The act of vandalism on Duklja is not the only vandal march on our cultural heritage. Their target was also the Memorial Tomb dedicated to fallen soldiers from the National Liberation War in Golubovci, who gave their lives for the freedom of all Montenegrin citizens. And the answer to the question why Duklja, or why the Memorial Tomb, a reasonable man, and especially a believer, cannot give. But examples of vandalism relying on our past, accompanied by a series of litanies across the Montenegrin cities, certainly show their primary mission – to underestimate the true heritage and values of Montenegro and its historical and cultural heritage, Culture Minister, Aleksandar Bogdanović, said in an interview with the weekend edition of Dnevne Novine daily.
He underlined that the vandal signature of a group that has been devastating public spaces and cultural assets across Montenegro under the cloak of “defending holy objects” shows, in fact, that they do not respect anything.
Minister Bogdanović also touched on his recent statement to the press, when he pointed out to the devastation of holy objects – primarily the monasteries in Pljevlja and Cetinje – noting that “instead of making the principle of protecting and preserving cultural heritage an imperative, especially for those who manage it, we are witnessing numerous devastation for which there is no reasonable justification.“
Commenting on the Metropolitanate of Montenegro and the Littoral’s remarks, he said: “Respecting the international and national legal solutions for the protection of cultural heritage, the Ministry of Culture is continuously acting upon the requests of representatives of the MCP and eparchies operating on the territory of Montenegro. Continuous highlighting of “the silence in services” as an excuse for devastation of cultural property cannot be justified.”
When asked if it’s true that the Serbian Orthodox Church, SPC, performed some unlawful acts over 80% of cultural monuments and that now they lost their monumental value, he said: “Based on the 2005 Report on the State of the Immovable Cultural Heritage of the Ministry of Culture, devastation exists on all types and categories of cultural monuments and is a consequence of the influence of various factors. They vary in the type and extent of damage, as well as the degree of influence on the properties of cultural monuments. We have recorded the consequences of illegally and unprofessionally performed works on holy objects and 80% of them refer to Orthodox places of worship. These data are the result of an expert analysis published by the Ministry back in 2006 in the publication titled “State of Cultural Heritage in Montenegro”. Unfortunately, illegal works continue, which we were reporting about in the revaluation process.”
On the Religious Freedom Law and the novelties it brings when it comes to the treatment of holy and similar objects, Minister Bogdanović told: “The law further enhances the normative framework for the protection of intangible and tangible heritage. This is all more important when we know that cultural property, as a valorized part of the cultural heritage of general interest, is protected in accordance with national and international regulations on the protection of cultural property, regardless of their secular or religious character, time, place and method of creation, origin or possession. The Religious Freedom Law gives us the possibility to invest more in holy objects.“
