TCC Press Review 18 Apr 2021

Front Page Headlines

Yenidüzen

The voice rising over the fence: Peace, love and solidarity

Turkish Cypriot and Greek Cypriot activists met at the ‘border’ in Nicosia. They shared messages of peace and solidarity despite the fence keeping them apart. The gathering, the second consecutive one held in the last two weeks, took place at the same place on Rocca Bastion. Pro-solution activists held up banners and posters giving out messages in support of peace.

Kıbrıs

People outraged over favours granted for Ercan (Tymbou) airport

The government has decided to suspend the “revenue sharing” clause in the privatization agreement of the Ercan (Tymbou) airport for one year while the plight of other businesses, which are in serious economic difficulty due to the pandemic, are being ignored by the authorities. The people are outraged with the favours and the preferential treatment given to T&T Ltd., the airport management company.

  • 53 positive cases of coronavirus, 56 discharged7358 PCR tests were carried out in the last 24 hours, identifying 44 locally transmitted 53 positive cases.

Diyalog

N/A due to lockdown

Avrupa

N/A due to lockdown

Main News

“Peace, love and solidarity” – Voices rising across the divide

Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs
Human Rights

OVERVIEW

Turkish and Greek Cypriot activists were once again united, perhaps not physically but in spirit as they gathered on both sides of the fence at Roccas Bastion, giving out messages of peace and solidarity. Meeting on either side of the Venetian walls in Nicosia near Paphos Gate, the activists also reiterated their demand for the reopening of the crossing points.

While the Turkish Cypriots stood on top of the walls the Greek Cypriots underneath, the participants sang Cypriot songs together. The bicommunal peace activist group UniteCyprusNow (UCN) posted videos and photographs from the gathering across the divide, also repeating its call for the reopening of the crossings. 

“People of Cyprus attending the same event but being unable to physically meet. They have the music uniting them as they take a glimpse of each other behind barbed wires,” UCN tweeted and added the leaders must coordinate on handling the pandemic and open the crossings.

Members of the bicommunal Cypriot Songs Association had initiated the first meeting of Turkish and Greek Cypriots across the divide on April 9, singing Cypriot songs, including the one named “My Cyprus.”

Physical contact between the two communities has been almost impossible since the coronavirus outbreak a year ago when restrictions were imposed on crossings, mainly due to the mandatory 14-day quarantine for ordinary citizens entering the north. Only Turkish Cypriots working, studying or receiving health treatment in the South are currently exempt from being placed in quarantine when returning to the north.


5+1 is doomed to fail due to Dendias, Savaşan claims

Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs
Negotiations Process

OVERVIEW

National Unity Party (UBP) Central Executive Board (MYK) member Ahmet Savaşan said on Saturday that the five-plus-one Cyprus conference, aimed at exploring whether or not there was mutual ground for new talks, was doomed to fail due to the attitude displayed by Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias.

Evaluating the developments in the Cyprus problem during a TV programme, Savaşan referred to the joint press conference held by Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu and his Greek counterpart in Ankara.

Savaşan said Dendias showed the world once again how intransigent Greece and the Greek Cypriot side was. He added that as a result, it will not be possible to reach a positive outcome in the efforts to find a common ground on the Cyprus problem to launch a new round of talks.

He furthermore claimed that the Greek and the Greek Cypriot mindset was the main reason preventing finding a settlement to the Cyprus problem throughout the negotiations processes.

Pointing out Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu’s visit to the north immediately after meeting with Dendias in Ankara, Savaşan said the Turkish Foreign Minister’s visit proved once again that the Turkish and the Turkish Cypriot sides are united and working together for a fair and a lasting solution on the island.

“A fair and lasting settlement on the island can only be found if we are united and stand strong as one against the Greek and the Greek Cypriot side,” Savaşan concluded.


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