Front Page Headlines
‘We’re pushing our luck’
The rise in Covid-19 cases has created concern. Health experts are warning: “Inspections and measures have disappeared.” The number of daily cases which had dropped to around ten in the first days of June has risen to 20 in a couple of days. Lately, this figure has gone up as high as 40 a day. 254,829 tests were carried out in the last month and 802 cases detected. Lefke (Lefka) saw the highest rise in case numbers prompting health experts to renew their warning that inspections and adhering to measures were a must.
- Turkey switches to Pfizer/BioNTech, Sinovac being sent to Cyprus
The pavements are covered with obstacles
The pavements, which are intended for pedestrians are unfortunately under occupation. While some use the pavements to park their cars, others at the expense of blocking traffic, leave their cars on the pavements so as not to have to walk few extra steps to wherever they need to go. Pedestrians as a result are forced to step into the roads whilst walking but the situation is truly a nightmare for persons who are physically disabled.
- South Cyprus approves Sinovac as an effective vaccine – The Office of the President said the efforts on allowing the fully vaccinated people to use the crossing points are almost completed. The Greek Cypriot side informed the Turkish Cypriot side of their decision on the Sinovac vaccine through their negotiator.
Don’t cover it up, scratch it further
The Ombudsperson’s office upon a complaint filed decided to look into the “Scratch cards” lottery tickets. A report prepared following an investigation revealed the possibility of irregularities, calling on the government and the judiciary to launch a more detailed investigation.
- Fully vaccinated to cross without PCR tests – The Office of the President said the efforts on allowing the fully vaccinated people to use the crossing points are almost completed.
- “We failed in (north) Cyprus” – Fadıl Dinçer, (north) Cyprus imam for FETÖ (Fethullah Gülen Terrorist Organisation) said they failed in establishing a school in North Cyprus.
Who is going to follow the trail of the $2bn
Diyalog’s headline yesterday was carried to parliament by Peoples’ Party (HP) MP Gülşah Sanver Manavoğlu. Manavaoğlu who raised the issue of the $2bn that flows into the TRNC through online betting and money laundering in parliament asked what is being done to put an end to this. The HP MP who said she was on the committee working on the “Chance Games Law” reacted when the majority of MPs abandoned the plenary whilst she was speaking.
- Crossings will be easier – The Greek Cypriot administration approves the ‘Sinovac’ vaccine.
- The area under danger – Another historic house in Nicosia’s walled city collapses.
He first killed her, then shared (photos on social media)
Raid at the HDP (People’s Democratic Party) office in Izmir and blood-freezing murder…Jihadist who was trained previously and sent to Syria, killed 27-year-old Deniz Poyraz after taking her hostage at the HDP office he raided. He then took photographs of the woman and shared them on social media. The jihadist Onur Gencer, after killing Deniz Poyraz, tried to set fire to the HDP office, which has a banner reading “88 women killed in the first three months of 2021” hanging on its balcony.
Main News
Dana refutes claims made by GC rep in NY
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Avrupa
Property, Territory, Negotiations Process
OVERVIEW
The Turkish Cypriot representative in New York Mehmet Dana on Thursday said the Greek Cypriot side was exploiting the UN institutions to suit its positions.
Dana sent to the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in response to a speech delivered by the recently appointed Permanent Representative of the Republic of Cyprus (RoC) Andreas Hadjichrysanthou during deliberations held on the 2020 activities report at the UN General Assembly on June 11.
He said that the reason why a settlement has not been reached in Cyprus yet was because of the Greek Cypriots’ outright rejection to share power and wealth with the Turkish Cypriots side. Hadjichrysanthou in his speech had called on the immediate implementation of UN Security Council (UNSC) resolutions on Maraş (Varosha).
According to a written statement issued by the Turkish Cypriot Foreign Ministry, Dana said that the Greek Cypriots had rejected not only the Annan Plan in 2004 but also must be held accountable for the collapse of talks in 2017 in Crans Montana.
He added that the reason why it has not been possible to achieve a positive outcome from the Cyprus negotiations process was the Greek Cypriot side’s intransigent stance. Dana also said that the Greek Cypriot side had failed to bring any new proposals to the table at the recent five-plus-one conference held in Geneva even though the UNSG had made it clear that the process must be different this time.
He added that in addition to not tabling any new ideas, the Greek Cypriot leadership also attempted to prevent the discussion of any new ideas. Also touching on the Maraş (Varosha) issue in his letter, Dana said that keeping the fenced-off city of Maraş (Varosha), which had become a symbol of the status quo, closed for so many years was in no one’s interest.
Reminding that Maraş (Varosha) was located within the territorial jurisdiction of the north, he said that all steps taken by the Turkish Cypriot side on the fenced-off town were done so within the framework of international law.
South approves Sinovac vaccine, further easing of procedures at crossings expected
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Avrupa
Internal Security, CBMs
OVERVIEW
Turkish Cypriot Office of the President on Thursday said the Greek Cypriot health authorities have approved Chinese Sinovac (CoronaVac) as an effective vaccine against coronavirus to facilitate the crossings between the north and the south as well as to further ease the procedures for fully vaccinated people.
In a statement issued, Tatar’s office said the Greek Cypriot negotiator has informed the Turkish Cypriot side on the development as part of the ongoing efforts to reduce the procedures at the crossings for fully vaccinated people.
The statement also recalled that the crossings were reopened on June 4 initially with a negative PCR test obtained within the last seven days.
It is also noted that the Turkish Cypriot Health Ministry is currently working on the rules and procedures to be implemented at the crossing points for fully vaccinated individuals and for the bicommunal technical committee on health to harmonise the criteria to be applied on both sides.
The World Health Organization (WHO) validated on June 2 the CoronaVac Covid-19 vaccine developed by Chinese pharmaceutical company Sinovac Biotech for emergency use and recommended its use in people 18 years and older, in a two-dose schedule with a spacing of two to four weeks.
Meanwhile, Turkish Cypriot Health Minister Ünal Üstel said on Thursday that Turkey will send Sinovac vaccines every week until the end of July to vaccinate 70 per cent of the north’s population. Speaking on Bayrak, Üstel said 80,000 people had already been vaccinated with the doses received to date.
Erdoğan: The EU cannot be a power hub without Turkey
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Avrupa
Regional/ International Relations
OVERVIEW
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on Thursday, ahead of the Antalya Diplomacy Forum, said the EU cannot achieve its goal of becoming a power hub without Turkey.
Addressing the South-East European Cooperation Process (SEECP) in Antalya, he added it is not possible for the EU to achieve its goal of becoming the centre of attraction and power without Turkey as a full member and urged the EU to launch the accession talks.
Ankara expects the EU to “immediately rid itself of its strategic blindness”, and to advance the accession process within the framework of a positive agenda, he said.
The SEECP brings together Turkey, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Republic of Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, Greece, Croatia, Moldova and Montenegro and “is a symbol of the common will of the countries of the region to improve cooperation among themselves and to bring lasting stability in South-East Europe,” according to the Turkish Foreign Ministry.
The next term president for the SEECP will be Greece.
In the meantime, Turkish Cypriot President Ersin Tatar and Foreign Minister Tahsin Ertuğruloğlu departed for Antalya on Thursday to attend the Antalya Diplomacy Forum.
Bringing together nearly 1300 diplomats, academicians, and opinion leaders from all over the world, the Diplomacy Forum will address the most important regional and global issues on the world’s agenda in a solution-oriented platform and allow discussing international issues from a diplomatic perspective.
Holding a regional conference for the Eastern Mediterranean to overcome the hydrocarbons dispute will also be discussed during one of the many panel discussions to be held within the scope of the Forum. Turkish President Erdoğan will address the participants and deliver the opening remarks and Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu will deliver the introductory speech.
TC & GC education unions hold face-to-face meeting
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Avrupa
Human Rights
OVERVIEW
Turkish Cypriot and Greek Cypriot education unions held a face-to-face meeting on Thursday, the first in 15 months, at the Home for Cooperation in Nicosia’s buffer zone.
In a statement issued from DAÜ-SEN (Eastern Mediterranean University academic staff union), the meeting was called by Yeşim Dede, who is the Cypriot representative of the European Trade Union Committee for Education (ETUCE) under Education International.
During the meeting, the participants exchanged views on the problems faced in education and social issues that arose due to the pandemic as well as discussing the developments on vaccination.
The participants also agreed to organise a joint environment project to mark World Teachers’ Day on October 5. The points agreed and discussed during the meeting will be submitted to ETUCE as a report.
GC living in the north without a permit for over a year detained by police
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Avrupa
Internal Security
OVERVIEW
A Greek Cypriot man, Loucas Ioannou was arrested by the police in Famagusta on Thursday on grounds he had been residing in the north for more than a year without a residency permit.
It emerged that the man, who was taken into custody after police received an anonymous tip, had entered the north through the Beyarmudu (Pergamos) crossing point on March 12, 2020, and had not returned to the south since then.
He was given a 30-day tourist visa upon entry, making his stay from April 12, 2020, onwards unlawful as he did not apply to the authorities to extend the duration of his visa.
The court ordered the Greek Cypriot man to be remanded two more days until the police complete their investigation.