Open Letter
Sent to the Foreign Diplomatic Missions in the Republic of Macedonia and to all the Relevant International Institutions

Your Eminences,
The Macedonian daily newspaper “Vecer” (No. 13025 from 22 October 2005) published an interview with Mr. Jovan Korubin, a professor at the University of Skopje, who composed the new “Law on Religious Communities and Religious Groups”. This interview, parts of which will be quoted, clearly shows that the Government of the Republic of Macedonia, with this new law, not only does it intend to resume its discriminatory politic, but as you will see, it intends to make it even stricter, distancing itself away from the Euro-Atlantic standards of religious freedom.
In the interview, the esteemed professor Jovan Korubin admits that the discriminatory elements in the Law were written under the pressure of some of the state-sponsored religious communities (the Macedonian Orthodox Church, hereinafter MOC). He says: “There are solutions which I might not support completely, and these were made because I had in mind certain requests posed by the religious communities and religious groups themselves. Therefore, the law itself and some of the solutions, I wouldn’t say under pressure, but rather under strong suggestion of the religious communities themselves”.
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(reason: the statement for the media made by the Chairman of the Commission for Relations with the Religious Communities and Religious Groups)

Your Excellencies,

The European public is well acquainted with the persecution conducted by the Macedonian authorities over the citizens-members of our religious community, a persecution that resulted in the conviction of the Archbishop Jovan Vraniskovski and his imprisonment in the central Macedonian prison “Idrizovo”. With this act he became the only religious leader in contemporary Europe convicted because of his religious beliefs and for conducting a religious service on a private property. Still, although the Supreme Court, answering to the submitted complaint, declared that these freedoms are guaranteed with the Constitution of our country, as well as with the Universal Declaration and the European Convention for Human Rights, the Archbishop Jovan remains in prison.
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The head of European diplomacy Javier Solana informed the Chairman of the Bishops’ Conference yesterday that the trial of Bishop Jovan is contrary to the principles of the European Union.
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Power-wielders do not need the law - the law is the most powerful weapon of citizens.

The Helsinki Committee for Human Rights of the Republic of Macedonia reminds citizens of the Republic of Macedonia that they can exercise and protect freedoms and rights guaranteed under international documents and national laws only in a democratic state governed by the rule of law. Individual rights and freedoms can be realized only in a society which:
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On the day of the great Christian feast - Dormition of the Most Holy Mother of God, urged by the Euro-Atlantic democratic principles of respect for the religious rights of the prisoners, clergymen of the Orthodox Ohrid Archbishopric came to the central prison Idrizovo, near Skopje, in order to bring Holy Communion to His Beatitude, the Archbishop of Ohrid Jovan, to honor the feast and if they are allowed to have a short conversation with him.
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SYOSSET, NY [OCA Communications] In a letter addressed to His Holiness, Patriarch Pavle of Serbia, His Beatitude, Metropolitan Herman, expressed shock over the arrest and imprisonment of His Eminence, Archbishop Jovan of Ochrid in the former Yugoslav republic of Macedonia.
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Yesterday His Holiness Serbian Patriarch Pavle, together with the members of the Holy Synod of Bishops, received His Excellency Archbishop Eugenio Sbarbaro, the papal nuncio in Belgrade.
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His Holiness Serbian Patriarch Pavle received a letter from His Holiness Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All-Russia informing him of his efforts toward the speedy release of the imprisoned Archbishop Jovan of Ochrid and Metropolitan of Skopje. Below is the text of the letter in its entirety:
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The ambassador of the Vatican in Serbia and Montenegro, Archbishop Sbarbaro, stated in Bor today that the Holy See has intervened with Macedonian authorities to secure the release of Archbishop Jovan, who has been sentenced to prison in that country.
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On August 22, His Holiness Patriarch Alexy of Moscow and All Russia sent a letter to Macedonian President B. Crvenkovski.
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Bishop Josef Homeyer, President of the Commission of the Bishops’ Conferences of the European Community (COMECE), today sent a letter to the British Prime Minister Tony Blair, President-in-Office of the European Council, to the High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy, Javier Solana, and to the European Commissioner for Enlargement, Olli Rehn, alerting them to the imprisonment of Archbishop Jovan Vraniskovski of Ochrid and the Metropolitan of Skopje on 26 July 2005 in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM).
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On August 20/7, 2005 His Holiness Serbian Patriarch Pavle received the following letter from His Eminence Metropolitan Laurus of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia (ROCOR) sent from the monastery of the Holy Trinity in New York, USA.
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New York - The Hierarchs of the Standing Conference of Canonical Orthodox Bishops in the Americas (SCOBA) have declared unanimously their outrage concerning the imprisonment of Archbishop Jovan of Ochrid by the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM).

“With this imprisonment,” they declared, “the right of freedom of thought and belief has been denied and trampled upon by the state authorities of FYROM.”
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The Holy Synod of the Hellenic Church received official notification today regarding the new imprisonment of His Beatitude Archbishop Jovan of Ochrid and Metropolitan of Skopje, and expresses its energetic protest against this decision of the Government of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, which represents a threat to the democratic rights of every free citizen.
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The Belgrade daily “Glas Javnosti” (”The Public Voice”) published an interview today with Abbot David (Ninov) of the Ochrid Archdiocese. Given that this interview is an authentic testimony by one of the closest co-workers of the imprisoned Primate of the Autonomous Archdiocese of Ochrid, the Archbishop of Ochrid and Metropolitan of Skopje Kyr Jovan, we present it in its entirety.
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On August 9, 2005, the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Skopje issued a Press Release entitled “On the Desecularization of the Republic of Macedonia” most strongly objecting to any form of restriction of the freedom of belief and religion.
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Your Excellencies, Highly Esteemed,

Being concerned because of the most recent events, the violation of the human rights, the religious discrimination and xenophobia which become inseparable part of the contemporary policy of the Macedonian authorities, we address you with unhidden hope that these anti Euro-Atlantic tendencies in our fatherland will soon be replaced with the fresh air of Europe, that is, with the actual fulfillment of the Convention for respect of the elementary religious freedoms, to which the Republic of Macedonia is only a declarative signatory.
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Having waited for three days from the moment of the imprisonment of His Beatitude Archbishop Jovan of Ochrid and Metropolitan of Skopje in the Idrizovo Prison in Skopje in the vain hope that at least some reason would prevail, albeit late, among the officials of the Republic of Macedonia, the Holy Synod of Bishops of the Serbian Orthodox Church expresses its greatest bitterness and horror by the decision of the officials of the Republic of Macedonia to send the Head of the Autonomous Archdiocese of Ochrid, which is - we note once again - the only canonical Orthodox Church on the territory of this country - to serve a prison term.
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His Beatitude, the Archbishop of Ohrid and Metropolitan of Skopje, kyr kyr Jovan (John), after confirming several times before the public that he would voluntarily go to serve the sentence to which he was convicted, went on his way to the prison Idrizovo, near Skopje. Previously, the Court of Appeal in Bitola rejected his demand to postpone the serving of the prison sentence. As those who gave the written order resolutely pointed out, the Archbishop kyr kyr John was given time until 26 July 2005, midnight, to appear in the prison Idrizovo. As a loyal citizen of the Republic of Macedonia and a man who respects the laws of the state, with the putting into effect of the resolution, went voluntarily to report in the prison.
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Following the sentencing of His Beatitude Archbishop Jovan of Ochrid and Metropolitan of Skopje by a court in Bitola, the Holy Synod of Bishops of the Serbian Orthodox Church wishes to express its bitterness and shock upon this act of trampling of elementary religious and human rights.
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After the illegal expelling (without a court order) of the Archbishop kyr kyr John (Jovan) from the cathedra in Veles in June 2002, as well as the expelling of the monks from four monasteries in January 2004;
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An article published in the Belgrade daily “Politika” on June 27, 2005, pp. 1-2, regarding the imprisonment of the canonical Archbishop of Ochrid and Metropolitan of Skopje, Kyr Jovan, entitled “Father Jovan in Idrizovo Prison” and under the byline of reporters M. Tomovski and B. Bakovic, includes a statement by Bishop Metodije of Velic of the apostate Macedonian Orthodox Church. Unfortunately, none of what the statement says happens to be true.
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P A U L,
by the grace of God, Archbishop of Pec,
Metropolitan of Belgrade and Karlovci and the Patriarch of Serbia,
together with the holy Assembly of Bishops
Of the Serbian Orthodox Church,
to the Archbishop of Ohrid and Metropolitan of Skopje
Kyr Kyr JOHN,
The Prelate of the autonomous Ohrid Archbishopric,

In accordance with the established canonical Tradition of the Holy Church of God, especially with the 34th Rule of the Holy Apostles;
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