Front Page Headlines
Bus operators angered new transport permits
Several bus operators have expressed anger over plans to issue 36 new transport permits. The bus operators say that most of the permits have been issued on destinations they already operate on while others are outraged they have not been consulted.
- We want seas of peace – the newly formed Third Community Forum laid wreaths from olive branches on all four seas surrounding the island, calling for peace and solidarity.
Sent to jail while trying to save lives
Ambulance driver Salih Aygın was sentenced to two years in prison as a result of an accident he caused which resulted in the death of the patient and a nurse. The court verdict raised the need to amend the laws in force that treat emergency service drivers like ordinary drivers.
- 12 migrants will remain in police custody for eight more days.
He died as he was trying to cross the road
51-year-old Veysel Can was killed in Kyrenia after being hit by a car while trying to cross the road to go to his hotel.
- 40 people waiting for a heart transplant and 210 for kidneys – Health Ministry held a press conference on Monday drawing attention to the importance of being an organ donor.
Majority share goes to the armed forces
Prime Minister Ersin Tatar announced how the ₺170m in funds from Turkey will be utilized. The money will be spent on four main areas. ₺94m will be allocated for projects in Nicosia and ₺33.5m will be utilized by the Turkish Development and Economic Collaboration office. ₺34.5m will be used for defence expenses and ₺8m for projects that are developed in Ankara.
Alarm bells ringing
847 traffic accidents were reported in North Cyprus in the past four months. Ten people have lost their lives, 303 were injured. A total of 2330 drivers were banned from driving, 1531 drivers were fined for using their mobile phones while driving and 377 were caught drinking and driving.
- Tatar in the lead – According to the Gezici polling company’s latest poll, an overwhelming majority of people want a two-state solution and the continuation of Turkey’s guarantees.
- Snowfall to continue –Traffic came to a standstill on Troodos after hundreds of Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots rushed to enjoy the snow.
This election will end in court
Another pre-ordered poll from the Gezici polling company regarding the presidential elections. According to Murat Gezici, the second round of the elections between Ersin Tatar and Mustafa Akıncı will be a close race.
- Photographs from Tekke Bahçe (Cemetry) from 1974 – No one has apologised to the family of Ecvet Orhon (Yusuf) yet nor has there been an official statement.
Main News
Gezici poll shows Tatar in the lead
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs Postası, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog
Governance & Power Sharing
OVERVIEW
The leader of the National Unity Party (UBP) leader and presidential candidate Ersin Tatar will be elected as president in the upcoming elections according to results of the poll announced by the Turkish based polling company Gezici on Monday.
According to the published results, the outcome of the election will be determined in two rounds of voting with Tatar winning with a narrow margin.
The results show that Tatar will receive 34.2 per cent of the votes in the first-round while incumbent President Mustafa Akıncı, should he decide to run for a second term, will receive 28.8 per cent of the votes.
The results show the two will contest for the top seat in the country in the second round.
Republican Turkish Party (CTP) candidate Tufan Erhürman came in third place with 17.4 per cent of votes. Independent candidate Kudret Özersay is in the fourth place with 8.3 per cent of votes followed by Rebirth Party (YDP) candidate Erhan Arıklı and Democratic Party (DP) MP Serdar Denktaş who received 5.7 per cent and 5.6 per cent respectively.
Asked who will win the election in the second round, 40.2 per cent of the respondents said Ersin Tatar, whereas 30.3 per cent ticked Akıncı.
Among the remaining candidates, 14.2 per cent chose Erhürman and 6.4 per cent ticked Özersay.
When the undecided votes are distributed equally among the candidates, Tatar receives 52.5 per cent of the votes in the second round whereas Akıncı gets 47.5 per cent.
According to the poll results, 53.1 per cent of the respondents want the TRNC president to be advocating for a “two-separate state option” compared to 8.2 per cent, who want the president to be advocating for federation.
35.6 per cent of the respondents said they would like to see a president who will put the interests of the Turkish Cypriot people in the forefront.
81.3 per cent of the respondents said they would prefer a two-state alternative brought to the table while 10.2 per cent they would want a federal solution with Greek Cypriots to be proposed. 8.5 per cent said they would prefer a confederation proposal at the table.
According to the poll, 80 per cent said they favoured the continuation of the current system of guarantees while 5.2 per cent said they wanted the guarantees to be scrapped.
Three per cent said they believed the European Union (EU) or the United Nations (UN) should provide guarantees.
Finally, the respondents were asked to state which political party would they vote for should there be a parliamentary election tomorrow.
43.5 per cent of the respondents said they will vote for the UBP; followed by 21.8 per cent for the CTP and 10.5 per cent for the People’s Party (HP).
Social Democratic Party (TDP) received 8.1 per cent of the votes followed by YDP with 7.3 per cent. DP received 5.1 per cent of the votes, barely meeting the minimum election threshold of five per cent.
Cyprus’ gas belongs to both sides
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs Postası, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog
Energy, Regional/International Relations
OVERVIEW
“All gas found off Cyprus belongs to both the Turkish and Greek Cypriot sides on the island, even though South Cyprus never adhered to this rule or talked with the Turkish Cypriot side on the fair distribution of gas,” Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Monday.
Speaking to reporters on his return trip from the conference in Berlin on Libya, Erdoğan said the fact that Turkey and Libya have shores facing each other was a source of discomfort for Greece.
“We also have the longest coastline in the Eastern Mediterranean which gives Turkey an added advantage,” Erdoğan added.
He also rejected the claims that islands can have continental shelves. “It is out of the question for islands to have their own continental shelf. It is a matter of territorial waters,” Erdoğan said.
He recalled that today’s Libya deal was something that Turkey had already discussed with late Libyan leader Muammar al-Gaddafi in the past.
“We were about to sign a broader maritime agreement with Gaddafi but he did not live long enough. If we had managed to sign a deal then, we would not be having all these fights today. We have now signed the agreement with Sarraj,” Erdoğan concluded.
On the other hand, retired Staff Colonel Ünal Atabay claimed Russia is planning to either recognize the TRNC or ask Abkhazia to recognize it as part of its energy plans in the Eastern Mediterranean.
Speaking to Turkish daily Sözcü, Atabay said Russia’s collaboration with Turkey is inevitable for smooth utilization of the energy resources in the region.
“Given its energy plans, Russia, in exchange for ending Turkey’s problems with Syria, will either politically recognize the TRNC or ask Abkhazia to do that,” Atabay argued.
He added Turkey will also have to recognize Abkhazia too. Atabay claimed that “As part of its plan, Russia will try to get a military base in the Karpaz (Karpasia) peninsula of north Cyprus, which will also be used as a logistics base in rebuilding Syria.”
Chief Adviser to the president of the Republican People’s Party (CHP) in Turkey and Istanbul MP Erdoğan Toprak argued that Russia will formally ask Turkey to grant a military base under the pretext of protecting its investments.
Toprak, in addition to noting that he presented his arguments in a report to CHP leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, said Russia will want to protect its natural gas storage facilities in the Black Sea region of Turkey and protect the nuclear power plant in the southern part of Turkey.
Toprak recalled that Russia has repeatedly asked for permission to establish military bases in Turkey since the 1950s.
“Turkey has realised its target of five new drillings with the latest being in the southern part of the island of Cyprus,” Turkish Energy and Natural Resources Minister Fatih Dönmez said on Monday.
In a written statement issued from the Ministry, Dönmez said the Yavuz drillship has reached its new location named Nicosia-1 on Friday.
“This is one of the areas licensed by the TRNC,” he added.
He added Turkey also has the target of carrying out five new offshore drillings in 2020.
“As it is known, there had been two drillings in the eastern part of the island previously and now we are heading to the locations in the southern part of the island,” Dönmez concluded.
Turkish Cypriot Economy and Energy Minister and UBP MP Hasan Taçoy on Monday slammed the Greek Cypriot leader Nicos Anastasiades’ comments on Turkey’s hydrocarbon activities describing it as piracy in the Eastern Mediterranean.
Taçoy tweeted, “The Greek Cypriot leader must know his place! If there is a pirate state on the island, it is no other than the Greek Cypriot state and its leadership. The Turkish Cypriot people, together with its motherland, will continue on its path and not allow anyone to usurp our rights.”
Meanwhile, UBP MP Oğuzhan Hasipoğlu condemned a statement by European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell criticizing Turkey’s energy exploration in the Eastern Mediterranean.
Addressing the Turkish Cypriot parliament on Monday, he claimed the EU continued to make a political and legal mistake of approaching the issue as one concerning Turkey’s maritime jurisdiction.
“The Greek Cypriot side’s unilateral hydrocarbon activities left us, the Turkish Cypriot side with no other option but to proceed with our own drilling activities,” Hasipoğlu said.
He recalled that the Greek Cypriot side rejected the Turkish Cypriot side’s co-management proposal and in the process continued to usurp the rights of Turkish Cypriots.
Hasipoğlu urged the Greek Cypriot side to re-evaluate the Turkish Cypriot side’s co-management proposal as it was still valid and on the table.
“The Greek Cypriot side must know that its interlocutor is the TRNC and not Turkey on this issue,” Hasipoğlu stressed.
“As a result of Greek Cypriot side’s intransigent approach to the hydrocarbons issue, the Turkish drilling ship Yavuz is carrying out drilling activities in the southern part of the island to protect the rights and interests of the Turkish Cypriot people,” Hasipoğlu concluded.
KEY ACTORS
Erdoğan (Turkey)
>> All gas found off Cyprus belongs to both the TCs & GCs.
>> S. Cyprus never talked with the TRNC on the fair distribution of gas.
>> Turkey’s & Libya’s shores facing each other is a source of discomfort for Greece.
>> Turkey has the longest coastline in the East Med. which gives Turkey an added advantage.
>> The islands cannot have continental shelves, only territorial waters.
>> Today’s Libya deal was something that Turkey had already discussed with late Libyan leader Muammar al-Gaddafi in the past.
Dönmez (Turkey)
>> Turkey has realised its target of five new drillings with the latest being in the southern part of the island of Cyprus.
>> The Yavuz drillship has reached its new location named Nicosia-1, an area licensed by the TRNC on Friday.
>> Turkey also has the target of carrying out five new offshore drillings in 2020.
Taçoy (UBP)
>> The GC leader must know his place.
>> The GC state & leadership is the only pirate state on the island.
>> The TC side together with Turkey will continue on its path & will not allow anyone to usurp its rights.
Hasipoğlu (UBP)
>> EU continues to make a political & legal mistake by approaching the issue as one concerning Turkey’s maritime jurisdiction.
>> GC side’s unilateral actions left the TC side with no other option but to carry out its own drillings activities.
>> The GC side insists on usurping the TCs’ rights.
>> The GC side should re-evaluate the TC side’s co-management proposal as it is still valid & on the table.
>> The GC side must know that its interlocutor on the issue is the TCs & not Turkey.
Another letter from Çetinkaya to FIFA
Havadis
Human Rights
OVERVIEW
The President of the Turkish Cypriot football club Çetinkaya FC Bülent Dizdarlı has sent a second letter to FIFA reminding that the Turkish Cypriot football club is one of the founding members of KOP (Cyprus Football Association) and asking to be allowed to play matches with other FIFA member teams, Havadis reported on Tuesday.
This is the second such letter the Çetinkaya has sent to FIFA.
Dizdarlı in his first letter dated June 17, 2019, addressed to FIFA president Gianni Infantino, reminded that Turkish Cypriot football teams, including Çentinkaya FC founded in 1934, were are not allowed to play matches outside of Cyprus since 1974 due to the political situation on the island.
“As a result, the Turkish Cypriot football is unable to develop and reach European standards,” Dizdarlı said.
“Politics must not obstruct sporting activities and in fact, we believe allowing Çetinkaya would also contribute significantly to the peace efforts on the island,” Dizdarlı added.
FIFA’s deputy president Veron Musengo Omba responded to Dizdarlı’s letter on 29 October 2019. Omba in his response drew attention to the agreement signed between Cyprus Football Association (CFA) and the Cyprus Turkish Football Association (CTFA) on November 5, 2013.
“The agreement named ‘Interim Agreement for Football in Cyprus’ has yet to be implemented,” Omba said.
He noted that both FIFA and UEFA will remain at the service of all relevant parties for the implementation of the said interim agreement.
Dizdarlı in response to Omba’s letter sent another letter to FIFA dated January 18 January 2020 and said: “We believe that the course of action prescribed in your letter will lead to endless discussions with no results.” He asked for a special exemption for the Turkish Cypriot football teams to be allowed to play with teams abroad.
Dizdarlı asked the FIFA president to “reconsider FIFA’s stance to allow the Turkish Cypriot Football to flourish with no restrictions.”
We want seas in peace
Kıbrıs Postası, Kıbrıs, Havadis
Human Rights
OVERVIEW
The Third Community Forum Association called for “peace without any delays” from four corners of the island and threw wreaths made out of olive branches into the seas.
The Association held simultaneous events at Paphos, Limassol, Kyrenia and Famagusta.
In a written statement issued, the association said the Mediterranean must give life to intercultural and interfaith peace instead of becoming graves for those fleeing from wars.
It also protested the ongoing tensions in the Mediterranean and demanded an end to the geopolitical power struggles in the region.
“The people of the island must take control of the developments in the Eastern Mediterranean and transform the tension to something that the people on the island can benefit from,” the association concluded.