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‘Go but don’t come back’
Workers and students who cross south will either have to stay there or be placed in quarantine for 14 days when they return. The Greek Cypriot leadership lifted restrictions for entry of workers and students as of yesterday (Monday). All eyes have now turned to the north but the Turkish Cypriot authorities have yet to adopt a clear stance on the issue, postponing the issue. Deputy Prime Minister Kudret Özersay said, “we want to see how this method works for 14 days. It has been learned that around 30 Turkish Cypriot workers who have undergone PCR testing will cross over to the south today (Tuesday) and remain there for some time. Özersay confirmed these reports.
- Capital’s streets blocked – Kar-İş (Turkish Cypriot Public Transport Company Owners’ association) staged a protest in front of parliament to convey its demands to the government. A group from the protestors met with government officials but no agreement was reached. Dozens of buses were left in front of parliament blocking traffic.
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Public transportation to hold strike indefinitely
Kar-İş staged a protest outside the parliament building with their busses. They relayed their 12-point list of demands to the cabinet the Public Works Minster but did not achieve any results. Kar-İş spokesman Zekai Gece said the list of demands they had made was rejected by the cabinet. “The public transportation companies can’t resume work,” Gece said, adding they will continue with their strike until the problems in the sector are solved.
- There are tickets but no flights – Anadolu Jet cancelled its flights from Ercan (Tymbou) airport to Ankara and Istanbul on Thursday and Friday. The company informed ticket-holders via text messages. Mustafa Sofi, head of the Turkish Cypriot Civil Aviation Department, said Anadolu Jet had not applied for a flight permit. Tolga Atakan, Public Works and Communication Minister, urged people not to purchase plane tickets until an official statement is made by authorities on the resumption of flights.
- Medicine shortage will end soon – It is reported the medicines for cancer patients have been dispatched from the UK and are expected to arrive in the north next week.
- Süheyla Küçük passed away – Dr Fazıl Küçük’s wife, the ‘first lady’ 95-year-old Süheyla Küçük passed away. No announcements were made on the time and date for the funeral service.
Outraged at the government
Kar-iş staged a protest outside the parliament building. The protestors highlighted the problems in the sector and relayed their list of demands to the cabinet. Kar-İş spokesman Zekai Gece said as long as the problems in the sector are not solved, Kar-İş will not provide services to the public sector and they will continue with their protests.
- The south opened but the north kept quiet – The Greek Cypriot leadership lifted the restrictions on crossings for various groups of people including students and workers. The Greek Cypriot administration only asked for a negative PCR test result. The TRNC government, on the other hand, has not lifted the ‘quarantine requirement’. Neither the workers nor the students have any idea on what will happen.
- A stark reality – VOIS Cyprus, which was established by international students against racisms, staged a protest outside the parliament building. Turkish Cypriot Economy and Energy Minister Hasan Taçoy and National Unity Party (UBP) MP Resmiye Canaltay supported the protest.
- Süheyla Küçük passed away – Dr Fazıl Küçük’s wife, Süheyla Küçük, who had been undergoing treatment at the Dr Burhan Nalbantoğlu hospital for some time, passed away yesterday (Monday) morning.
- 71 citizens returned home – 71 Turkish Cypriots, who were stranded in Turkey due to coronavirus pandemic, returned to the north. The Turkish Cypriots were taken to the Grand Anatolian hotel from the Kyrenia Port for their 14-day mandatory quarantine.
- The latest situation: North 108 cases, four deaths; South 970 cases, 25 deaths; Turkey 171,121 cases, 4,711 deaths.
Difficult days for the government
Following yesterday’s (Monday’s) protest staged by bus drivers which failed to be resolved, travel agents and hoteliers are preparing to hold a mass protest in front of parliament today. The bus drivers’ protest will continue today. Yesterday (Monday) bus drivers presented the government with a list of 12 demands but the government rejected the demands on grounds it did not have the money. The travel agencies and hoteliers will be joining the bus drivers in front of parliament today. They too are unhappy with the government as it has become flights will not resume on June 10. It is also not clear whether flights will resume on July 1.
Continuing with their protests
The public transport company owners could not reach an agreement with the cabinet. The protestors, claiming that the government is trying to play for time decided to continue with their protests when they failed to reach an agreement. The meeting that was held between the cabinet members and ten representatives among the public transport companies yielded no results.
- Süheyla Küçük passed away – Dr Fazıl Küçük’s wife, the ‘first lady’ 95-year-old Süheyla Küçük passed away. Küçük, who had been undergoing treatment at the Dr Burhan Nalbantoğlu hospital for some time, passed away yesterday (Monday) morning. News of her passing away also caused sadness among the Greek Cypriots.
- Dizdarlı and Gümüşdağ refuted the Science Board.
Main News
Confusion over reopening crossing points continue
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs Postası, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Afrika
Internal Security, CBMs
OVERVIEW
The Turkish Cypriot and Greek Cypriot chambers of commerce issued a joint statement on Monday urging the opening of the checkpoints on the Green Line.
The two leaders, Mustafa Akıncı and Nicos Anastasiades had reached an understanding for the partial opening of checkpoints today for specific groups of people.
In their statement, the two chambers said they had discussed the issue of the checkpoints at a teleconference on June 2.
The two chambers noted that they have been working together for years to promote economic cooperation between the two communities.
Taking into consideration the much-improved situation as regards the Covid-19 outbreak, the two chambers expressed their support for the opening of the checkpoints, a development that can help improve the economic situation in the two communities, their statement said.
“The two Chambers recall the need to boost economic cooperation on the island and increased bicommunal trade to maximise the economic potential of the two communities,” they said.
And they called on the two leaders to agree without delay to the opening of the checkpoints to the benefit of the two communities, thereby facilitating contact between Cypriots.
All necessary precautions must be taken and adhered to by all, they stressed.
Meanwhile, the Science Board said on Monday that it did not recommend the reopening of the crossings before July 1“
The statement issued by the Turkish Cypriot health ministry came in response to a report by Kıbrıs Postası which reciting reliable sources claimed that the board had given the green light for the reopening of the crossings before July 1 without the mandatory quarantine requirement.
The science board on Monday discussed the issue of crossing to the southern part of the island, quarantine requirements and the covid-19 situation in Turkey vis-à-vis the possible due arrivals.
“The scientific board agreed that the Turkish Cypriots, who would cross to the south for work purposes, will have to remain there until the crossings reopen. If they wish to return to the north, they will be subjected to 14-days in mandatory,” the statement read.
The Board also recommended the continuation of the quarantine requirement for the Turkish Cypriots arriving from Turkey.
It added that it could make recommendations to the cabinet for crossings for humanitarian reasons with prior permission.
“The daily crossings continue to remain too risky to fully reopen the crossings,” the statement concluded.
However, Dr Bülent Dizdarlı and Dr Yeşim Örek, who are both members of the bicommunal technical committee of health and who had attended Monday’s meeting, refuted the statement issued by the Turkish Cypriot health ministry.
Dizdarlı and Örek, shared the details of the meeting in a joint statement on Monday, revealing the issues discussed and the conclusions reached by the science board.
“The issue of reopening the crossings before June 1 was also discussed. Health experts highlighted that a gradual approach should be adapted from low-risk countries to high risk when reopening. They also agreed that the Greek Cypriot side is a low-risk area and as long as certain conditions are met, the science board members agreed that the crossings could be opened before July 1,” the statement said.
They added measures such as symptom screening for each person crossing (Ex. temperature reading); a negative PCR test result obtained within the last 72 hours of the first crossing; signing the ‘consent form’ (Giving assurance that the individual will refrain from being in crowded places) and finally agree to upload a tracking application on the individual’s mobile phone for potential infection tracing would be sufficient.
The joint statement also highlighted that the Turkish Cypriot health ministry refused to keep minutes of the meeting despite their insistence on an issue that concerns the entire community.
Turkish Cypriot Deputy Prime Minister-Foreign Minister Kudret Özersay said on Monday that the authorities will be observing arrivals on both sides of the island for the next 14-days before deciding on whether or not to remove the quarantine requirement.
“We want to see how things will unfold once the Greek Cypriot side starts accepting international flights,” he said, adding that things might have been different if the south had not started accepting international flights and arrivals.
Özersay, speaking in parliament on Monday said that although they had announced earlier hat crossings could begin on July 1, this could change according to the situation in the south.
He added that only the health minister could answer the question as to whether or not the north would be opening to Turkey on July 1.
“Whatever the decision will be it will not be political,” Özersay said.
He also announced that around 30 Turkish Cypriots who risked losing their jobs in the south had undergone PCR testing and would most probably cross over tomorrow.
“They will probably remain there for several weeks until the crossings are reopened without the need to place people in quarantine”, Özersay added.
Also speaking in parliament on Monday the leader of the Republican Turkish Party (CTP) Tufan Erhürman, backed the cabinet’s decision to keep the crossings closed until July 1.
He, however, questioned what the government was planning to do until then in terms of preparing for a possible second wave.
“We closed the crossings following the outbreak of the first cases mainly because of our poor health infrastructure. Now we are being asked to wait until July 1. So what’s missing? What does the cabinet plan to do until then?” Erhürman asked.
He argued the Turkish Cypriot community remained divided on the issue of the reopening the crossings, one demanding the crossings to be reopened for the sake of the economy and the other opposed to the idea until the pandemic is over.
“Our gradual opening must start with the south side and then the world,” Erhürman concluded.
Democratic Party (DP) leader Fikri Ataoğlu, Social Democratic Party (TDP) leader Cemal Özyiğit and Rebirth Party (YDP) leader Erhan Arıklı in separate remarks during the plenary questioned how the cabinet will plan on supporting the Turkish Cypriot workers, who are unable to cross to the south due to the closure of the crossing points.
Reopening of Maraş (Varosha) will help economic recovery
Kıbrıs Postası, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog
Property, Territory, Governance & Power Sharing
OVERVIEW
“The efforts are still underway on the reopening of the fenced-town of Maraş (Varosha),” Prime Minister and National Unity Party (UBP) leader Ersin Tatar said on Monday.
During a high-level party meeting, Tatar said the cabinet had Ankara’s full support on the Maraş (Varosha) issue.
“Turkish Vice-President Fuat Oktay has always said the north will turn into a place of attraction. And it will be with Turkey’s continued support,” Tatar said.
He recalled the details of the recently signed economic protocol and pointed out that the protocol agreement will help create the much-needed momentum in the economy.
“I strongly believe the north will recover from the negative effects of coronavirus pandemic on the economy and will improve soon with the correct steps – reopening of Maraş (Varosha) being one of them,” Tatar concluded.