Front Page Headlines
Vaccine deadlock
While the pandemic shows no sign of dying down, the uncertainty over when the vaccines will arrive continues. Doctors speaking to Yenidüzen expressed their concerns over easing of restrictions as more and more variants of Covid-19 emerge. “We are seeing a rise in cases and so we should also have a more variety of vaccines. We need to increase the public’s immunity levels. The current pace of vaccinations is too slow,” they said.
- Peoples’ Party (HP) leader Kudret Özersay: “We need to reopen crossing points for daily crossings with PCR tests. We need to open the crossings for 12 hours.”
- 23 of 390 passengers are in home quarantine with electronic bracelets – The new electronic bracelet monitoring system came into operation yesterday. A total of 390 passengers flew into Ercan (Tymbou) yesterday, 23 of them were placed in home quarantine and are being monitored with electronic wristbands.
The final decision on Hellim (Halloumi) is given
The European Commission officially registered hellim (halloumi) as a protected designation of origin (PDO) together with the amendments to the Green Line Trade regulation yesterday.
- The home-quarantine system launched – It is noted that the quarantine violations can be fined up to five times the minimum wage during the launch ceremony held for the “TRNC Quarantine Monitoring System” and “Be Safe” application.
Tourism in intensive care
Tourism collapsed as a result of the pandemic. The number of passengers from January to December 2020 has decreased by 77.8 per cent compared to the same period in 2019. The average occupancy rate at the hotels was 16.9 per cent in 2020.
- “Tatar’s attitude is extremely dangerous” – Republican Turkish Party (CTP) leader Tufan Erhürman speaking in parliament, criticized President Ersin Tatar’s messages given ahead of the Geneva conference.
- “The most realistic solution is federation” – Social Democratic Party (TDP) leader Cemal Özyiğit said: “What Tatar presents as new is actually 50-years-old.”
- Crossings are opening – Presidential spokeswoman Berna Çelik Doğruyol announced it has been agreed to reopen the crossings to pre-Covid-19 conditions as soon as the pandemic permits.
The first in the world
Quarantine free entry to North Cyprus has begun with the electronic bracelet monitoring system. Despite not being recognised internationally, the TRNC government has accomplished a first in the world. A new system whereby arriving passengers can be monitored through electronic bracelets while they isolate themselves came into operation. 35 people were sent home for quarantine after the necessary procedures were completed.
- Important development – Work has been launched for reopening crossings.
- 113,000 people have been vaccinated – South Cyprus ranks top in EU countries for the highest number of daily PCR tests.
150,000 doses of vaccines from Turkey to Libya
While the TRNC is experiencing a shortage of vaccines, (Turkish President) Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is sending vaccines to Libya. In a joint news conference after a meeting with the Government of National Accord (GNA) Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Mohammed Dbeibah in Ankara, Erdoğan said “Turkey will assist the reconstruction of Libya” and added Ankara will also support Libya in the fight against the coronavirus. He pledged 150,000 doses of Covid-19 vaccines.
- Amcaoğlu: We do not have vaccines – Education Minister Olgun Amcaoğlu noted that the cabinet has been sharing the efforts to deliver vaccines to the north. He added that he also is in favour of vaccination before resuming in-class education however noted that there are no vaccines available.
- Will the crossings be reopened? – The Turkish Cypriot side has proposed to the Greek Cypriot side for the reopening of the crossing points and returning to pre-Covid-19 conditions.
- 528 positive cases of coronavirus and one death in the south and 35 cases in the north…
Main News
The sides agree on reopening crossings, Tatar’s office announces
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Avrupa
Negotiations Process
OVERVIEW
Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar’s spokeswoman Berna Çelik Doğruyol on Monday announced that the two sides have agreed to work for reopening of the crossing points provided that the epidemiological situation on both sides allows it.
In a written statement, Doğruyol said the two sides reached an agreement following a proposal tabled by Tatar’s Special Adviser Ergün Olgun within the scope of confidence-building measures (CBMs) at a meeting with the Greek Cypriot negotiator Andreas Mavroyiannis and the UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative Elizabeth Spehar on March 19, 2021.
She added that an agreement had been reached to carry out work that would allow normal crossings to resume, to the extent the epidemiological situation permitted with the lowest possible level of risk, and to return to pre-pandemic conditions.
Doğruyol said that in line with the agreement reached, the members of the bicommunal technical committee on health had been tasked to harmonise rules in place on both sides of the divide and to come up with a road plan for the reopening of all the crossings as soon as possible.
She added that the bicommunal technical committee on economic affairs is also working on ways and areas of collaboration to mitigate the negative effects of the coronavirus pandemic on the economy on both sides of the island.
Doğruyol’s statement came following repeated calls made by the People’s Party (HP) leader Kudret Özersay. Özersay said that the crossing points should be open for 12 hours a day to people with a negative PCR test taken no longer than 24 hours prior.
“We can reopen crossings without it being a danger for anyone’s health,” he said in a post on his Facebook. “Should they be allowed to reopen, we will witness the return of a significant amount of visitors, which will undoubtedly help our businesses,” he said, drawing attention to the struggling businesses in Nicosia’s old town, Famagusta and Lefke (Lefka).
Özersay said the administration in the north has repeatedly, albeit unsuccessfully tried to work with authorities in the south regarding the safe reopening of crossings and called on both sides to find a solution at the Geneva informal meeting on Cyprus scheduled to take place on April 27-29.
“Our best health officials are evaluating the proposal and, if approved, it will have a very positive effect on our economy,” he added. Ozersay on Sunday told media in the north that “without solving the issue of crossings, there is no point in holding an informal conference in Geneva.”
He added that the two leaders should make a joint statement saying that both sides will allow the crossings to be reopened as soon as the conditions allow it. Özersay also raised the issue during a meeting with the German Ambassador Franz Joseph Kremp on Monday.
KEY ACTORS
Özersay (HP)
>> Crossing points should be open for 12 hours a day to people with negative PCR tests.
>> Crossing points can be opened without posing a threat to anyone.
>> Opening checkpoints will help struggling businesses in the north.
Tatar bombarded by the opposition for his latest remarks on Cyprob
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Avrupa
Negotiations Process
OVERVIEW
Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar on Monday came under fierce criticism from members of the opposition regarding his latest statements on a two-state solution with just two weeks left before the informal meeting in Geneva. A heated exchange of statements erupted on Monday between Tatar and Republican Turkish Party (CTP) leader Tufan Erhürman.
Tatar, speaking to reporters after meeting with the UN special envoy Jane Holl Lute on Saturday said that the two-state solution model was a new alternative being tabled in the Cyprus talks for the first time.
Addressing MPs in parliament on Monday’s, the CTP leader Tufan Erhürman slammed Tatar accusing him of “being ignorant” about the history of the Cyprus problem and the negotiations processes. “Tatar claimed he will be tabling new proposals for the first time 50 years after, and that is the two-state model. It is really shocking to see something so old being branded as new!” Erhürman said, urging the Turkish Cypriot leader to immediately abandon his position in favour of a two-state solution before heading to Geneva.
Tatar swiftly responded with a written statement, accusing Erhürman of lacking in-depth knowledge of the Cyprus Problem and telling him to read up on the issue. He said the Greek Cypriot side has intensified its efforts to nullify the Turkish Cypriot side’s two-state solution model proposal, adding that the CTP in this regard, was supporting AKEL’s views on a federal settlement.
Tatar reminded the disappointment expressed by former Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat during talks with the late Greek Cypriot leader Demetris Christofias, urging Erhürman to read up on the past processes to educate himself.
Erhürman then hit back via social media, triggering a wave of posts by pro-solution and federation supporters on Facebook and Twitter. He said that Tatar was attempting to impose his outdated views through archaic approaches.
The CTP leader said that such efforts will not dissuade his party from defending the rights of Turkish Cypriots “I leave it up to the Turkish Cypriot community to decide who lacks knowledge on the Cyprus Problem and which one of us is ignorant,” Erhürman said, adding that the CTP will continue to work to reinstate a democratic culture of debate and tolerance for different viewpoints instead of approaches from the “stone ages.”
TDP leader Cemal Özyiğit joined in the criticisms against Tatar, stating that what Tatar was claiming to be new was actually a 50-year-old policy. “It is understood that Tatar, who has not learned from the past processes, is trying to implement a model from which the Turkish Cypriots cannot gain anything,” Özyiğit stressed.
Pointing out to the flurry of diplomatic activity for the upcoming five-plus-one meeting in Geneva, the TDP leader argued that the Turkish Cypriot leadership has not been able to expand on its positions other than memorized lines.
“It will not be possible to achieve anything in Geneva with Tatar’s outdated views model which proven to have failed time and time again,” Özyiğit said, arguing that the Turkish Cypriot side will be accused and branded as intransigent should Tatar insist on his two-state model.
He also complained that Tatar has not briefed the political parties on the Turkish Cypriot side’s positions ahead of the Cyprus conference, unlike his predecessors.
Özyiğit concluded by reiterating that the only feasible and realistic solution model on the island is a bicommunal, bizonal federation (BBF), adding that the negotiations process must resume based on the agreement reached at the Berlin trilateral meeting in 2019, February 11, 2014, dated Joint Declaration and the Guterres framework dated June 30, 2017.
In defence of Tatar, Turkish Cypriot Prime Minister Ersan Saner addressing the plenary said it is unacceptable to wait for another 50 more years for the solution of the Cyprus problem. He also argued that it has not been possible to achieve anything in the past processes.
Ertuğruloğlu: ‘TCs are not a minority on the island’
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Avrupa
Negotiations Process
OVERVIEW
Turkish Cypriot Foreign Minister Tahsin Ertuğruloğlu on Monday turned up the tone of his nationalistic rhetoric, by saying that Turkish Cypriots were equal owners of Cyprus, not a minority. He added, “We are advocating for sovereign equality and for a two-state solution to safeguard that.”
Ertuğruloğlu, during a programme on Bayrak, said an unsuccessful attempt at joint governance with Greek Cypriots was made in 1960. “If you do not have your state, you do not exist,” Ertuğruloğlu argued, adding that the Turkish Cypriot side will continue to defend its state, its equality and its sovereignty.
Ertuğruloğlu reiterated that the only obstacle before a solution on the Cyprus problem is the international community’s recognition of the Greek Cypriot side as the ‘Republic of Cyprus (RoC).’
“The Cyprus issue is a conflict on status (of the communities),” he said, noting that as long as the Greek Cypriot side is the sole recognized entity on the island, none of the negotiations processes would be successful.
Responding to a question on possible collaboration areas between the two sides, Ertuğruloğlu accused the Greek Cypriot side of obstructing the north’s economic development other than granting insignificant advantages to the Turkish Cypriots. “It is obvious that the Greek Cypriots will never share anything with the Turkish Cypriots,” he said, arguing even Hellim (Halloumi) issue had been handed over to the Greek Cypriot side’s authority.
KEY ACTORS
Ertuğruloğlu (UBP)
>> Only obstacle before a solution of Cyprob is recognition of the GC side as RoC.
>> Cyprus issue is a conflict of the status of the two communities.
EC approves the PDO registration for hellim (halloumi)
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Avrupa
Economy
OVERVIEW
The European Commission on Monday officially registered hellim (halloumi) as a protected designation of origin (PDO) so that only hellim (halloumi) produced in Cyprus and according to the product specification can use the registered name.
“The registration allows producers of this iconic Cypriot cheese, famous around the world for its characteristic texture, folded appearance, and suitability for serving grilled or pan-fried, based anywhere on the island of Cyprus to benefit from the PDO status,” the commission said in an announcement.
The news in the north was announced by AKEL MEP Niyazi Kızılyürek who explained that the PDO registration was approved by the EU Commission’s College of Commissioners under the Regulation 1151/2012 on quality systems for agricultural products and foodstuffs, together with the amendments in the Green Line Trade regulation allowing Turkish Cypriot producers to sell their products to Europe.
In a statement issued from his office in the north, Kızılyürek also noted the PDO registration will allow the island’s producers to produce the traditional cheese under the names of Hellim (Halloumi) or Χαλλοúμι in line with the EU criteria laid out in the registration and will be able to export their produce to the European market.
He said “it is a very important step and a symbolic development to bring the two communities closer,” Kızılyürek said, adding that the PDO registration will enter into force on October 1, 2021, to allow compliance-checks to be carried out by Bureau Veritas until that day. Kızılyürek added that the inspectors’ reports will also be shared with the Turkish Cypriot Chamber of Commerce.
The AKEL MP also noted that the PDO registration is only valid for the European market and the dairy producers can continue to produce cheese at current standards for the Turkish and Middle Eastern markets.
Kızılyürek also announced that a working group on hellim (halloumi) will also be established with representatives from the two Cypriot communities and chaired by the Commission. The groups will be tasked with reviewing the implementation of the regulation and decision.
He said he will be personally involved should there be any problems in the trade via the Green Line Trade regulation.
TDP’s campaign against Turkish drama series gains popularity
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Avrupa
Negotiations Process
OVERVIEW
A campaign launched on social media by the TDP’s youth branch against the Turkish state television TRT’s latest drama series “Once Upon a Time Cyprus” is gaining popularity, the party announced on Monday.
In a written statement, the TDP said the goal of the campaign is to share old photographs, video footage and archived documents to reveal that both communities which once co-existed on the island experienced pain and suffering due to the conflict on the island.
“The future of the island and its reunification depends on whether or not the members of the two communities accept and acknowledge what was done in the past and forgive each other,” the statement read.
The social media campaign which can be found on the “Bir Zamanlar Gerçek Kıbrıs / Κάποτε στην Πραγματική Κύπρο” Facebook page, now has nearly 2000 members.