Front Page Headlines
₺49,747,386 from online betting in one year
The investigation into the online betting operation has been expanded. Police announced the profits of businessman B.A. earned from online betting.
- Erhürman only candidate for party leadership. 131 candidates for the party’s assembly.
Bill on real estate agencies causes tension
Tension escalates between the Association for Real Estate Agencies and the Cyprus Turkish Building Contractors Association over proposed amendments to the law on real estate agencies. Cafer Gürcafer, head of the Building Contractors Association, claims people will be forced to pay excessive amounts of money to real estate agencies but Hasan Sungur, head of the Real Estate Agencies Association refutes the claims.
- Online betting revenues ₺39 million – Court orders businessman Bulut Akacan be remanded in police custody for eight more days.
₺48.8 million in revenues from illegal cyber betting in two years
Police presented shocking information to the court which implicates Bulut Akacan and eight others in illegal gambling and online betting.
- No ceremony to be held for the opening of the judicial year – Narin Ferdi Şefik, President of the Supreme Court, said the funds allocated for the opening ceremony will instead be used for improving the IT infrastructure of the courts.
₺48 million from online betting
Police revealed shocking figures in the online betting case in which Altınbaş Holding’s son-in-law, Bulut Akacan is involved. Police have identified the annual turnover of two gambling sites to be ₺48,747,000.
- Sewage pouring into the sea – The sewage problem in Kyrenia has reached a stage where it is now threatening public health. Doğuç Veysioğlu, President of the Chamber of Environmental Engineers, said the standards regarding the sewage treatment facilities which hotels are required to build are not clear. He added the existing legislation on the matter needs to be improved.
Money was just pouring in
₺48 million was earned from two illegal betting sites named Kalebet and Dobrabet from 2018 to 2019. The sites are believed to be owned by Bulut Akacan.
Resist the occupation traitor!
One should consider being called a traitor by Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu for opposing the guarantees a compliment. All who have resisted against the occupation in this country have been branded a traitor.
- One million Euros for bicommunal activities – EU has allocated one million Euros for bicommunal activities in Cyprus for 2019-2020.
Main News
UCN: ‘Cypriots deserve to live in a united country’
Yenidüzen
Negotiations Process
OVERVIEW
The bicommunal peace initiative UniteCyprusNow on Tuesday said the statements made by Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoglu during his visit to Cyprus on Monday had further damaged prospects for talks.
“We remind Mr Cavusoglu that the Treaty of Guarantee is not only about the protection of Turkish Cypriots but about the integrity of Cyprus as a whole and that the security of one side in a post-solution Cyprus will not be to the detriment of the other,” the group said.
It said that Turkish Cypriots had elected a leader to represent them in the talks for a solution of the Cyprus problem, adding that the guarantor powers should contribute positively to the process and support the leaders instead of undermining them and their efforts.
“No side, including Turkey, has the right to single-handedly decide on the future of negotiations,” it added.
As regards Cavusoglu’s allegations that the Greek Cypriot leader Anastasiades suggested a two-state solution to him in Crans-Montana, UniteCyprusNow said: “Division goes against the will of the overwhelming majority of Cypriots who do not want the country partitioned.”
This had not only been proven by repeated polls but also by the election of leaders who promised to reunite the island under a federation, it said.
It added that the two sides had once more failed to agree on the terms of reference, which was requested of them by the UN Security Council and the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres as a means to resuming negotiations with a sense of urgency.
It said both leaders had been elected with the promise to deliver a federal solution.
“UniteCyprusNow finds it unacceptable that the two leaders were unable to reach a conclusion and we are now further away from a solution than we were in Crans-Montana, despite being so close, as admitted by all sides concerned,” it said.
“Cypriots deserve to live in a united country, a country that belongs to them and they should ultimately be the ones to determine its future.”
Abdullah Korkmazhan, speaking on behalf of the Left Movement (Sol Hareket) also condemned Çavuşoğlu’s statements in a written statement issued on Tuesday.
He argued the Treaty of Guarantee has nothing to do with the security of the Turkish Cypriots. “On the contrary, the treaty, which was signed by Turkey, Greece and the UK, safeguards the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of the Republic of Cyprus (RoC),” Korkmazhan stressed.
Korkmazhan further claimed that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s AKP rule in Turkey wanted to sabotage the resumption of talks in Cyprus and was opposed to reaching a settlement on the island.
KEY ACTORS
UCN
>> Recent statements by Çavuşoğlu have further damaged prospects for talks.
>> Treaty of Guarantee entails the integrity of the entire island and not only one side.
>> Security of one side in a post-solution Cyprus should not be to the detriment of the other.
>> Guarantor powers should contribute positively to the process & support the leaders, not undermine their efforts.
>> No side, including Turkey, has the right to single-handedly decide on the future of negotiations.
>> Majority of Cypriots want a federal solution on the island as proven in numerous polls.
>> Unacceptable that the two leaders were unable to conclude terms of reference.
>> Cypriots deserve to live in a united country, a country that belongs to them and they should ultimately be the ones to determine its future.
Korkmazhan (Left Movement)
>> Treaty of Guarantee has nothing to do with the security of the TCs.
>> Treaty aimed at territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of the RoC.
>> Turkey’s AKP administration wants to prevent the resumption of talks & a settlement in Cyprus.
Çavuşoğlu: No point to talks for sake of talks
Kıbrıs Postası, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Afrika
Negotiations Process
OVERVIEW
There is no meaning in resuming the talks just for the sake of holding talks, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu told reporters on Tuesday during a joint news conference with his Montenegrin counterpart Srdjan Darmanoviç in Ankara.
“There are sensitive issues and red lines for Turkey and the Turkish Cypriots. The most important of these issues are political equality, effective participation in decision-making processes and rotational presidency,” Çavuşoğlu said.
He added that Turkey has always been in favour of a solution but the new negotiations process must be results-oriented within a clear framework.
“We cannot accept yet another failure, thus we will not start negotiations for the sake of starting the negotiations,” Çavuşoğlu concluded.
KEY ACTOR
Çavuşoğlu (Turkey)
>> No meaning in resuming talks for the sake of holding talks
>> Political equality, effective participation in decision-making processes & rotational presidency most important issues for TCs & Turkey.
>> Turkey has always been in favour of a solution.
>> The new negotiations process must be results-oriented within a clear framework.
>> Turkey cannot accept yet another failure.
Tatar: Turkish forces indispensable for TCs’ security
Kıbrıs, Kıbrıs Postası, Havadis, Diyalog
Internal Security, External Security, Negotiations Process
OVERVIEW
Turkish Cypriot Prime Minister Ersin Tatar said on Tuesday that the presence of the Turkish Armed Forces in Cyprus as well as Turkey’s active guarantees were indispensable for the security of Turkish Cypriots.
Tatar was speaking during a visit paid to him yesterday by the Commander of the Turkish Peace Forces in Cyprus (TPFC ) Major General Sezai Öztürk and other force commanders.
He said that the presence of Turkish troops on the island was important not only for Turkish Cypriots but Greek Cypriots as well in terms of maintaining the peace and security on the island.
Tatar reminded that Turkey had earned the right to unilaterally intervene in Cyprus as a guarantor power with the treaties signed in 1960.
Regarding the solution of the Cyprus Problem, Tatar said that other solution alternatives apart from a federation needed to be discussed at the negotiating table. “No matter what kind of a solution is reached in Cyprus, the presence of Turkish forces on the island is essential,” he added.
KEY ACTORS
Tatar (UBP)
>> Turkish Armed Forces are indispensable for TCs’ security.
>> Presence of Turkish forces important for both TCs & GCs in terms of maintaining the peace on the island.
>> Other solution alternatives apart from federation need to be discussed.
>> No matter what type of solution is reached, the presence of Turkish forces in Cyprus is essential.