main city square of Skopje, and to reconstruct a 
mosque in Tetovo, have sparked political gamesmanship and 
debate on preserving state secularism.  Concerns about the 
impact of the decision on inter-ethnic relations and the 
government budget have temporarily taken a back seat to 
dissonance within the ethnic Albanian community and among its 
political parties on the appropriate response to the 
decision.  While motives behind the government push to fund 
the church and the mosque reconstruction are being debated, 
these potentially extra-constitutional decisions have 
resulted in protests invoking the name of Mother Teresa, and 
opposition party pleas for Vatican intercession. End Summary. 
 
Murky Details -- Decided Behind Closed Doors 
-------------------------------------------- 
 
¶2.  (SBU) A January 22 closed-door government meeting 
resulted in a controversial decision, based on a proposal 
personally submitted by PM Gruevski, to fund the construction 
of an Orthodox church in the main city square of Skopje. 
There is some question about whether the decision was 
unanimously agreed by all the cabinet ministers present, as 
asserted by a government spokesperson at a press conference 
on the issue, or was simply presented as an informational 
item to the ministers and then recorded as a decision of the 
government. 
 
¶3.  (SBU) An international tender for bids for the design and 
construction of the church has been opened and will close in 
late March.  Publishing the tender required Minister of 
Culture Arifhikmet Xhemaili, a member of junior government 
coalition partner DPA (ethnic Albanian), to sign the 
decision.  Casting doubt on whether the government move 
enjoyed DPA support, Xhemaili was notably absent for several 
days following the decision, and apparently was unwilling to 
have his name associated with the initiative.  Deputy 
Minister Slobodan Despotovski eventually signed the decision 
on January 29th, allowing the tender to move forward.  The 
Ministry of Culture also established a working committee 
responsible for selecting the best bid and for ensuring the 
winning contractor starts construction this summer.  The 
committee notably lacks guidelines on budgetary limits for 
the project, which has raised local media concerns. 
 
A Church for Me, a Mosque for You 
--------------------------------- 
 
¶4.  (SBU)  In another closed-door cabinet meeting just a week 
after the January 22 decision to construct the church in the 
city square, the government supported a DPA initiative to 
fund the reconstruction of the Charsia Mosque in the mostly 
ethnic Albanian city of Tetovo, about 25 miles from Skopje. 
Following the government,s decision on the church, the 
Islamic Community of Macedonia (ICM) further complicated the 
picture, lobbying for equitable funding for reconstruction of 
the historic Burmali Mosque, just across the Skopje city 
square from the site planned for the church.  Despite the 
ICM's ties to DPA, it appears that the government preferred 
to offer funding for the reconstruction of the mosque in 
Tetovo as a concession to DPA for its tacit support of the 
church construction.  The Head of the ICM eventually welcomed 
the government,s decision on the Tetovo mosque, despite his 
earlier hopes for a reconstructed Burmali Mosque. 
 
A Little Secularism, Please 
--------------------------- 
 
¶5.  (U)  Political and civic leaders, as well as media 
commentators, have sharply criticized the government 
decisions, expressing concerns about preserving secularism in 
Macedonia and about the budgetary impact of the moves.  In a 
recent poll, editors of Macedonia's largest print and 
electronic media outlets called the government's decision to 
fund the construction of the church in the city square the 
"bleakest" event of January, citing concerns about the 
anti-secularist move and criticizing the government's failure 
"to offer any information to the public, to reveal any data 
on the financial costs, or to explain the need for such an 
object." 
 
SKOPJE 00000120  002 OF 002 
 
 
 
¶6.  (SBU)  Opposition leaders, most notably from the largest 
ethnic Albanian party DUI, are exploiting the 
behind-closed-doors decision for political benefit at a time 
when talk of early elections dominates the political 
airwaves.  DUI has openly critiqued Minister of Culture 
Xhemaili for giving DPA's tacit support for the decision on 
the church and has drafted, but not tabled, a no-confidence 
measure against the minister. 
 
¶7.  (SBU)  While some opposition leaders are hoping to reap 
political benefits from criticizing the government,s 
decision, others, both ethnic Macedonian and ethnic Albanian, 
are genuinely worried about what these government decisions 
might signal.  In a recent discussion with POLOFFS, DUI VP 
Teuta Arifi indicated that she is strongly opposed to 
government funding of churches or/or mosques, and is lobbying 
her colleagues in parliament to oppose the construction 
plans.  She also has written editorials critical of the 
anti-secularist decisions.  Other opposition leaders, 
including from SDSM and the Liberal Democratic Party, have 
criticized the government not only for abandoning 
constitutionally-mandated secularism, but also for being 
out-of-touch with key budget priorities in a country with 
extremely high unemployment and poverty rates. 
 
Secularist Voices: Talking to the Pope about Mother Teresa 
--------------------------------------------- ------------- 
 
¶8.  (U) The ethnic Albanian NGO "Wake Up," which has close 
ties to DUI, opposes the church construction on a site that 
is clearly marked as the location of Mother Teresa's 
childhood home. It has recommended instead that a replica of 
Mother Teresa's home be built on the site.  Wake Up activists 
claim that two previous government budgets included funding 
for such a memorial to be built at that location.  The 
organization remains firm in its position that government 
funding for the construction of either churches or the 
mosques is unconstitutional, and would cause strife among 
Macedonia's ethnic and religious groups.  The group held a 
small, peaceful protest to express that view in the city 
square on February 9th. 
 
¶9.  (U) Wake Up's proposal for the memorial house also is 
being used in the political debate between ethnic Albanian 
parties DUI and DPA.  DUI used the issue of Mother Teresa's 
memorial home as the basis for a letter to Pope Benedict XVI 
asking him to "show support and solidarity for our initiative 
aimed at preventing the religious tensions that would emerge 
from the construction of this Orthodox religious building, 
which will also...disrespect the actual existence of the 
Catholic tradition in Macedonia." 
 
Comment 
------- 
 
¶10.  (SBU) The GOM decisions to fund construction of a church 
in the Skopje city square and a mosque in Tetovo have 
generated strong opposition on several fronts.  While some 
parties are benefiting from political gamesmanship on the 
issue, others are genuinely concerned that the decisions 
could signal a move away from secularism in a country where 
ethnic and religious issues are delicately balanced.  It 
seems unlikely, however, that political and civic opposition 
will succeed in stopping government funding for the projects 
given the Prime Minister's personal determination to proceed. 
 Currently enjoying strong approval ratings, the government 
is more likely to push to include the extra-constitutional 
and anti-secularist projects in its list of "accomplishments" 
before moving toward likely early elections following the 
NATO summit in April. End comment. 
 
 
MILOVANOVIC