World cultural heritage in Kosovo and Metohija as a stability and peace factor in the region

Abstract

The Republic of Serbia has one inscribed ancient and four medieval sites on the UNESCO World Heritage List. The World Heritage Committee placed the church of the Holy Virgin of Ljeviška in Prizren and the Patriarchate of Peć Monastery, Dečani Monastery and Gračanica Monastery on the List of World Heritage in Danger in 2006 due to difficulties in their preservation and management, as well as for the damage they suffered during ethnic conflicts. Pursuant to the UN resolution 1244, they are currently in the territory under the control of United Nations Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK). The Committee recommended Serbia to work with UNESCO and UNMIK programmes and with the Provisional Institutions of Self-Government in Kosovo for the purpose of protection of this World Heritage site. However, in addition to these monuments, there are over 1500 holy places (monasteries, churches, cemeteries) in Kosovo and Metohija, which testify to the century-long presence of the Serbian people and Orthodox religion. Over the course of the history, they suffered multiple times as a consequence of wars and political turmoil, which has been confirmed by international missions (UNESCO and the Council of Europe). With the aim of preserving and protecting the monasteries, the need for the establishment of protection zones was emphasized, which was specifically presented in provision V of the Ahtisaari Plan for religious heritage. Due to its inclusion into the international system of protection and monitoring and by means of WHS, in the immediate future, it is necessary to restart the talks on how this cultural heritage could be understood as a key element in establishing better cultural relations between Serbian and Albanian people. Through their adequate preservation, improvement and management, within world heritage, they become sites of significance for interpretation and presentation of cultural diversity, promotion of local and regional values, studies and education of the young, interethnic and intercultural dialogue etc. In this sense, the paper examines the possibilities of improvement of the current state of their protection and presentation by way of integration of international, national and local protection, understanding this area as a specific cultural landscape.