Front Page Headlines
Testing turns into an ordeal
Appointments are given but no tests are available. The constantly changing decisions by the government regarding health have turned the process of getting PCR or rapid tests done into an ordeal. Private labs angered by the latest decision adopted by the Council of Ministers stopped carrying out free rapid tests, only conducting paid PCR tests. It was the ordinary citizen that suffered again.
There’s new chaos every day!
While it has not been clarified who will have to pay for PCR tests and who will not, the latest decisions adopted (by the cabinet) has only added to the confusion. On one hand, government-run facilities ran out of tests, on the other hand, private labs, angered by a government decision to allow pharmacies to carry out rapid tests, stopped carrying out free tests thus angering the public.
- Significant decrease in the number of tests – Charging for tests, private labs stopping to administer tests and an inadequate number of test kits resulted in a sharp drop in daily test numbers. 15,744 tests were carried out the other day (Wednesday) but only 6,043 tests were done yesterday.
- There are very few test kits in the country – Salih Ruso, head of the Private Labs Initiative said.
Chaos created by the government
The conflicting decisions adopted one after the other on who will have to pay for PCR or rapid tests led to chaos. The government’s latest decision to allow the pharmacies to do rapid tests only added to the chaos.
- Critical hours tonight – The risk for the oil slick from Syria to hit our coasts continues. The ministries of public works and communications and tourism and environment as well as the crisis desk on full alert.
- Poverty officially recorded – According to data from the Department of Statistics, the gross domestic product shrunk by 16.2 per cent in 2020 and the per capita income decreased to $10,055.
It’s worrying
The number of daily tests dropped to 6000 on the first day of the new practice to charge people for PCR and rapid tests. 148 cases were reported. A working picture emerged after the government repeatedly revised its decision finally deciding to charge everyone for PCR tests While 15,000 tests were carried out a day before only 6000 tests were carried out yesterday. Despite the low number of tests, 148 positive cases were detected. The public experienced serious problems when private labs stopped carrying out tests. People are worried that the low number of tests will continue to contribute to a surge in cases. Health experts have been calling on the government through social media to return from its mistake and to take measures that will encourage people to get vaccinated.
- Best in the EU – 74.2 per cent of South Cyprus has been vaccinated.
- Economy on the road to recovery – Unemployment among Greek Cypriots has dropped from 10.5 per cent to 5.2 per cent.
The code: Get them onboard the train
A book on the Turkish military operation in 1974, shared on social media has triggered reactions within the community. Written by Roni Alasor, the book depicts the memoirs of some of the Turkish troops that took part in the 1974 military operation and shares their first-hand witness accounts with names of locations. “Get them on board the train” was a code used in Cyprus, which does not have any trains, “to execute the Greek Cypriot prisoners of war.”
- Counting on the wind – Undersecretary at the Office of the Prime Minister and head of the crisis management desk Hüseyin Amcaoğlu said they are on full alert due to winds blowing from the north-east direction for 12 hours.
- 74.2 per cent of the adult population vaccinated – It is announced that 74.2 per cent of the people in South Cyprus have been fully vaccinated.
Main News
The environmental impact of the oil slick needs to be assessed
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Avrupa
Energy
OVERVIEW
Efforts to assess the environmental impact of the massive oil slick caused by a power plant in Syria is continuing. Turkish Cypriot Environment Minister Fikri Ataoğlu on Thursday warned of the environmental impact the oil slick from Syria will have in the seas surrounding the island. He said that despite the fact the Syrian oil slick had drifted away from the island, the oil which has sunk to the sea bottom will have an immense impact on marine life.
Speaking during a programme on Bayrak, Ataoğlu said that it will not be possible to collect all of the oil as most of it had lost its ability to stick due to decomposition, either evaporating or sinking to the bottom of the sea as tar.
He added that this did not mean the tar will not make its way to the island’s beaches. “Nevertheless, an important disaster was averted in terms of the environment and the tourism sector. The golden sands beach and other sites along the eastern coastline which are important breeding grounds for turtles were spared. The tourism sector would have been dealt a serious blow if the oil had washed up on our shores,” Ataoğlu added.
He also said that a report will also be prepared to outline which areas the north is lacking in and what kinds of means need to be acquired to prevent such disasters in the future.
In the meantime, the Undersecretary at the Prime Ministry Hüseyin Amcaoğlu, who is also the head of the crisis desk, warned that the situation over the next 24 hours would be critical after a shift in wind direction. He said the north-north-easterly winds could push the slick back towards the island posing a new threat.
Speaking to Turkish Cypriot news agency TAK on the developments, Amcaoğlu also noted that the UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) did not detect any petrol pollution near the coasts.
Meanwhile, Public works and Communication Minister Resmiye Canaltay visited the Karpaz (Karpas) area on Thursday, inspecting the coastline and speaking with experts working out at sea.
Speaking to the press, Canaltay said the underwater imaging taken by submarine robots 50 meters deep and seven miles off the coast showed no sign of pollution on the seabed. She however noted that the seasonal currents could carry submerged petrol residue further out at sea to hit the beaches on the northern coastline.
The north’s economy shrunk by 16.2 per cent
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Avrupa
Economy
OVERVIEW
The gross domestic product, which is a monetary measure of the market value of all the final goods and services produced in 2020, decreased by 16.2 per cent, measured at ₺21.4bn (€2.14bn), the dailies report on Friday.
According to the data obtained from the Statistics Department, gross national product per capita is calculated at $10,055. The real estate sector achieved the highest growth rate with 3.6 per cent, followed by the agricultural sector at a rate of 1.8 per cent. The financial establishments’ sector came in third place with 0.5 per cent growth in 2020. The rest of the sectors achieved negative growth, which means they shrunk in 2020.
Tatar: We will not give up on our sovereignty
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Avrupa
Negotiations Process
OVERVIEW
Turkish Cypriot President Ersin Tatar on Thursday reiterated his known position for the solution of the Cyprus problem, stressing that the Turkish Cypriots will not give up on their sovereignty.
Speaking during a meeting with a former member of the parliament from Kazakhstan, Tatar added that the Turkish Cypriots wage a struggle for existence on the island, saying that it has been possible due to Turkey being a guarantor nation for Cyprus.
He added the Turkish Cypriots can live in peace on the island as a result of the Turkish soldiers being stationed in the north. Tatar also underlined the importance of the Turkish Cypriot side developing its relations with the Turkic states and the north becoming members of the organisations formed by these states.
“The TRNC must-attend international organisations by the Turkic states,” he said, pointing out the potential and the opportunities it will create for the Turkish Cypriot side. Tatar added, “I can for now say that we will attend such meetings soon.”
Meanwhile, Tatar will be travelling to Konya and Kütahya districts of Turkey on Friday to deliver a conference entitled “Turkish Cypriots’ struggle for existence from the past to today” and will attend other ceremonies.
Tatar will be accompanied by Turkish Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu and the National Movement Party (MHP) MP Ahmet Erbaş. He will return on September 8.
KEY ACTORS
Tatar
>> TCs will not give up their sovereignty.
>> Important for TCs to become members of Turkic organisations.
TC government’s revised decision on testing causes chaos
Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs, Havadis, Diyalog, Avrupa
Internal Security, Governance & Power Sharing
OVERVIEW
Frustration, anger and confusion among the public were running high on Thursday following a decision by private labs to stop free rapid testing in protest of a government decision to allow pharmacies to carry out tests.
The protest came days after the government, under public pressure, revised an earlier decision to charge everyone, vaccinated and non-vaccinated for PCR and rapid tests. While people, except for those who tested positive or direct contacts of those who tested positive, will still have to pay for PCR tests, rapid tests will continue to be free.
However, people queuing up at labs and other centres to get tested were shocked when they were asked to pay, even for rapid tests. People unloaded their frustration at the government on social media, expressing anger over the government’s habit of revising decisions almost daily.
As a result, only 6,043 PCR and rapid tests were carried out on Thursday in comparison to 15,744 a day earlier. What was more worrying than the sharp drop in test numbers was the shocking number of cases detected, a whopping number of 148. People questioned the positivity rate and what the number of positive cases would be if the normal number of tests was carried out.
Despite the alarming number of figures, the Turkish Cypriot minister of Health Ünal Üstel, speaking on a TV programme, said that they had proposed to authorities in the south to remove test requirements for individuals passing through the crossing points. He said that the proposal had been conveyed through the bicommunal technical committee on health and they were waiting for a response.
A total of 1,110 covid cases and 12 deaths have been recorded in the north in the last week of August. 135 patients are still receiving treatment at the pandemic hospital while 19 of them are in ICU. Only 51 per cent of the population has been vaccinated to date compared to the 74.2 per cent in the south.
The opposition parties – the Republican Turkish Party (CTP), People’s Party (HP) and Social Democratic Party (TDP) on Thursday also lashed out at the government and its inaptitude in managing the pandemic. Demanding the government’s immediate resignation, the opposition parties accused the government of focusing on securing their seats in the parliament instead of the public’s health.