Front Page Headlines
School construction collapses
It was supposed to be completed in 150 days, it collapsed in 60. Five workers were injured. The concrete pillars holding up the building collapsed entirely. The newly poured concrete also collapsed.
- “The issue of maritime jurisdiction zones should be taken up together with the Cyprus Issue”
- Serdar Denktaş bids farewell in tears – A new era for the Democratic Party (DP). Fikri Ataoğlu elected as new DP leader.
Fikri Ataoğlu has a new vision for the Democratic Party
Fikri Ataoğlu was elected as the leader of the Democratic Party (DP) following the party’s 11th general congress. Ataoğlu said he will start working towards the future with plans, programs and a vision.
- Tatar invites UK citizens living in the south to settle in the north – PM Ersin Tatar claimed British citizens will have visa problems in the south following Brexit and calls on them to settle in the north following Brexit.
The President must be able to form good relations with Turkey
COMAR, polling company belonging to the Kıbrıs media group conducted research on which factors constituents deem as important in the presidential candidate.
- Erdoğan: We will not withdraw our ships from the Eastern Mediterranean – Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said Turkey will not allow anyone to violate Turkish Cypriots’ rights. He added he will not withdraw seismic research vessels from the Eastern Mediterranean.
The threat of AIDS is growing
The Turkish Cypriot Doctors’ Union said the “threat of AIDS is growing by the day” due to the government’s wrong policy of deporting foreigners who are HIV positive. There are currently 75 TRNC citizens who are HIV positive.
- Ataoğlu takes over DP leadership – Fikri Ataoğlu elected as the new leader of DP. Serdar Denktaş bids farewell to the party.
We were to witness such an incident as well
School construction in Kyrenia collapsed during the concrete pouring process. Five workers injured.
- Never-ending torture at Metehan (Ayios Dhometios) – Queues as long as three kilometres formed at the crossing from south to north.
Here is your masterpiece
Five workers injured after school construction in Kyrenia collapsed. It emerged that the school under construction in Karakum (Karakoumi) belongs to the Ministry of Education and Culture. It has become evident that the state cannot even inspect its own buildings under construction. Hundreds of children would have been crushed to death had the school collapsed after it had been completed.
Main News
Erdoğan reiterates Turkey’s resolve in East Med
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs Postası, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog
Energy, Regional/International Relations
OVERVIEW
Certain regional actors in the Eastern Mediterranean are striving to fuel tensions rather than working on ensuring a fair share of the hydrocarbon resources in the region, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said Saturday at the address at the inauguration ceremony for the Trans Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (TANAP)-Europe connection held at the Turkish border city of Edirne.
Threatening talk and blackmail-like policies have come to the fore when there is a chance for an equitable sharing of resources. Yet, no country is above international law. It needs to be recognized that no party can reach a result by taking an issue as a fait accompli,” Erdoğan said
He further stressed that Turkey would never allow any state to disregard the sovereign rights of the Turkish people and those of Turkish Cypriots.
Erdoğan claimed that it would not be possible to carry out any projects that exclude Turkey, given the country presides over the longest coastline in the Eastern Mediterranean.
Meanwhile, the head of Bilkent University’s Energy Policy Research Associate Prof Dr Sohbet Karbuz argued that it was not right to treat hydrocarbons and maritime jurisdiction issues as separate from the Cyprus problem.
In an interview with Yenidüzen, Karbuz said that the Cyprus Problem will continue to remain unresolved as long as an agreement is not reached on maritime jurisdiction.
Karbuz said that the hydrocarbons in the Eastern Mediterranean should be used as an opportunity to achieve stability, security and economic prosperity in the region.
“This, of course, depends on whether or not the countries in the region, as well as outside forces, adopt a pragmatic approach through sincere and constructive dialogue,” he added.
“Unfortunately the discovery of natural gas fields in blocs where jurisdiction overlap has further complicated matters,” Karbuz pointed out.
Karbuz also argued that there was twice the amount of natural gas discovered so far waiting to be discovered in the Eastern Mediterranean which was the least surveyed area in the world.
“The US Geological Survey had announced in 2010 that there was still 10tn cubic meters of economically viable natural gas waiting to be discovered,” he said.
Commenting on the agreement signed between Turkey and Libya, Karbuz said that from what he understood this was more of a memorandum of understanding rather than a binding agreement.
He said unless the agreement was official it was not internationally recognized.
KEY ACTORS
Erdoğan (Turkey)
>> Certain regional actors in East Med striving to fuel tensions rather than working on ensuring a fair share of hydrocarbons resources.
>> No country is above international law. No party can reach a result through fait accompli.
>> Turkey will never allow any state to disregard sovereign rights of Turks & TCs.
>> No possible to carry out any projects that exclude Turkey in the region.
Good relations with Ankara important, reveals COMAR poll
Kıbrıs
Governance & Power Sharing
OVERVIEW
Kıbrıs media group owned polling company COMAR conducted a survey to reveal which factors constituents deem important in the presidential candidate.
According to the results of the poll, which was conducted through face-to-face interviews with 804 randomly selected participants, people’s votes will be based on the presidential candidate’s ability to form good relations with Turkey. The second important factor is the candidate’s ability to stand at equal distance to all political parties, thirdly on his/her ability to tackle problems within the community.
39.4 per cent of the respondents said “forming good relations with Turkey” will be a defining point in deciding who to vote for in the upcoming presidential elections. 16.9 per cent of the respondents ticked the option of being able to stand at an equal distance to all political parties. Only 6.5 per cent of the respondents said the president’s ability to negotiate would be an important factor in voting for him/her.
In a further breakdown of those who said the president’s ability to form good relations with Turkey was important, 35.9 per cent of the respondents were female and 41.3 per cent were male.
Moreover, 23.5 per cent of the participants within the 18 to 24 age group ticked this option compared to 42 per cent 45 and 55 age group.
The poll also revealed 51.1 per cent of the respondents who were born in Turkey said forming good relations with Turkey was the most important factor, while only 34.7 per cent of the respondents born in Cyprus ticked this option.
The poll also questioned how much President Mustafa Akıncı met the Turkish Cypriot community’s expectations.
42 per cent of the respondents expressed the belief that Akıncı was able to form good relations with Turkey.
53.7 per cent of the respondents said the president was able to stand at an equal distance to political parties.
56.7 per cent say Akıncı was successful in dealing with the problems in the community.
57.9 per cent of the respondents find Akıncı successful as a negotiator in the talks with the Greek Cypriot side.
Finally, the respondents were also asked to state which political party they would vote for should there be an election tomorrow. National Unity Party (UBP) received 47.25 per cent of the votes.
The Republican Turkish Party (CTP) received 22.51 per cent; Rebirth Party (YDP) received 8.71 per cent; People’s Party (HP) received 6.57 per cent of the votes.
Man caught trying to cross south illegally
Yenidüzen
Internal Security
OVERVIEW
An African male was caught on Saturday by soldiers as he tried to cross over to the south illegally through the Yiğitler (Roccas) bastion in Nicosia.
The man was caught in the early hours of Saturday by guards stationed near the bastion and handed over to police.
The Nicosia District Court ordered the man to be remanded in police custody for three days until the police complete its investigation.