Front Page Headlines
The fate of the government lies with HP
All eyes have turned to the People’s Party (HP) Party Assembly meeting set to take place tonight (Monday). The time has come to decide on the future of the country which has been without a government since HP walked out of the HP-UBP (National Unity Party) coalition on October 6. TDP (Social Democratic Party) General Secretary Halil Hızal: “They need to exercise democracy within their party bodies and come up with a decision. We are waiting for HP’s decision. The general secretary of YDP (Rebirth Party) Bertan Zaroğlu: “The ball is in HP’s court. There is a desire to re-establish a four-party coalition. We have no objections. HP is flirting with both sides with the hope of winning as many concessions as possible.” DP (Democratic Party) General Secretary Afet Özcafer: “I believe that HP will put this decision to a vote. We are waiting.”
- Call from Tatar to Maraş (Varosha) residents: Apply to the commission
We’re unable to collect rainwater
The rainwater which our country could use to meet its water needs flows to the sea in five of the six districts. While every drop of water is extremely precious for an island country such as ours, the rivers and streams are not being used to collect the precious rainfall. The water flows to the sea. Only the water from riverbeds in the Güzelyurt (Morphou) area is collected in reservoirs. No projects are being drafted to collect rainwater. While experts underlined the urgent need to develop water policies, they propose the collection of water running down roofs and building of small lakes or reservoirs. They’ve also proposed the construction of canals, dikes and small dams to collect the rainwater.
HP holds the key
Efforts to form a new government have reached the final stages. TDP and DP have said they have accepted the proposal made by Tufan Erhürman, tasked with forming a government, to form a new four-party coalition. HP, in the meantime, will make up its mind following its party assembly meeting set to take place tonight (Monday).
- Lute in Cyprus – The UN Secretary-General’s Temporary Special Advisor Lute arrived on the island last night to discuss preparations for a five-party meeting. Lute will be meeting separately with the leaders tomorrow (Tuesday)
- The opposition seeks an inquiry – Parliament will be discussing today (Monday) a motion on launching inquiries into the presidential election as well as the government’s actions during the pandemic.
Here is the cabinet
Eight well-known personalities ready for duty should appointments be made to the cabinet from the outside have spoken to Diyalog. Following remarks made by Republican Turkish Party (CTP) leader Tufan Erhürman that he could consider setting up a cabinet of technocrats, a large number of citizens working in the private sector said they were interested. The head of the Consumers’ Association Hasan Yılmaz Işık said he wants to become prime minister. If not, he said he would also accept the post of foreign minister. Nidai Salış, who operates a tavern, says he wants the post of the interior minister so that he can hand out land to young people. Hüseyin Olgunay who breeds livestock said he is also interested in the same ministry to bring to life the Construction Master Plan.
- No payments for the past six years – 6,761 applications were made to the Immovable Property Commission (IPC). But the funds dried up after £312m was paid to applicants.
Embassy intervenes as well
The authorities have yet to issue a public statement concerning the allotting of 29 dönüms (dunams) of land in Kyrenia to the Turkish Cypriot Qatar International Cooperation and Community Development Centre. The Turkish embassy called and warned several TRNC ministers following our reports. An official from the embassy warned the ministers that the founder of the centre Erman Çitim was trying to win favours by claiming he was working for MİT (Turkish Intelligence Agency). The embassy warned that Çitim was banned from entering the Turkish embassy in Nicosia.
- The money runs dry – The IPC has stopped payments to Greek Cypriot applicants since 2014 due to a shortage of cash. The IPC, between 2006 and 2020 accepted paying £312m in compensation but could not make the actual payments. The total number of Greek Cypriot applications to the IPC in the last 14 years stands at 6,761.
Main News
UN Special Envoy arrives in Cyprus for contacts
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Avrupa
Negotiations Process, Regional/International Relations
OVERVIEW
The UN Secretary-General’s special envoy Jane Holl Lute arrived on the island on Sunday as part of efforts to prepare the ground for an informal-five party conference, the dailies report.
According to information obtained by Turkish Cypriot news agency, TAK, Lute first will hold a meeting with Elizabeth Spehar, Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General (SRSG) in Cyprus on Monday, November 30.
She will then meet with the Turkish Cypriot President Ersin Tatar at 11am on Tuesday, December 1. Lute will hold a meeting with the Greek Cypriot leader Nicos Anastasiades on Wednesday at 2pm.
Lute is expected to fly to Athens from Cyprus on Wednesday, December 2, and continue her efforts to create the conditions to prepare for the five-plus-UN meeting on the Cyprus problem.
Lute, according to TAK, is expected to hold her meetings with Ankara only after the upcoming EU leaders’ summit on December 10-11.
Double-standards at the crossings
Yenidüzen
Human Rights
OVERVIEW
The measures adopted by the Higher Board of Infectious Diseases are being interpreted differently at the crossing points, Yenidüzen claims on Monday.
The daily reports that while a group of Greek Cypriot poets were allowed to cross to the north with a negative PCR test on Sunday, the Turkish Cypriot officials at the crossing point asked Turkish Cypriot poet Neşe Yaşın to be quarantined.
The group of poets wanted to cross to the north to take part in an annual remembrance event for the Turkish Cypriot poet, Fikret Demirağ.
“Even though the Higher Board’s latest measure asks for anyone crossing into the north to present a negative PCR test obtained within the last 24 hours, it is revealed that the measure is applied based on ethnic identity,” Yenidüzen writes.
The daily also spoke to the Turkish Cypriot Health Minister Ali Pilli about the issue.
Pilli claimed that the Turkish Cypriot poet Neşe Yaşın and another person from the same group did not have a negative PCR test carried out in the last 24 hours.
In a social media post on Sunday, Yaşın wrote: “I was not allowed to cross. If I wanted to cross, I would have to go into quarantine for a week. Greek Cypriots were allowed but not me. The poetry bus left 75 minutes late without me. People on board struggled for more than one hour for me to be allowed to cross.”
“I returned home saddened… When will we make peace?” Yaşın asked.
Eight irregular migrants detained in Famagusta
Havadis, Diyalog
Migration and Citizenship, Human Rights, Internal Security
OVERVIEW
Eight undocumented Syrian migrants, who had arrived by boat at an unidentified location near Famagusta, were detained by the police on one of the main avenues in the city on Sunday.
According to a statement issued by the police, the irregular migrants are of Syrian nationality and are all men.
The Syrians were placed under quarantine until their PCR test results came back.
The police continues with its investigation.
TDP’s motion on election interference to be discussed
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Avrupa
Governance and Power Sharing
OVERVIEW
The Turkish Cypriot parliament will hold the initial debates on the motion tabled by the Social Democratic Party (TDP) on the outcome of the October 18 elections, the dailies report on Monday.
Following the elections, TDP tabled a motion asking for election meddling to be investigated.
The party argues, “There has been anti-democratic and politically unethical interference in the people’s decision-making processes at the time of the presidential elections.”
The plenary will also discuss another motion submitted by the Rebirth Party (YDP) on the “legal aspects of the expenditures approved by the cabinet, as well as the implementations and measures adopted during the lockdown period.”