Agitation against the ‘Mother Teresa Monument’ in Macedonia

Pic Varga Attila. Wikipedia

Manfred Karl Böhm (Editor- Christian Affairs Europe) OCP News Service – 8/10/18

Skopje Republic of Macedonia: In North-Macedonia’s capital Skopje, a monument at the birthplace of Albanian Anjezë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu, who became world-famous as ‘Mother Teresa of Calcutta’. In spring, the monument was repeatedly smeared and at the birth house of Teresa, several posters have appeared, demanding the demolition of the building and to end the ‘worship’ of Saint Teresa. According to the posters, only a Muslim Albanian is a true Albanian.

During the background check, the well-known investigative journalist Arbana Xharra and her colleague Xhelal Neziri came across the architects of the anti-Teresa-campaign. They were none other than the Embassy of Turkey and Turkish foreign schools. Diplomats and teachers from Ankara have been distributing propaganda material against Albanian Christians for years.

According to the 2002 census, 33.3 % of Albanians in Macedonia belong to the Muslim community, and only a small part belongs to the Roman Catholic Church. The majority of inhabitants, 64.8 % are Orthodox Slavs.

Alon Ben-Meir, professor of international relations at New York University, says that the Albanians in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) are increasingly exposed to Turkish-Islamist influence: “Erdogan has invested heavily in spreading his influence among Albanians, through building Mosques and Turkish schools, and funding media, religious institutions, and most recently political parties, which are directly controlled by his close associates and have dramatically increased his influence over the Albanian community.“ The agitation against Mother Teresa is only the tip of the iceberg.

Source:
OCP News Service