Serbia's Churches Demand More Property Back

Religious communities in Serbia are accusing the government of violating the constitution by not returning all the property that was taken from them after the Communists seized power at the end of the Second World War.

Since 2006, when parliament adopted the Law on the Restitution of Property to Churches and Religious Communities, the state has returned 20 per cent of the property that they have claimed.

But the churches say this is not enough. Serbian Bishop Irinej of Backa says the churches and religious communities had filed all the required documentation and proof.

But nothing more can be resolved, apparently, until a new director is appointed to the country's Agency for Restitution. The mandate for the previous one expired on December 31.

"Without full restitution, great damage in property terms is done to traditional churches and religious communities, preventing them from fulfilling their spiritual mission and their constitutional and legal role," Irinej said.

Serbia's centrist Democrat Party-led government has cited the poor economic situation as one reason for not doing more on the issue.

The Deputy Prime Minister, Bozidar Djelic, has said that Serbia wouldgo bankrupt if full restitution was carried out.

Church representatives dispute this, saying that if all their demands were met, it would be worth about 3 per cent of the assets of the state.  

Unless the government reacts positively soon, church representatives say they will take the case to the European courts.