Front Page Headlines
We’re not focusing on savings but funds
The reality behind the salary support for workers. ₺2,000 (€258) from provident fund: 16,678 applications, ₺33m (€4.2m) made in payments. ₺1,500 (€193) support from fund: 50,000 applications, ₺75m (€9.6m) made out in payments. Private sector employees showed interest in the ₺1,500 (€193) salary support provided during the pandemic lockdown. While 50,000 people applied to the support scheme funded through the Employment Support Incentive Fund, private sector employees were more hesitant in touching their savings in the provident fund.
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The number of accidents increased by four times
The normalisation process following the coronavirus pandemic has had a negative effect on traffic. According to information obtained from the police, there were only 78 traffic accidents and only 24 people were injured during the lockdown period from March 23 to May 3. However, a total of 305 accidents have been recorded since the start of easing restrictions in May. Five people have died and 111 people were injured.
- One million cartons of milk waiting in storage – The livestock breeders, who complain of high costs, were outraged with they heard about attempts to reduce the current price of raw milk as they were waiting for an increase. Mustafa Naimoğulları, head of the Livestock Breeders’ Association said the producers are left with nearly 60 tons of unsold milk each day. They demand the authorities find solutions for the producers.
- The current system will change – Hürrem Tulga, General Coordinator for the Turkish Cypriot Chamber of Shopkeepers and Artisans (KTEZO) said once the “occupational proficiency” bill is enacted, the people in the labour market will be certified according to their expertise, changing the current system of one worker ‘that does all.’
3,534 crossings in 26 hours
Thousands of Turkish Cypriots used the crossings on the first day of the opening of five crossing points. 1,318 Turkish Cypriots, 26 Greek Cypriots and 46 third-country nationals crossed from the south to the north and 2,086 Turkish Cypriots, 21 Greek Cypriots and 36 third-country nationals crossed from the north to the south between 6:30 am on 22 June and 8:30 am on 23 June. 768 Turkish Cypriots, who had crossed to the south, did not return to the north. According to statistics, the Metehan (Agios Dometios) crossing point was the most preferred crossing.
- Children from Pile (Pyla) are made to suffer – Even though the crossing of the Turkish Cypriots in Pile (Pyla) have been normalised, the children below 12 are experiencing difficulties in returning to the south. It is because PCR tests were not being done on children in that age group.
- Civilian concern for 1 July – Civil society is concerned about the government’s decision to allow arrivals from Turkey without the quarantine requirement from 1 July onwards. The Trade Unions Platform and health associations staged a protest outside the Prime Ministry demanding a pandemic hospital.
- The latest situation: North 108 cases, four deaths; South 990 cases, 26 deaths; Turkey 190,165 cases, 5,001 deaths.
Both of them
Mukhtars who are unhappy about the situation in the country support bringing forward the date of the presidential elections as well as to have early general elections. While some argued that the government had not managed the pandemic lockdown properly, others are claiming that economic problems are growing. They are proposing that the two elections be held together. The mukhtars are also complaining that they are not happy with the way parliament is working.
- Message to the government – President Mustafa Akıncı says that all crossing points could be open based on scientific data and by taking necessary precautions.
- Joint action plan – Israeli and Greek Cypriot foreign ministers hold lightening summit at Ben Gurion airport.
You cannot open the ports
Doctors and trade unions warned the government, which is getting ready to open its ports to arrivals from Turkey on July 1. They demanded that cabinet to revise its decision. Head of the Turkish Cypriot Doctors’ Association Özlem Gürkut slammed the government for its failure to build a pandemic hospital. She added despite the dedication and the sacrifices of the medical workers, the health services provided have been reduced as well. Gürkut argued that the decision to place Turkey within the group of low-risk countries and to allow arrivals as of July 1 was politically motivated.
- Famagusta retailers staged a protest urging the government to turn its face towards the shopkeepers.
- The subcommittee approved the bill on IT crimes – All eyes on the parliament on the bill anxiously awaited.
- Shame on BRT for not attending the meeting called by Akıncı – Akıncı condemned the Bayrak Radio Television Corporation (BRTK) for not attending the meeting. National Archives and Research Department, Turkish news agency TAK and other private television channels in the north attended the meeting.
Main News
Akıncı slams government’s stance over crossing points
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs Postası, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Afrika
Internal Security, CBMs
OVERVIEW
President Mustafa Akıncı on Tuesday accused Ersin Tatar’s government of creating total chaos over the crossings by refusing to coordinate with the Greek Cypriot side as per his agreement with the Greek Cypriot leader Nicos Anastasiades.
In a written statement, Akıncı said the government’s moves which he pointed out were aimed at excluding him from the election atmosphere were in fact harming the Turkish Cypriot community.
While the Greek Cypriot side did not open the Lokmacı (Ledra Street) crossing, Akıncı said, the Turkish Cypriot side has done so, while it did not open the Ledra Palace crossing, which is open on the Greek Cypriot side.
“While our government did not open the Derinya (Dherynia) crossing which is very important for the Famagusta area, it declared that it opened the crossings of Beyarmudu (Pergamos) and Akyar (Strovilia),” he said, adding that the Turkish Cypriot side left the Yeşilırmak (Limnitis) crossing closed which is extremely important for the Greek Cypriots for humanitarian reasons. The Greek Cypriot side, on the other hand, kept the Ledra Street crossing closed, which is very important for Turkish Cypriot shopkeepers in the area,” he said.
He reiterated that every step taken on the crossings should be implemented with the necessary coordination and mutually reasonable arrangements based on scientific data, both to protect public health and to the benefit of the society.”
Stressing the importance of coordination between the two sides through the Technical Committee on Health, Akıncı expressed his regret that the government continued to exhibit unnecessary political stubbornness.
He said his agreement with Anastasiades last month on initially giving priority to some groups of people to start using the crossings from June 8 and to gradually ease restrictions in a coordinated manner, could not be implemented due to the ‘government’ attitude.
Akıncı also said that the government ignored the experts’positive opinion on the crossings, but also that it kept changing its decisions.
Later Tuesday evening, Akıncı in another statement announced that the Yeşilırnak (Limnidis) crossing point would be opened for crossings by the weekend.
The announcement came after Akıncı spoke separately with the UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative in Cyprus (SRSG) and head of the UN Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP) Elizabeth Spehar, Foreign Minister Kudret Özersay and the Greek Cypriot leader Nicos Anastasiades over the phone.
According to the statement, Akıncı also raised the issue of the Lokmacı (Ledra) crossing with Anastasiades and informed him that the Yeşilırmak (Limnidis) crossing point would be opened by the weekend the latest.
The crossing has remained closed since the beginning of March.
He also told Anastasiades that it was of paramount importance that controls at sea and airports were tightened as international arrivals on both sides of the divide were in the process of resuming.
The statement also said that Anastasiades had conveyed his concerns about the surge in the number of coronavirus cases in Turkey and the fact that the Turkish Cypriot side had yet to submit an epidemiological report of the situation in the north to the bicommunal Technical Committee for Health.
In a separate development, Havadis reported on Wednesday that Turkish Cypriot children under the age of 12 from the mixed village of Pile (Pyla) were experiencing difficulties when trying to return to their village after crossing north because the Turkish Cypriot health ministry refused to carry out PCR tests on them.
“The ministry believes that there is no need to test children under the age of 12 because testing is already being carried out on their parents but this is causing a problem when the children try to cross back. We hope this problem will be solved,” the Turkish Cypriot Muhktar Veysel Gülden said.
Gülden also said that Turkish Cypriot working in the sovereign bases or the north were now able to go to their jobs.
Meanwhile, no outcome emerged from the cabinet meeting in the north on Tuesday despite a five-hour-long meeting aimed at reassessing an earlier decision to allow arrivals from Turkey without quarantine as of July 1.
As the cabinet meeting went on a demonstration was staged outside by the Trade Unions Platform and three doctors and nurses’ associations.
The unions and associations called on the government to revise its decision to allow arrivals from Turkey as of July 1 as not enough had been done to prepare the north’s health infrastructure for a second wave.
Head of the Turkish Cypriot Doctors’ Association Özlem Gürkut also slammed the government for its failure to build a pandemic hospital.
She argued that the decision to place Turkey within the group of low-risk countries and to allow arrivals as of July 1 was politically motivated
In the meantime, Turkish Cypriot dailies reported that long waiting lines had formed at the coronavirus testing centre at the General Hospital in Nicosia in the north of people who want to cross to the south.
The dailies also reported that crossings had started to pick up despite the PCR test requirements and confusion.
Thousands of Turkish Cypriots used the crossings on the first day of the opening of five crossing points.
1,318 Turkish Cypriots, 26 Greek Cypriots and 46 third-country nationals crossed from the south to the north and 2,086 Turkish Cypriots, 21 Greek Cypriots and 36 third-country nationals crossed from the north to the south between 6:30 am on 22 June and 8:30 am on 23 June, the dailies reported.
768 Turkish Cypriots, who had crossed to the south, did not return to the north.
The highest number of crossings was recorded at the Metehan (Agios Dometios) crossing, followed by the Beyarmudu (Pergamos) crossing point and the Akyar (Strovilia) crossing.
The least number of crossings were recorded at the Ledra Palace crossing point. According to available statistics, 14 Turkish Cypriots, two Greek Cypriots and one third-country national crossed to the north and 16 Turkish Cypriots, two Greek Cypriots and 13 third-country nationals crossed to the south from the Ledra Palace crossing point.
The crossings at Ledra Palace are being carried out for those with special permission as it is not included in the five crossing points reopened by the Turkish Cypriot side.
Historical audiovisual recordings distributed to the media
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs Postası, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Afrika
Human Rights, CBMs
OVERVIEW
The audio-visual recordings obtained from the Cyprus Broadcasting Corporation (CyBC) archives on the work of Turkish-Cypriot artists, which had been returned to the Turkish Cypriot side as part of an exchange earlier in the year between the two sides, were distributed to the National Archives and Research Department, Turkish news agency TAK and to other private television channels in the north, who attended the meeting on Tuesday.
In a statement issued from the office of the president, the meeting participants were also briefed on the 45 videos, compromising a total of five hours of recordings and footage.
“The videos show important slices from the Turkish Cypriots’ visual memory from the recent past. Therefore, it is all the more important the archives will be made available to the broader community while being protected for future generations and researchers,” Akıncı said during the meeting.
He expressed gratitude to those attended the meeting but strongly criticized Bayrak Radio Television Corporation (BRTK) for not attending the meeting.
“I am deeply disappointed by the fact that state broadcasting corporation had failed to send even a representative to such a significant meeting on the history and visual memory of the Turkish Cypriot community,” Akıncı stressed.
He added Bayrak should have been the first ones to claim ownership of the audio-visual archives as being the public broadcasting institution of the Turkish Cypriot community.
Art and audio-visual material were exchanged in September 2019 between the two sides as a Confidence-Building Measure (CBM) agreed between Akıncı and Anastasiades on February 2, 2019.
Following a two-day exhibition, which showcased 50 works by Greek Cypriot artists as well as audio-visual material from the CyBC archives on the work of Turkish-Cypriot artists, the audio-visual recordings had been returned to the Turkish Cypriot side for archiving and digitising project.