Front Page Headlines
892 cameras to be installed in Kyrenia and Nicosia
Work on installing the city surveillance system has restarted. Police Director in charge of Communication and Information Erdal Şanlıdağ: “The cameras we shall install and the technologic infrastructure will allow us to be swifter in tackling crime. The cameras will also keep track of vehicles, whether drivers have paid insurance, their road tax or have their vehicles inspected.” He said that claims that the authorities will use the system to spy on the public were baseless. Access to the footage of these cameras will be subject to court orders, he added.
- Airlines start selling tickets, all eyes turned on tourism – All eyes have now turned on air travel following the Covid-19 pandemic which gripped the world. Airline companies have started selling tickets to Ercan (Tymbou), Larnaca and Paphos. Despite no date being given for the resumption of flights Turkish Airlines has started selling tickets to Ercan (Tymbou) from Istanbul, Ankara, İzmir and London as of May 28.
- Takeaway and delivery services of restaurants beginning today (Monday).
- “Reopening of barbers and hairdressers on Council of Minister’s agenda today (Monday).
Ceased Print/Online only
“Health report” crisis for food-delivery
Many restaurants, which have been closed for two months, will start food-delivery service today (Monday). However, the excitement of some restaurant owners for resuming work was short-lived after it emerged that ‘health reports’ of their personnel had not been delivered on time. The employees have been tested for coronavirus in line with the cabinet’s requirement for reopening however the results were not delivered to nearly 500 businesses. Head of RES-BİR (Turkish Cypriot Restaurant Owners’ Association) Salih Kayım said 550 restaurant personnel were tested but the results were not delivered to 500 of them. Health Ministry Ali Çaygür, on the other hand, said the test results were sent to the establishments, who had sent their staff to be tested on time.
- No new cases in the north.
- 22nd death from coronavirus in the south.
- The death toll in Turkey reached 3,786.
Support (scheme) is on the cabinet’s agenda
Labour Minister Faiz Sucuoğlu said 41,000 eligible applicants have been paid their ₺1500 (€195) salary support. He added ₺61m (€7.9m) has been paid in total. 6,000 more people will be paid this week. Sucuoğlu noted nearly 9,000 third-country nationals have also been paid in line with the salary support scheme. Sucuoğlu said the salary support scheme will continue next month for the sectors that remain closed. He added the ministry has tabled a proposal to pay ₺1000 (€130) to those who earn wages daily. He also noted the cabinet during its meeting today (Monday) will evaluate the proposal for people to be allowed to withdraw ₺2000 (€260) per month for five months from their provident fund deposits. Once approved and published in the official gazette, the Provident Fund will start receiving applications.
- The latest situation: North 108 cases, four deaths; South 898 cases, 22 deaths; Turkey 138,657 cases, 3,786 deaths.
Producers and growers are worried
400 tones of olives and 6000 tons of potatoes remain on their hands after the hotels closed down. The olives are being stored in depots. The head of the Olive Growers and Industrialists Society (Zeysan) Ziya Sezey said that tons of olives were being kept in storage but that the state should lend a helping hand to find a market for the olives which have an expiry date. The head of the Potato Growers’ Association Engin Halkseven said there was an excess of 5-6,000 tons of unpicked potato crop in the fields because in the fall in demand due to the closed hotels and university students who left the island.
- 367 million saved – Public-sector hiring, promotions and overtime frozen in South Cyprus.
- He threatened her with a knife – A 28 Syrian man living in Paphos raped a 72-year-old woman.
Careful about a second wave
Head of the Turkish Cypriot Doctors’ Association Dr Özlem Gürkut warned once again about the possibility of a second wave, urging everyone to be ready. She criticized the way the measures had been relaxed adding that no measures had so far been implemented for the high-risk groups. She also noted that Cyprus being an island is an advantage in pandemics, adding that the fact that the borders were closed on both sides of the island made it easier to contain the spread of the virus Gürkut renewed her call on the Greek Cypriot Doctors’ Association to collaborate with the Turkish Cypriot Doctors’ Association.
- 41,000 people paid ₺1500 (€195) – Labour Minister Faiz Sucuoğlu said 41,000 eligible applicants have been their salary support.
- One death and six new cases in the south, zero cases in the north – No positive cases reported in the north yesterday (Sunday) in the 980 tests that were carried out. Six new cases identified in the south. One passed away due to coronavirus. The total number of the south reached 898.
Main News
The north’s success story should be shared WHO, says Özersay
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs Postası, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Afrika
Internal Security
OVERVIEW
Turkish Cypriot Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Kudret Özersay sent a letter to the World Health Organisation (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on the north’s successful fight against the pandemic, all dailies report on Monday.
“As of May 8, the north only had 108 cases with a death toll standing at four, and rest of the positive cases have recovered,” Özersay said.
He added the north was most likely the only place in the word with such statistics.
Özersay, touching on the gradual reopening process in his letter said the process to emerge from the lockdown, which was launched on May 4 is being vigilantly monitored.
“The north achieved an incredible success due to timely decisions and measures to contain the spread of the virus adopted by the cabinet and the strict adherence of the people to these measures,” Özersay noted.
He also emphasized that the decisions and measures, which allowed the north to overcome the imminent threat of virus with least damage, were adopted based on the changing circumstances and with the necessary flexibility to revise them accordingly without any hesitation.
“They were applied based on the principle of proportionality given the developing conditions and with room left for flexibility,” Özersay wrote in the letter.
He added that he will be sharing with WHO extensive information as regards to the decisions and measures taken and implemented in the north.
He noted that a successful fight against the virus can be done if WHO’s guidelines are followed determinedly and timely.
Özersay highlighted the measures taken against the pandemic including closing down of schools, private and public sectors for the exception of essential services like hospitals and pharmacies, implementing curfews, isolating, quarantining and monitoring of people, making it mandatory to wear masks and exercise social distancing, as well as contact tracing.
“WHO should acknowledge, without discriminating based on political expediency on such an eminent health issue, the important success of unrecognised north against COVID-19. It should publicly declare and share, as part of WHO’s official data, the statistics and experience of Northern Cyprus, in the hope that it may benefit many others in the world,” Özersay concluded.
₺61m (€7.9m) paid to 41,000 eligible applicants
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs Postası, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Afrika
Internal Security, Economy
OVERVIEW
The Labour Ministry has paid 41,000 eligible private-sector application, a total of ₺61m (€7.9m) as part of the ₺1500 (€195) salary support payments, the dailies report on Monday.
Speaking to Turkish Cypriot News Agency (TAK) on the issue, Labour Minister Faiz Sucuoğlu noted the applications for the salary support scheme, which was part of the first economic relief package announced by the cabinet on March 25, ended on May 8.
Among the applicants, 9,000 third-country nationals have also been paid so far and another 6,000 people will be paid next week.
The salary support scheme will continue for the sectors that remain closed in the coming month as well.
“On the other hand, the Labour Ministry has prepared a proposal to broaden the scope of the scheme to include those who earn daily wages,”
Sucuoğlu said that it will be discussed during the cabinet meeting on Monday along with the proposal on people being allowed to withdraw up to 10,000 (€1,298) from their provident fund deposits for five months.
He also noted that the restaurants, cafes and patisseries which offer delivery or takeaway services will be opened to business as of May 11.
Sucuoğlu explained the staff of these establishments had all been tested and only those whose employees tested negative would be allowed to open.
He noted the cabinet will also consider opening barbers and hairdressers during its meeting on Monday, 11 May after it was detected that many barbers and hairdressers had started operating secretly at homes.
“The issue has gone out of control. It will be better that such establishments open under the watchful eye of the municipalities rather than to allow them to continue operating this way,” Sucuoğlu said.
In another development, RES-BİR (Turkish Cypriot Restaurants Owners’ Association) expressed outrage on Sunday over news that several five-star hotels will be launching food delivery services.
“There is already unfair competition as a result of hotels which operate restaurants within their premises. Now we have heard that the hotels are also getting ready to start delivering food outside of the hotels. This is unfair and unacceptable,” RES-BİR said in a statement.
RES-BİR asked the cabinet to intervene to stop the hotels.
“The hotels must allow the small businesses to survive at times of economic crisis and the cabinet must take on the responsibility to protect the restaurants and cafes,” the statement concluded.
Turkish Cypriot Prime Minister Ersin Tatar later on Sunday announced in a post on social media that hotels would not be allowed to offer takeaway and delivery services.
In the meantime, economist Mahmut Sezinler on Sunday argued that the economic crisis caused by the pandemic will continue for some time.
“The coronavirus pandemic will eventually be over but the economic crisis will continue and will become worse,” Sezinler stressed.
Speaking during a programme on Kanal T, Sezinler pointed to the need for a social and economic rehabilitation program.
“The small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and micro establishments must be trained to cope with the crisis. The cabinet should provide consultancy services to them,” he highlighted.
Sezinler argued that good management of fiscal policies instead of monetary policies is the only way out of the financial crisis in the long run.
Also on Sunday, the tourism professionals’ news site, Eturbonews.com claimed the north could be the first ‘holiday destination’ to completely free itself of Covid-19.
Urging holidaymakers looking for a safe and virus-free 2020 or 2021 holiday destination to pick the north, the Eturbonews site referred to the efforts to contain the spread of the coronavirus and the number of cases to date.
“North Cyprus is the only major European holiday destination with less than 110 confirmed cases of coronavirus, according to the Johns Hopkins University Coronavirus Resource Centre,” the web site concluded.
Toros: “EU’ should include Cyprus in the block as a whole”
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs Postası, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Afrika
EU matters
OVERVIEW
“Including Cyprus as a whole in the block should be the EU’s priority,” Republican Turkish Party (CTP) MP Fikri Toros said on Sunday.
In a social media post to mark Europe Day on May 9, Toros added the Cyprus problem must be ended once and for all with a federal solution based on equal rights and status of the two communities.
Toros noted that the European Union (EU) is living proof of the benefits of synergy, solidarity and collaboration among member states and as a result, they develop further by benefiting from basic freedoms, and the overall economy and common security.
“Despite the on-going political problem between the founding communities and the division, Cyprus in 2004 became a member of the EU however leaving the north of the Green Line out of the acquis communautaire,” Toros said.
He added that the continuing political problem resulted in not being able to seize the potential of the relations between the Turkish Cypriot community and the EU.
KEY ACTORS
Toros (CTP)
>> Including Cyprus as a whole in the block should be EU’s priority.
>> Cyprob must be ended once & for all with a federal solution based on equal rights & status of the two communities.
>> The EU is living proof of the benefits of synergy, solidarity & collaboration among member states.
>> The Cyprob has resulted in not being able to seize the potential of the relations between the TC community & EU.
>> This anomaly that contradicts the basic principles of the EU, is not acceptable.