COMMUNIQUE ON NEW SKYSCRAPER NEAR BUCHAREST CATHEDRAL

VATICAN CITY, DEC 4, 2006 (VIS) - At midday today, the Holy See Press Office released the following communique:

  "Concerning the matter of the construction of a skyscraper near the historic Roman Catholic Cathedral of St. Joseph in Bucharest, Romania, the Holy See Press Office wishes to specify the following:

  "At the end of April this year, the archdiocese of Bucharest informed the Secretariat of State about the construction of a building - of 19 floors above ground level and four below - at a distance of less than 10 meters from the northeast wall of the Cathedral of St. Joseph which, as a consequence, risks being irreparably damaged. Concerns are aggravated by the precedent of the Armenian church, which suffered grave damage for similar reasons. On various occasions, the archbishop and the auxiliary bishop of Bucharest have come to the Secretariat of State to provide updated information concerning this case, with which the apostolic nunciature to Romania is also concerning itself, and about which the Holy See has received appeals from other parties.

  "Following this, the Secretariat of State has not failed to take the appropriate steps with the Romanian authorities, both directly and through their embassy to the Holy See, to ask for the immediate suspension of work and the withdrawal of the relative authorizations, also in view of the provisions of the 1993 European Union Treaty concerning Legal Conditions and Measures for Preserving Cultural Heritage, to which Romania adhered, and the State Commission Report for Monitoring Building.

  "The Holy See is aware of the resolution with which the Romanian Senate approved the report of the commission of inquiry, which requests the immediate suspension of work. This should be followed by a decision on the part of the appropriate authorities.

  "The Secretariat of State continues to follow the situation closely, in the hope that a speedy and satisfactory conclusion to this delicate question may be found, in the above-mentioned terms, for the protection of the cathedral of Bucharest, of the historical heritage it represents and of the values of faith it embodies, not only for the Catholic community but for all the Romanian people."
OP/SKYSCRAPER CATHEDRAL/BUCHAREST                VIS 20061204 (370)