Front Page Headlines
Tears and rage
Reckless driving and poor road standards once again made us experience the pain of loss and death. Three people who died in the traffic accident at the Turunçlu (Strongylos) junction were laid to rest yesterday. Their loved ones wept as the rage within them silently grew.
It’s not only luggage but semi-trailer trucks which are not being scanned
General Secretary of Customs Workers’ Trade Union (GÜÇSEN) Elmas Kalınoğlu confirmed that security checks were not being done properly at both the Famagusta and Kyrenia ports after X-ray machines had broken down. He told Kıbrıs Postası the semi-trailer trucks coming through Kyrenia port were also not being scanned.
- Özgürgün’s political immunity lifted – 41 members of parliament voted in favour of lifting Hüseyin Özgürgün’s immunity. The Re-birth party (YDP) voted against the motion. Seven MPs including all three Democratic Party (DP) MPs did not attend the vote.
People should stop dying on the roads
Traffic accidents continue to claim lives as the country’s traffic and road safety problems remain unaddressed. Following the tragic death of three more people the other night we ask the question once again, “What can we do?”
- Hüseyin Özgürgün’s political immunity lifted – 41 MPs from National Unity Party (UBP), Republican Turkish Party (CTP), People’s Party (HP) and Communal Democracy Party (TDP) voted in favour of the motion to lift Özgürgün’s political immunity. Two Re-birth party MPs voted against it. Seven MPs, including all three from the Democratic Party, were absent.
No action just more death!
Following the recent deaths of Haşim Girgin, Aysun Amasyalı and Yayha Amasyalı, the number of the fatalities as a result of traffic accidents [this year] has reached 25. Promised measures to prevent traffic accidents await implementation.
- Immunity lifted – The parliamentary assembly opened the way for judicial proceedings to be launched against the former prime minister and former National Unity Party leader Hüseyin Özgürgün. All the political parties other than Re-birth Party voted in favour of the motion.
Painful confession
The TRNC government collects ₺140 million in road tax but can’t find ₺96 million to install safety barriers on the roads. The money and tax collected for the roads are spent on paying salaries of public servants. The Minister of Public Works and Communication Tolga Atakan says he is tired of trying to make something out of nothing.
- ‘Yavuz’ on the agenda – Surprise visit to South Cyprus by Greek Foreign Minister Nicos Dendias.
I’ll destroy their economy
Turkey is preparing to invade the north of Syria in an attempt to crush Kurdish resistance fighters who brought the greatest barbarians of our time, ISIS, to its knees. Turkish troops are to enter areas where US troops are withdrawing from. Trump, however, warned Turkey with threats not to go too far.
Main News
No UN invitation for Paris meeting, says Akıncı’s office
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs Postası, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Afrika
Negotiations Process
OVERVIEW
The Turkish Cypriot side denied reports on Monday that the UN Secretary-General has extended an invitation to the two leaders for a three-way meeting later next month.
In a statement to TAK news agency, President Akıncı’s office said the UN has not contacted either side as yet and no date has been fixed.
Earlier reports in the Greek Cypriot press claimed that the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres had invited the two leaders for a meeting in Paris in November.
Yavuz to commence new drilling by Tuesday
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs Postası, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog
Energy, Regional/International Relations
OVERVIEW
The Turkish drillship Yavuz will begin drilling for oil and gas southwest of the island on Tuesday, Turkish Energy Minister Fatih Donmez said during his address at the Turkey Energy Summit taking place in Antalya.
Ankara on Thursday announced it had sent the ship to the area where Greek Cypriot authorities have already awarded hydrocarbon exploration rights to Italian and French companies.
Addressing the summit on Monday, the Turkish Energy Minister reiterated Turkey’s determination to protect the rights of the Turkish Cypriot people.
He said Yavuz was completing its final preparations and would be commencing drilling by Tuesday the latest.
Touching upon claims that Turkey’s activities were a flagrant violation of international law, Dönmez said that Turkey’s legitimacy and just stance was documented with the UN.
“We shall not allow energy piracy in the Eastern Mediterranean. Turkey is not a country that can be excluded or pushed aside in this region. We shall continue to pursue our rights stemming from international law,” he said.
Dönmez also said that Turkey will continue to maintain a key role in the region’s energy markets.
Addressing the same summit, Turkish Cypriot Economy and Energy Minister Hasan Taçoy said that the rights of Turkish Cypriots in the Eastern Mediterranean could not be ignored.
“We shall continue to defend the rights of Turkey and the Turkish Cypriot people to the very end,” he said.
Taçoy said that those who underestimated the TRNC would receive the appropriate response.
“Turkey will not bow down to any threats,” he said, adding that it should not be forgotten that Turkish Cypriots and Turkey also had rights in the region. Taçoy added that it was not difficult to transform the Eastern Mediterranean into a basin for peace, but for this to happen the international community needed to stop spoiling the Greek Cypriots.
KEY ACTORS
Dönmez (Turkey)
>> Turkey’s legitimate & just stance in East Med documented with the UN.
>> Turkey shall not allow energy piracy in the East Med.
>> Turkey is not a country that can be excluded or pushed aside in the region. It shall continue to pursue its rights stemming from international law.
>> Turkey will continue to maintain a key role in the region’s energy markets.
Taçoy (UBP)
>> Rights of TCs in the East Med can not be ignored.
>> Rights of Turkey & TCs will be defended to the very end.
>> Those who underestimate the TC side will receive the appropriate response.
>> Turkey will not bow down to any threats. Turkey & TCs have rights in the region.
>> To transform East Med into a basin for peace, international community needs to stop spoiling GCs.
Two GCs accused of shoplifting in north
Kıbrıs Postası
Internal Security
OVERVIEW
A police investigation into the case involving two Greek Cypriots accused of shoplifting in Famagusta in September is continuing, Kıbrıs Postası reported on Tuesday.
Two Greek Cypriots were arrested by Turkish Cypriot police on October 5 after the two crossed over to the North through the Derinya (Deryneia) crossing point.
The two suspects were brought before the Nicosia district court on Monday.
According to the police officer in charge of conducting the investigation, security cameras showed the two shoplifting from a department store at a mall in Famagusta on September 28.
He said that neither suspect had signed a written confession but had admitted during questioning they had committed the crime.
The officer said that one of the suspects had tried to dispose of a sharp tool believed to have been used to cut off security tags on clothes. He said the suspect had tried to flush it down the public toilet at the Derinya (Deryneia) crossing point after police tried to detain them.
The item has been bagged as evidence, the officer told the court.
He said that records also showed that both suspects had crossed over to the north four more times after the initial incident and are believed to be involved in another case of shoplifting, this time in Nicosia.
The judge ordered the two to be remanded in police custody for an additional day until the police completed its investigation.
Eroğlu: UBP must announce its candidate
Kıbrıs Postası
Governance & Power Sharing
OVERVIEW
“The UBP must be at the forefront of the upcoming elections, particularly at a time when different policies are being debated on the Cyprus problem, former Turkish Cypriot President Derviş Eroğlu said on Monday.
Speaking on a programme on Bayrak, Derviş Eroğlu said, “UBP must come up with a candidate for the forthcoming elections which the party believes can win.”
Eroğlu recalled that UBP had supported former Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktaş in the past but had nominated its own candidates in the period that followed.
“UBP today must come up with a party candidate. Failure is not an option. We could never explain it to our supporters if our candidate fails to make it to the second round,” Eroğlu said, arguing that the party needs to nominate a strong candidate.
He urged the party to announce its candidate on the anniversary of its establishment on 11 October.