Front Page Headlines
“We need to speed up vaccinations”
Experts say this is the solution out of the pandemic. Doctors say that the vaccination drive is progressing too slowly and there is a need to speed up the process. They said that there was a need for better organisation and planning.
This is a miracle
Meryem and Melek, twins who were born prematurely at the Dr Burhan Nalbantoğlu state hospital seven months ago at 24 weeks, weighing 660g and 325g, survived as a result of the efforts of healthcare professionals. The birth of the twins brought morale to the hospital which has been treating Covid-19 patients for a year.
- Turkish Vice President (Fuat) Oktay coming to the TRNC – Oktay will pay a two-day working visit to the north on February 10-11. Talks on financial cooperation protocol between Turkey and the TRNC will take place during the visit.
- Covid-19 claims another life – 52-year-old Hikmet Usta, who was receiving treatment for coronavirus, passed away. 30 locally transmitted, 47 positive cases identified in the tests carried out in the TRNC yesterday.
“Bad management”
The Turkish Cypriot Doctors’ Association, which has been fighting against the pandemic and risking their lives, issued a statement criticizing the government and calling on the authorities to be more serious as well as to collaborate with experts. The association reminded that the health ministry and government were the highest authorized institutions in the fight against the coronavirus. It stated however that both lacked coordination, seriousness or a willingness to collaborate. The association pointed out that the health ministry and cabinet were creating the impression that they had conflicting views and, in the end, they will be responsible for any wrongdoing. The association also accused the government of ‘bad management’ and failing to implement a lockdown on time, resulting in a record number of cases and putting the health system under stress.
- Women and children are victims of the pandemic – Lawyer Ayşe Öztabay talked to Havadis, saying the state had a responsibility towards ensuring the welfare of women and children during the pandemic. She said incidents of violence against women during the pandemic is on the rise. Even though the state does not have any figures, the situation is bad. Children are made to suffer as they are not able to see their divorced parents.
Full compliance with full lockdown
The Turkish Cypriot people passed the lockdown test successfully. There was full compliance of the lockdown measures as people stayed at home yesterday. Police said that almost everyone obeyed the rules and they did not experience any serious problems. Nicosia, Kyrenia, Güzelyurt (Morphou), Famagusta, İskele (Trikomo) and Lefke (Lefka) districts experienced the quietest day in the country’s history.
You are neither a sultan nor are we your subjects
A poison-pen letter from the Boğaziçi (University) students to Tayyip Erdoğan… It will shake Turkey! The students laid out their demands in the letter: “All the students that have been detained must be released immediately! The defamation campaign launched against students who are members of the LGBTI+ community and other groups that have been made targets must come to an end. All appointed trustees especially Melih Bulu, who caused these detentions, arrests and targeting, must resign. A democratic rectorate election with the participation of all parts of the university must be held. Don’t you dare confuse us with those who unconditionally obey you!”
- 115 positive cases of coronavirus and one death in the south, 47 cases and one death in the north…
Main News
Tatar claims UK well aware that situation in Cyprus has changed
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Avrupa
Negotiations Process
OVERVIEW
Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar said on Sunday that he had gotten the impression during his recent meeting with British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab that the UK was well aware that the situation on the island had changed and that there was a need for fresh ideas on the Cyprus Problem.
Responding to questions by journalists from the Foreign Press Association in the north in an online interview, Tatar said Raab had admitted that the UK’s position, following Brexit, was different from that of the EU.
He said they had not discussed whether talks should resume from where they left off in Crans Montana but that Raab had told him the approval of both sides was needed to a reach a solution in Cyprus.
“Our position in Cyprus is clear. We are talking about the realities in Cyprus which is that there are two separate states in Cyprus,” he said. Insisting on anything other than a two-state solution would not lead to a settlement that would be sustainable in the long run, he added.
Tatar argued that the idea of a two-state solution was being discussed by the parties involved, including the Greek Cypriot side. Tatar also described a federal settlement as a trap which the Turkish Cypriot side would not fall into.
In response to a question on Maraş (Varosha), the Turkish Cypriot leader said the steps they had taken on the fenced-off city had broken the mould on the Cyprus Issue. He said the return of Maraş (Varosha) as a territorial concession in the event of a solution was no longer an acceptable option for the Turkish Cypriot side.
Tatar added that the Turkish Cypriot side was in full harmony with Ankara and that 80 per cent of the Turkish Cypriots supported the continuation of Turkey’s guarantees. He explained that no blood had been spilt following the population exchange after 1974.
KEY ACTORS
Tatar
>> UK is aware that the situation in Cyprus has changed & there is a need for fresh ideas.
>> UK’s position is different from that of the EU.
>> Insisting on models other than a two-state solution will not be sustainable in the long run.
>> Return of Maraş (Varosha) as a territorial concession no longer an option for TC side.
Turkish VP Oktay to visit north this week
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Avrupa
Economy
OVERVIEW
Turkish Vice President Fuat Oktay will carry out a two-day working visit to the North on February 10-11 it was announced on Sunday.
The economic protocol agreement to be signed between Turkey and the north will dominate the Turkish vice president’s agenda. Oktay will also meet with representatives of the Economic Organisations Platform.
Cafer Gürcafer, head of the Turkish Cypriot Building Contractors Association (KTIMB), who is also the spokesperson for the Economic Organisations’ Platform, confirmed the meeting, stating that they will also be raising the issue of vaccines with Oktay.
Gürcafer said the platform will ask for the delivery of vaccines from Turkey in a single shipment rather than in smaller batches. He noted that the vaccination is crucial for the north’s economy as a full reopening can only take place once a majority of the country’s population is vaccinated.
The platform on Friday announced it had collected $2.5m for the purchase of vaccines following a fund-raising campaign launched by businessman Günay Çerkez.
On the other hand, Turkish Cypriot Health Minister Ali Pilli, evaluating developments on the pandemic on TV2020, did not reject the possibility that the UK variant of the virus has been detected in the north.
“Since the variant has been detected in the south, it is possible to have the new variant infection in the north as well,” Pilli said, urging people to strictly adhere to the measures in place. He added there are 75,000 PCR testing kits at the moment, with 100,000 kits on the way.
35,000 people have been vaccinated to date, Pilli added, noting the second jabs for the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine will start on February 8 and for Sinovac on February 12.