Front Page Headlines
58,000 applications, payment uncertain
A search is underway for funds for the ₺1,500 salary support scheme. The deadline for applications for the support payments which will be made to private-sector employees of businesses that were shut down during the lockdown ended on March 5. 58,000 individuals have applied however it’s not clear yet who will receive the payments and when they will take place.
- We are the leader in red meat prices. There is no other more expensive! – Prices of red meat in the country is almost double that in Turkey and South Cyprus.
We haven’t been able to get rid of this damn corona
It has been a year since the first case of Covid-19, which started in the Wuhan district of China and spread to the entire world, was detected in the TRNC.
- The restaurants are sparkling clean – Restaurants which were previously only allowed to serve customers in the form of takeaway and delivery services, but which will be allowed to serve sit-in customers as of today scrubbed and cleaned the whole day yesterday.
- 17 locally transmitted, 27 positive cases identified in the TRNC.
- 420 new cases in one day in South Cyprus.
“We are exhausted”
Our doctors, who risk their lives every day in the fight against Covid-19, are preparing to celebrate March 14, Doctor’s Day in a bitter mood. Not only do doctors have to deal with the challenges posed by the virus, but have also to cope with the government’s wrong and inconsistent decisions. The Turkish Cypriot Doctors’ Association, the Chamber of Doctors, and the Chamber of Dentists, which held a press conference in line with the pandemic rules, pointed out the bitter facts in the country. Dr Özlem Gürkut, head of the Doctors’ Association said it is necessary to act in light of science to contribute to humanity refraining from bigoted mindsets. Dr Yonca Morris, head of the Chamber of Doctors said that health professionals, despite being applauded for their efforts, had been subject to verbal attacks following their recommendations for a lockdown which were based on scientific data and algorithms. Dr Dentist Kaan Avşaroğlu, head of the Chamber of Dentists, said it is not possible to speak about regularity in the government’s practices, adding that the health professionals including doctors, dentists, nurses and pharmacists are the ones successful in the fight against the pandemic.
- “We are ready to collaborate with Turkey” – Israel’s Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz called on Turkey for the EastMed project, which the Greek Cypriot administration is a part of.
- Exchange of views from Green Line to Geneva – British High Commissioner Stephen Lillie visited the Republican Turkish Party (CTP).
- Vaccinations reduced deaths – Even though deaths caused by Covid-19 in the world was at a record high of 17,622 on January 20, there is a significant decrease trend in the past three weeks.
The difference between the two sides
While there is 6.8m m3 of water in the reservoirs in the north, this amount is 221.2m m3 in the south. Water levels at reservoirs in the north are much lower this year compared to previous years. Speaking to Diyalog, the head of the Department of Water Works Tarkan Çeki said there is 6.8m m3 of water in total in the 17 reservoirs in the north. He added that the reservoirs were at 46.3 per cent capacity. The 18 reservoirs in the south on the other hand are at 77 per cent capacity.
- No loss of life – 27 new cases in the north, 420 in the south.
- Police keeping a sharp lookout –Mustafa Eligon from Pınarbaşı (Krini) who accidentally discovered a treasure trove when his tractor fell into a ditch and who informed police says there might be gold pieces among the artefacts.
Obedient lackeys
Those who display a blind allegiance to (Turkish President) Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in (North) Cyprus have posted “Love Erdoğan” ads on billboards in response to the “Stop Erdoğan” ads put up on billboards in Times Square in New York. It is not known who paid for the ads or which municipality has given approval…Would it be allowed if someone wanted to put up the “Stop Erdoğan” ads on billboards?
- 7,092 tests were carried out identifying 27 cases in the north, 420 cases were identified in the south with 4,799 tests.
Main News
Olgun & Lute discuss technicalities for five-plus-one meeting
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Avrupa
Negotiations Process
OVERVIEW
The UN secretary-general’s special envoy Jane Holl Lute who is on the island for preparations ahead of April’s informal five-party summit continued with her contacts on Tuesday by meeting with Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar’s Special Representative Ergün Olgun.
The two discussed several talking points and logistical arrangements ahead of the upcoming informal meeting 5+1 on Cyprus in Geneva to be convened by the United Nations.
In a statement after he met with Lute, Olgun highlighted the need to bring new, creative and out-of-the-box ideas at the informal meeting to overcome the current deadlock on the Cyprus Issue which is the result of decades of failed processes.
He pointed out that the informal meeting will be held with the sole purpose of determining whether or not common ground exists for the launch of a new negotiations process. Olgun added that no other aspects of the Cyprus Problem will be discussed at the meeting.
He also said the previous failures to reach a federal solution have also shown the world that the basis of the former negotiations is not suitable for the conditions on the island.
“As I have witnessed personally, the terms proposed over years talks have failed to safeguard the Turkish Cypriot side’s political equality,” Olgun said, adding that the Turkish Cypriot side did not consent to resume negotiations on the federal model.
Regarding the EU’s desire to participate in the upcoming summit, Olgun said he had told the UN special envoy that the EU could not be allowed to take part in the meeting since it had chosen membership solidarity over being objective or impartial.
He argued that a two-state solution based on sovereign equality and collaboration between two states existing side-by-side was essential when taking into consideration regional balances and tensions in the Eastern Mediterranean. Olgun said that recognition of one side as a state and the isolation of the other did not contribute to achieving the desired peace and stability in the region.
“Balance and stability can only be achieved if there is equality between the two sides,” Olgun stressed. “The rights of the Turkish Cypriot people, whether it be political or any other, can only be safeguarded through sovereign equality and international equal status, all of which are included in our new vision,” Olgun concluded.
KEY ACTORS
Olgun (Tatar)
>> New, creative & inventive ideas needed to overcome the current deadlock.
>> Informal meeting will be held for the sole purpose of determining whether or not common ground exists for the new process. There will be no negotiating.
>> Past processes have shown that a federal basis not suitable for Cyprus.
>> TC side does not consent to resume federal talks.
>> EU cannot participate in the 5+1 meeting because it is not impartial.
>> Two-state solution essential for regional balances & tensions in East Med.
>> Rights of TCs can only be safeguarded through sovereign equality & international equal status.
CTP & Lillie met ahead of the five-plus-one meeting
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Avrupa
Negotiations Process
OVERVIEW
The leader of the main opposition Republican Turkish Party (CTP) Tufan Erhürman and CTP Kyrenia MP/Foreign Affairs Secretary Fikri Toros relayed the party’s position on the upcoming five-plus-one meeting to the British High Commissioner Stephen Lillie at a meeting on Tuesday.
In a statement issued from the CTP, Lillie, during the meeting, reaffirmed that UK supports a bicommunal, bizonal federal (BBF) solution based on the political equality of the two communities in line with UN resolutions and parameters.
Lillie also said the UK, as a guarantor nation and a permanent member of the UN Security Council (UNSC), will “do its best with new ideas” for the two sides to agree on a common ground for the launch of new negotiations.
Additionally, the delegations during the meeting also exchanged information on the freedom of movement of British citizens on the island following the completion of Brexit.
KEY ACTOR
Lillie (UK)
>> UK supports BBF based on political equality in line with UN resolutions.
>> UK will do its best with new ideas to help sides reach a common ground.
Tatar says realities on the island point to a two-state
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Avrupa
Negotiations Process
OVERVIEW
Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar on Tuesday said the realities in Cyprus point to a two-state solution model on the island. He said that this was the way forward but that the Turkish Cypriot side is ready for collaboration and negotiations.
In an interview with TRT World, Tatar recalled that all past processes to achieve a federal settlement had failed.
“We are now talking about two equal states that co-exist side-by-side,” he noted, arguing that such an agreement will be a win-win situation not only for the two sides but also for all in the Eastern Mediterranean. Tatar also said Ankara fully backed the Turkish Cypriot side’s position on the Cyprus problem.
Responding to a question on the EU’s involvement in the process, Tatar said the bloc was not an impartial entity as it was obliged to support its members Greece and the Greek Cypriot side in the name of membership solidarity. He reiterated that both Turkey and the Turkish Cypriot side objected to the EU’s involvement in the negotiations process.
Tatar concluded by noting that the Turkish Cypriot side will table its new vision based on a two-state model during the five-plus-one meeting in Geneva.
Meanwhile, in a separate statement issued on Tuesday to mark the resistance put by Turkish Cypriots in Paphos in 1964, Tatar said that it was out of the question for Turkish Cypriots to abandon Turkey’s active and effective guarantees or the presence of the Turkish troops on the island.
Tatar recalled that it had been Turkey that had intervened just days after Greek Cypriots had broken a ceasefire agreement following the adoption of a UN Security Council resolution for the deployment of UN peacekeepers on the island.
“The fact that only Turkey had acted to put an end to the atrocities against Turkish Cypriots while the rest of the world watched is sufficient to justify the Turkish Cypriots’ insistence on Turkey’s guarantees,” he said. Tatar added that any attempt to water down or scrap Turkey’s guarantees on grounds that the 1960 system is outdated and anachronistic will not be accepted.
KEY ACTORS
Tatar
>> Realities in Cyprus point to a two-state solution, but the TC side is ready to collaborate & negotiate.
>> Two-state solution will be a win-win for two sides & East Med.
>> EU cannot take part in a 5+1 meeting because it cannot be impartial.
>> Out of the question for TCs to abandon Turkey’s guarantees.
>> Past experiences are sufficient to justify TCs insistence on guarantees.
15 per cent of the north’s population receives second jabs
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Avrupa
Internal Security
OVERVIEW
Turkish Cypriot Prime Minister Ersan Saner on Tuesday said that 15 per cent of the north’s population has received both doses of Covid-19 vaccines.
Speaking on Genç TV, Saner said that so far a total of 100,000 doses from Turkey and 11,000 from the EU have been delivered to the north. He also said the latest shipment of Sinovac vaccines are being used to administer second doses, adding that no new vaccinations will be made until a new batch arrives.
Concurring with Saner, Turkish Cypriot Health Minister Ünal Üstel said nearly 7,000 people over the age of 65 are still waiting to receive their second jabs.
Speaking to Bayrak about the ongoing vaccination drive, Üstel said his ministry has stopped vaccinating new groups until a new shipment of vaccines is sent from Turkey. He also noted that vaccinations are taking place at 17 polyclinics or sites with the support of the local administrations.
Touching on the capacity of the health system in the north, the Turkish Cypriot health minister said the process to procure new equipment to increase the north’s testing capacity was underway. He said they planned to carry out 10,000 PCR tests a day once the new machines are purchased. He added that rapid antigen test kits and other kits to determine mutations in cases were received from Turkey on Monday.
Üstel also said the health ministry will be starting the home-isolation system soon for chronic patients and for families with small children, who have come into contact with previously identified coronavirus patients.