Front Page Headlines
They shut them down, they should pay
Bar owners disagree with the government’s decision to shut down all bars until October 1. Reactions are growing. The bar owners who point out that they lost a lot of business by the time the reopening process had begun, accuse the government of being incompetent as a result of the frequently changing and revised decisions taken. The owners complain that they have suffered seriously economically.
- Erhürman: “An agreement in the East Med passes through a solution in Cyprus”
- Bozkır to chair, Anastasiades to speak (United Nations General Assembly)
Debts are breaking everyone’s back
There are thousands of pending cases due to debts, caused by the economic crisis, the fluctuation in the value of foreign currencies and cash flow problems. In the last 14 years, 163,181 cases were filed as a result of unpaid debts. The breakdown of cases is as follows: 61,480 cases for sequestration of property; 7,228 cases for dud cheques; 3,793 cases demanding eviction due to unpaid lease amount and 8,646 cases demanding compensation over damages for unpaid debts. The annual activity report of the Turkish Cypriot courts reveals the depth of the economic crisis in the north.
- “If you respect, you will be respected” – Independent candidate Serdar Denktaş spoke to Hasan Hastürer regarding his election campaign.
The quarantine ordeal
The workers and those in quarantine at the Özok dormitory, which was converted into a quarantine centre, are suffering from the absence of an order or system. One former worker at the dormitory spoke to Havadis about the problems at the quarantine centre.
- The Greek Cypriot side blocks the EU – The Greek Cypriot side insisted on sanctions against Turkey during the European Union Foreign Ministers’ meeting and as a result, there was no consensus on sanctions against Belarus.
All facing difficulties
Cafe and restaurant owners are experiencing serious difficulties after the tourism sector shut down for the season and because university students have not returned to the island. The establishment owners said that business has dropped by a further 60 per cent since the pandemic first started in March. “We are finding it very difficult to remain open,” they told Diyalog.
- ‘The north is cheaper’ – The Minister for Economy and Energy Hasan Taçoy said that the freshwater which will flow from Turkey soon could be sold to the Greek Cypriot side. “We shall make the same proposal for electricity,” he said.
Just like that
EL-SEN (KIBTEK – Turkish Cypriot Electricity Authority Workers’ Union) cut off the power to Interior Ministry due to nearly ₺2m (€225,000) unpaid electricity bill. EL-SEN added the union will continue to cut off the power supply of state institutions and other companies that owe KIBTEK significant amounts in unpaid bills.
- Four in the north, three in the south – 1485 tests were carried out in the north and 3036 in the south.
- The nightclubs must be shut down – Women’s Education Collective said; “The state is turning a blind eye to women, whose passports had been seized by the police, to working at nightclubs during the pandemic.
- KTÖS: Why are the nightclubs exempted? -KTÖS (Turkish Cypriot Teachers’ Union) General Secretary Şener Elcil asked whether the government was earning significant revenues from the nightclub sector.
- ’The claim the federation is over’ is a reflection of a blinded foreign policy – Tahir Gökçebel, head of the Turkish Cypriot Secondary School Teachers’ Union (KTOES) said.
Main News
Erhürman: Cyprob solution only way to solve East Med problems
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog
Negotiations Process, Energy, Regional/International Relations
OVERVIEW
Leader of the Republican Turkish Party (CTP) and presidential candidate Tufan Erhürman said on Monday that tensions in the Eastern Mediterranean will only end through a just and lasting solution to the Cyprus Problem.
In an interview with Mediascope online news platform in Turkey, Erhürman said that the negotiations to be conducted under the UN umbrella need to be results-oriented and not open-ended.
“The whole world needs to know this and we need to explain this to the world,” he said.
The CTP candidate said that the Greek Cypriots believe that time is working in their interest.
“It is this very belief that is preventing a solution in Cyprus from taking place. The Greek Cypriots, to make matters worse, have ignored Turkish Cypriots whenever it has come to the issue of hydrocarbons and maritime jurisdiction. More recently we have seen the Greek Cypriots sign deals with other countries which are all legally problematic and questionable,” he said.
Erhürman said that the Greek Cypriots were violating international law every time they excluded Turkish Cypriots, who are founding partners of the 1960 Republic of Cyprus (RoC).
Regarding the 5+1 conference, he reminded that the offer to hold the informal meeting had come from Turkey.
“The United Nations Secretary-General (UNSG) Antonio Guterres had made it clear that this time the 5+1 conference would not be open-ended and would be a results-oriented negotiation,” he said.
Erhürman said that it was true Turkish Cypriots were fed up of being chained to the negotiating table hoping for a solution to happen.
“The Greek Cypriot side is constantly trying to gain time, to make us lose time and to strengthen its hand at the negotiating table,” he added.
Meanwhile, independent candidate Serdar Denktaş said on Monday that the perception created by the Greek Cypriot side that the north is a sub-administration of Turkey prevents Turkish Cypriots from being interlocutors on the Cyprus Issue.
“We need a process which will remove this perception. All attempts being made are aimed at bringing South Cyprus and Turkey face-to-face in the talks and sidelining Turkish Cypriots. We need to remind the Greek Cypriots that we are their interlocutors,” he added.
Denktaş, speaking on Ada TV, said that he saw no point in renegotiating issues that have been on the table for the past 50 years.
“As long as the world’s approach to South Cyprus does not change, the Greek Cypriots will not be willing to share anything with us,” he said.
He echoed Erhürman’s views that the Greek Cypriots were playing for time in the hope that Turkish Cypriots, who are so desperate for a solution, will eventually surrender.
Denktaş said that he wasn’t opposed to negotiating a federal settlement but added that if Turkey chooses to abandon the federal solution model, then the approach should be different.
“We should explain to the world why we and Ankara don’t want a federation rather than outright rejecting it,” he explained.
KEY ACTORS
Erhürman (CTP)
>> Tensions in East Med can only be solved through a just & lasting solution to the Cyprob.
>> Negotiation to be conducted under UN umbrella must be results-oriented & not open-ended.
>> Deals signed by GC with other countries, whilst excluding TCs problematic & violate international law.
Denktaş (DP)
>> GC side trying to create the perception TCs are sub-administration of Turkey. This needs to change & GCs be reminded that TCs are their interlocutors.
>> GCs will not be willing to share anything with TCs as long as the international community’s approach does not change.
>> If the federation model is to be abandoned, Turkey & TCs must effectively explain to the world why.
Federation is the most viable model
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Avrupa
Negotiations Process, Regional/International Relations
OVERVIEW
The debate on the basis of a solution to the Cyprus Problem which ignited after Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu last week expressed Ankara’s opposition to negotiating a federal settlement continues to dominate the agenda in the north.
“President Mustafa Akıncı is advocating for the most feasible solution within the UN parameters,” Dr Suphi Hüdaoğlu, a high-ranking member of the Social Democratic Party (TDP), said on Monday.
Speaking during a programme on Bayrak, Hüdaoğlu added the other supposed options were unrealistic.
Reiterating that the basis for the talks had been agreed during the Berlin trilateral, Hüdaoğlu said the conclusion of the Berlin meeting is the result of Akıncı’s determination for reaching a federal solution.
“The bicommunal, bizonal federal solution based on political equality, will include effective participation in decision-making processes and rotational presidency,” Hüdaoğlu noted.
He added the new Cyprus talks process will be results-oriented and will not be an open-ended process.
“The solution in Cyprus will also improve the regional situation, de-escalating the tension in the region,” Hüdaoğlu concluded.
Tahir Gökçebel, president of KTOEÖS (TC secondary school teachers’ union) issued a statement harshly criticising the Turkish foreign policy on Cyprus.
“Claiming that efforts to reach a federal solution in Cyprus are over is nothing but a reflection of a blinded foreign policy,” Gökçebel said, adding that the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) continues to make mistakes on the Cyprus issue.
“The 1977-1979 High-Level Agreements dictate the federal solution model on Cyprus and since then, the federal solution has become one of the UN parameters,” Gökçebel stressed.
He underlined that those who claim the efforts for a federal solution had been exhausted must respect the Turkish Cypriot community and its will.
“The policies developed with a focus on interests by disregarding the Turkish Cypriot community’s will, are doomed to fail,” Gökçebel warned. He urged “those who speak on behalf of the community” to respect the Turkish Cypriot community.
October 11 elections should be postponed, Arıklı suggests
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Avrupa
Governance & Power Sharing, Internal Security, Economy
OVERVIEW
“The people are seriously considering boycotting the elections to protest the government’s failure to manage the pandemic and the economic crisis,” Rebirth Party (YDP) leader and presidential candidate Erhan Arıklı said on Monday.
In a written statement, Arıklı suggested the government postpone the upcoming elections so that the cabinet can focus on more urgent matters.
“While the spike in the number of cases causes panic among the people, the economic crisis, increasing unemployment, unpaid bank loans and devaluating Turkish Lira have put the people in a dire situation,” Arıklı argued, adding that the coalition members are only concerned about their candidacies.
“As the coalition members are focused on the elections in full gear, the people are considering displaying their outrage by not voting and if there is less than 50 per cent turnout at the elections, the results will be questioned,” Arıklı said.
He concluded by urging the coalition partners to postpone the October 11 elections to focus on the economic problems in the north.
In a similar message, Metin Yılgın, board member of the Turkish Cypriot Businessmen’s Association (İŞAD), urged the presidential candidates to turn their eyes to the pandemic and other problems in the north.
Yılgın ridiculed the candidates’ campaign slogans in a statement issued by İŞAD. He said the Board’s patience has run out, adding that the Association had no choice but to voice its criticism of the candidates.
Nightclubs must be shut down ASAP
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Avrupa
Human Rights, Internal Security
OVERVIEW
The “Women’s Education Collective” are demanding the immediate closure of all the nightclubs in the north, the dailies reported on Tuesday.
In a written statement issued on Monday, the Collective argued that the government was not only turning a blind eye to the suffering of women who are being pushed into prostitution but was now putting the women at risk of infection by keeping the nightclubs open.
“The Higher Committee for Infectious Diseases, in an absurd move, has excluded night clubs from the list of businesses to shut down until October 1 on grounds that there is no direct contact,” the statement read.
It pointed out that the women employed as waitresses and hostesses at the nightclubs were being pushed into prostitution and the fact that there was sexual activity at nightclubs has been documented in court verdicts.
“The Collective reiterates its demand for the closure of the nightclubs to free the sex slaves, to protect the women’s rights and to ensure they are not at risk of being infected,” the statement concluded.
The Higher Committee for Infectious Diseases on Sunday implemented new measures to contain the spread of coronavirus in the north, in which it decided to shut bars but not the nightclubs.
Uludağ chosen as one of HasNa’s 2020 Peacebuilders of the Year
Yenidüzen
Human Rights, CBMs
OVERVIEW
Turkish Cypriot investigative journalist who writes for Politis and Yenidüzen is among seven women chosen as HasNa’s 2020 Peacebuilders of the Year.
HasNa’s mission is to facilitate cross-cultural understanding between communities divided along ethnic, religious, racial, gender, and national lines, and to reduce barriers to effective integration and positive peace.
For the past four years, HasNa has celebrated each International Day of Peace on September 21st by showcasing exceptional peacebuilders of the year.
The seven women were chosen for their commitment to dismantling barriers to positive peace, giving voice to the undeserved, and striving to improve intercommunal relations.
All of them have demonstrated the skill, resolve, and passion that is required to overcome the myriad challenges confronted by those affected by conflict, violence, and injustice, a statement issued by the organization read.
Meanwhile, the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP) marked the International Day of Peace with a message urging everyone to “work together for peace and a peaceful future,” Yenidüzen reported on Tuesday.
UNFICYP reiterated its commitment to establishing peace on the island.
“UNFICYP remains committed to strengthening the ideals of peace on the island. The date is a timely reminder of the importance of working together to overcome challenges and build a peaceful future for all,” the tweet on Monday read.