Front Page Headlines
Focus on ‘video scandal’ shifts to within the party
All focus on the incident concerning the illegally recorded ‘private’ video of Prime Minister Ersan Saner, has shifted to the National Unity Party (UBP). Saner said that evidence had emerged that the video had been carried out in collaboration with the underworld. The focal point in the incident where the relationship between the mafia and politics was being questioned is now on inner-party quarrels surrounding the upcoming UBP congress.
Six out of ten women are victims of psychological violence
Nicosia Turkish Municipality’s project “Side-by-side against violence” revealed the alarmingly high level of violence against women. According to the poll results, 40 per cent of the women suffer physical violence and 60 per cent from psychological violence.
Phone records are being examined
Two more people were arrested yesterday following a complaint filed by Prime Minister Ersan Saner on the scandal video. One of those arrested was Faiz Sucuoğlu’s private secretary M.Ö who had worked for him during his term as Labour and Social Security Minister. He was arrested on suspicion of having encouraged C.K and G.S to bring back the video recorded by P.G which had been deleted on her phone. It’s claimed C.S, who has a mobile phone repair shop, helped bring back the deleted video. A total of five people have been arrested so far in the case.
- TRNC being followed closely –The news on the video scandal made its way into the Greek Cypriot, Greek and British press.
This is a family matter
Ersan Saner’s wife Bahar Saner following reports she had divorced her husband in a single hearing, issued a statement denying the claims. “This is not on our agenda,” Senior Judge Bahar Saner said in a post on social media. “Our private lives as a family has never been in the headlines. Unfortunately, that has changed. I would like to believe that this is not intentional. I do not intend to lecture anyone on morale or ethics but the issue of whether or not we got divorced is something which only concerns our family.”
Main News
Tatar: “We have closed the chapter on federation”
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs, Diyalog, Avrupa
Negotiations Process
OVERVIEW
Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar on Saturday continued to trash prospects for a federal settlement in Cyprus, claiming that the chapter on achieving such a settlement in Cyprus was over. He said that the threat of returning to pre-1974 conditions had been averted thanks to the shift in the Turkish Cypriot side’s position regarding a settlement.
Speaking during a visit to the province of Hatay on the last day of his latest visit to Turkey, Tatar said his visits were aimed at sharing the ‘national cause’ with fellow Turks. “I emphasize the Turkish Cypriots have been able to reach today with Turkey’s support. We will continue to act together with Turkey to protect Turkish Cypriots’ independence and freedom and will act together with Turkey to protect our joint interests and rights in the Eastern Mediterranean,” Tatar said.
He added that following his election into office, the Turkish Cypriot side has managed to table a new vision for a solution with the support of Turkey.
“We are now trying to convey our position that the agreement can only be based on two-sovereign states co-existing side by side and collaborating,” Tatar said, reiterating that there are two separate peoples on the island. “There is no Cypriot nation. You are either a Turk or a Greek in Cyprus,” Tatar argued, adding that the Turkish people have lived on the island for centuries without ever being dominated by the Greeks.
He added: “The ploys under the federation, the threats through the federal settlement and the fact that federation would have taken us back to pre-1974 days have now all been averted now.”
Noting that the Turkish Cypriot side will not negotiate for a federal settlement, Tatar said the agreement should be based on a two-state model, ensuring the continuation of Turkey’s guarantees and the presence of Turkish troops on the island. “The Turkish Cypriots’ future and security depend on these assurances,” Tatar concluded.
Poll results on violence against women are concerning
Kıbrıs
Human Rights
OVERVIEW
The Nicosia Turkish Municipality’s (LTB) project “Side-by-side against violence” has revealed the alarming rate of violence against women within the Turkish Cypriot community.
The poll results reveal that 40 per cent of the women suffer physical violence and 60 per cent from psychological violence. The survey also revealed that one in every four women suffer from sexual violence and one in four women from economic violence.
Two out of ten women are threatened with a weapon or a knife according to the poll results. Ayşe Kişmir, who is the public information officer for the LTB’s project, speaking to Kıbrıs on the poll results, pointed to the current education system in the north.
“We need a human-based education approach,” Kişmir said, warning that as long as a gender-focused education is in place in the north, there will no end to violence against women. Kişmir stressed the need for introducing a gender-equality curriculum in schools and pointed out that it is only possible to overcome the problem of violence against women through education.
She reminded that the “Side-by-Side against Violence” project officials had taken up the need to introduce a gender-equality approach in schools with education officials many times but nothing has been done so far. Kişmir also complained that violence against women has never been a priority among the politicians or the governments in the north.
Touching on different forms of violence against women measured in the poll, which was carried out in February 2020, Kişmir highlighted that physical violence is the outcome of psychological violence, which is at 60 per cent.
“We currently see a rise in physiological violence coupled with economic violence,” she noted, adding that economic violence is also the most common reason for divorce lately. Reminding that the police had established a hotline for the victims to call, Kişmir noted that the police is also improving its services provided with the calls it receives through the hotline number.
“We have seen in the past the prevention mechanisms were not functioning well, however now especially with a dedicated branch opening in Nicosia, trust in the police has increased,” Kişmir said. She also pointed out that the LTB also operates a ‘shelter for women’ with 12 rooms.
“The service that the state needs to provide to the victims is being provided by the LTB now,” Kişmir said, adding that the state needs to develop its services to speed up the process of reintroducing the victim back in the community.