Front Page Headlines
According to official figures 14,950 unemployed in 2020
The Statistics Department reveals the other face of the pandemic. Head of the department, Assistant Prof. Dr Türel Özer Öksüzoğlu said that the situation was bad for women and the youth. She said that unemployment in 2020 increased when compared to the previous year.
- The Republican Turkish Party (CTP) will not attend the parliament meeting which Erdoğan will address – The decision was adopted following a six-hour meeting of the party assembly.
- He resigned twice, returned twice, the Prime Minister presented his cabinet
- Nicosia and Kyrenia red zone –78 per cent increase in cases in just a week.
Midnight raid on ‘ovary trade’
Police obtained information that an IVF centre was illegally purchasing ovaries from a donor who is under 20 years of age. Investigating the case, police carried a raid at a private hospital’s IVF centre, seizing documents and detaining doctors as suspects.
- Suspicion of money laundering in the Kenya-TRNC-Nigeria triangle – Police found ₺210,040 (€21,000) and €12,300 on a Nigerian person. A taxi driver, who supplied the Nigerian with bank account numbers as well as the Nigerian individual was detained by the police.
- Koral Çağman appointed as Labour Minister again – The crisis of not being able to appoint a Labour and Social Security Minister since June 25 is solved. Prime Minister Ersan Saner presented President Ersin Tatar with the appointment proposal yesterday.
Bairam (Eid al-Adha) meal to cost a fortune
Winter sets in at supermarket shelves in the middle of the summer. Not a day goes by that the price of every product goes up. The festive joy experienced during the Eid holiday is gone. Havadis calculated the price for a modest meal for a family of four and the price of an extravagant one.
- CTP boycotts Erdoğan – The Republican Turkish Party (CTP) party assembly made its decision after debating for five hours.
- Life-line support for SMEs – The businesses will be given grants ranging from €10,000 to €20,000 through a business development project run by KTEZO (Turkish Cypriot Chamber of Shopkeepers and Artisans) and ECOSO (Centre for Economic and Social Policies).
Don’t delay it
Vaccinated individuals are calling on those who haven’t been vaccinated to get the jab following a surge in cases. Concerned citizens speaking to Diyalog said it was wrong for people to put off getting vaccinated. “Everyone should get vaccinated and be protected against the virus,” they said.
- It’s now the private sector’s turn – Non-vaccinated Greek Cypriots will not be allowed to work in public offices.
- They debated it until the morning –The CTP decides not to attend the special parliamentary session that will be addressed by Erdoğan.
- Like a joke – Koral Çağman returns as Labour Minister.
- Serious increase –150 cases in the north, 1152 cases in the south.
Hard decision for the CTP
It did not help the CTP to try to please everyone. The CTP party assembly convened with Tayyip Erdoğan on the agenda. Harsh debates held at the meeting lasted until midnight yesterday. It was decided to announce the decision adopted today…
- Full team together with Bahçeli – Tayyip Erdoğan said he will be coming to the north together with Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Bahçeli on Monday (July 19).
Main News
Kızılyürek: ‘We have to do a lot more for Cyprus’
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Avrupa
EU Matters
OVERVIEW
AKEL MEP Niyazi Kızılyürek on Thursday shared his grave concerns for the future of Cyprus as well as the Turkish government’s intervention in the Turkish Cypriot domestic affairs and steps taken in Maraş (Varosha), in a letter sent to EC President Ursula von der Leyen.
Kızılyürek introduced himself to von der Leyen as a Cypriot elected with the votes of both communities in 2019 and who dedicated his entire life for Cypriot communities to live together in peace.
He added animosity against Turkish Cypriots who support a united Federal Cyprus and who object to a two-state solution following the leadership election held in the northern part of the island was growing.
“While the federalist Turkish Cypriots are being put under pressure, the secessionist nationalists are becoming bolder with the support they receive from the Turkish government,” Kızılyürek argued. He said it is unacceptable to see Turkey imposing restrictions on travel on EU citizens Turkish Cypriots at a time when Turkey wants free movement for its own citizens in Europe.
“Turkey, while on one hand works towards dividing the island eternally, it is on the other hand, turning the northern part of the island into its backyard,” Kızılyürek stressed, adding he is concerned for the future of the Turkish Cypriot community and Cyprus.
AKEL MEP also noted that Turkey is blatantly violating the UN Security Council (UNSC) resolutions in the fenced-off town of Maraş (Varosha) as well. “Reopening of the fenced-off town under the Turkish administration would kill all hopes for the reunification of the island,” Kızılyürek said, expressing his concerns that Cyprus as a full EU member state is now faced with the risk of being partitioned permanently.
“As Europeans, we agree that we have to do a lot more to reunite this small island and to reinstate lasting peace on an EU member state,” Kızılyürek concluded.
KEY ACTORS
Kızılyürek (AKEL)
>> Animosity in the north against pro-federation TCs who object to a two-state solution is growing.
>> Unacceptable to see Turkey imposing restrictions on travel on EU citizen TCs at a time when Turkey wants free movement for its own citizens in Europe.
>> Turkey is violating UNSC resolutions on Maraş (Varosha).
>> Reopening Maraş (Varosha) will kill all hopes for reunification.
>> Cyprus is now faced with the risk of being partitioned permanently.
The CTP decides not to attend the special session for Erdoğan
Yenidüzen, Havadis
Governance and Power Sharing
OVERVIEW
The main opposition Republican Turkish Party (CTP) announced late on Thursday night that it will not attend the special parliamentary session next week during which Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s will deliver a speech.
The decision was adopted by the party assembly following a debate that lasted for over six hours. The CTP’s decision followed the one taken by the Social Democratic Party (TDP) a day earlier.
Several dailies reported that the TDP’s stance forced the hand of the CTP which out of fear of losing votes, took the decision. Nonetheless, in a brief statement from the party, it is also noted that the CTP will issue a statement explaining its reasons for not participating in the special session on Friday.
The TDP which convened its Central Executive Committee (MYK) on Wednesday, announced it will not be taking part in the special session. It said its boycott was due to Ankara’s interference in the political will of the Turkish Cypriot community and the attacks on the north’s democracy. The TDP said that Ankara’s continued interference in the domestic affairs of the north only served to strengthen the perception that the north was a sub-administration of Turkey.
Saner says a two-state solution is needed to prevent another coup in Cyprus
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Avrupa
Negotiations Process
OVERVIEW
Turkish Cypriot Prime Minister Ersan Saner on Thursday said the coup staged in Cyprus on July 15, 1974, was aimed at transforming the entire island of Cyprus into a Greek island. “It is, for this reason, we as the Turkish Cypriot side now want our sovereignty to be recognized and this is why we want a two-state solution,” Saner stressed.
Issuing a written statement to mark the anniversaries of the coup carried out by the Greek junta in 1974 and the Fethullah Gülen Terrorist Organisation (FETÖ) in 2016, Saner argued that the coup in Turkey was carried out to weaken Turkey but on the international and domestic front.
“The TRNC would have been harmed the most if the coup attempt (in Turkey) had been successful,” Saner claimed, stressing the importance of raising future generations aware of the ploys being played against Turkey and the Turkish Cypriots.
“It was the Greek Cypriots who had violated the 1960 constitution in the first place, attacked the Turkish Cypriots in 1963 and executed the coup in 1974 to transform Cyprus to a Greek island,” Saner said, stressing that the future generations must be aware of these facts.
“We need to be vigilant and strong,” Saner stressed, adding that the north will be stronger as long Turkey remains strong. “Turkey’s security and independence are equal to Turkish Cypriots’ equality and independence,” Saner concluded.
Hasipoğlu: An important step for the TC side’s new solution vision
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Avrupa
Negotiations Process
OVERVIEW
National Unity Party (UBP) general secretary Oğuzhan Hasipoğlu on Thursday said the visit organised by the Azerbaijan inter-parliamentary and foreign affairs committee was an important step for the Turkish Cypriot side’s new vision for a two-state solution on the island.
He added the visit will also give very important messages to the world. Hasipoğlu said the inter-parliamentary group will hold an official meeting with the Turkish Cypriot parliamentarians at the Parliament building at 11 am on Friday.
“I wish to reiterate that the visit by the Azerbaijani delegation and their willingness to officially take part in the July 20 celebrations are very significant for the Turkish Cypriot side’s two-state solution vision,” Hasipoğlu said, adding that the three-states-one-nation concept will once again be reaffirmed.
Turkey, Northern Cyprus, Azerbaijan are often referred to as “Three states, one nation” by nationalist circles in Turkey and Azerbaijan.