TCC Press Review 13 Oct 2021

Front Page Headlines

Yenidüzen

Parliament in deadlock, the government is nowhere to be found

There is no quorum and no government. Parliament which has been unable to convene since the beginning of the new legislative year on October 1 failed to convene again yesterday. The coalition partners decided to revaluate their partnership. Both the Rebirth Party (YDP) and the Democratic Party (DP) held back-to-back meetings, assessing all possibilities including withdrawing from the coalition. The opposition in the meantime renewed its call for early elections.

  • Video footage from 642 cameras will only be obtained through court orders”The President of the Executive Board for City Surveillance Management Systems Erdinç Akgür spoke to Yenidüzen.

Kıbrıs

Turkish Lira plunged (in value)

Escalating geopolitical and political risks led to a surge in the value of the US dollar against the Turkish Lira, raising it to a historic level. The devaluation of the Turkish Lira will result in a rise in prices and an increase in debts.

  • Coalition partners also have differing views The tension between the government and the opposition parties resulted in the surfacing of existing problems among the coalition partners.

Havadis

These numbers will be debated for a long time

Granting of citizenship has increased ahead of the National Unity Party (UBP) congress and the early general elections. Havadis investigated the citizenship numbers in the past nine months. 198 individuals were granted TRNC citizenship in the period from January 4 to September 30 in line with Paragraph 1 of Article 9 of the citizenship law 25/1993.

  • The government fails to find 26The parliamentary session which was postponed to yesterday when it could not find the quorum on Monday, could not be held either. The parliament will attempt to convene today.

Diyalog

Shame for these kids

It’s been claimed that 22-year-old Halil Dural died from a drug overdose in a parking lot in Ozanköy (Kazafani). Dural’s body was discovered in the village by a citizen. His body was taken to the morgue. The growing drug trade in North Cyprus poses a serious threat to the country’s youth. Despite all warnings, the state is not taking any effective measures. Police on the other hand need more officers and equipment to carry out raids and busts.

  • ‘No money’According to fishermen the reason why Turkish Cypriots consume less fish than Greek Cypriots is they are poorer.

Avrupa

It’s an honour list, not a black list

Yesterday’s front page of our newspaper caused reactions. Those names were on the list of people barred from entering Turkey, said this was an honour list and that they were proud to be on it. Some were disappointed for not being included. Those who are on the list can inquire with the Turkish Embassy however the Embassy has yet to respond to any one of the inquiries. Officials at the Turkish Embassy maintain their silence on the issue.

  • Building an empire of fearCommunal Liberation Party – New Forces (TKP-YG) leader Mehmet Çakıcı said it must not be allowed to build an empire of fear and called on the Turkish officials to stop such implementations before harming the Turkish Cypriots further.

Main News

Tatar accuses Anastasiades of distorting the facts

Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs, Diyalog, Havadis, Avrupa
Negotiations Process

OVERVIEW

Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar on Tuesday continued to engage in a blame game with the Greek Cypriot leader Nicos Anastasiades, accusing him of distorting facts and making baseless accusations during his latest remarks made on October 8.

In a statement issued from his office, Tatar reiterated that the reason for the failure to solve the Cyprus Issue was the Greek Cypriot side’s refusal to share power and wealth with the Turkish Cypriot side and their irreconcilable mentality.

Tatar said the Greek Cypriot side’s rejectionist attitude was also confirmed by the former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan in the post-Annan plan period. He also recalled that the late Greek Cypriot foreign minister Nikos Rolandis had also accentuated multiple times that the Greek Cypriot side had rejected at least 15 solution plans in the past 50 years.

“Despite all the facts, Mr Anastasiades’ insistence on trying to accuse Turkey and the Turkish Cypriot side for the absence of a solution on the island is unacceptable,” Tatar stressed, reminding that Anastasiades had recently praised EOKA and expressed his dedication and loyalty to the Hellenic principles.

“Mr Anastasiades enthused to take this racist and radical mentality further, had proposed minority rights for the Turkish Cypriots under a so-called decentralised federation during the five-plus-one meeting in Geneva,” Tatar said, stressing that forming a federal partnership with a side that belittles the Turkish Cypriot side is not possible. He added the past 50 years of negotiations was proof of this fact.

“It is clear it is also not possible to find a federal solution nor is it possible to make it sustainable under today’s conditions in Cyprus,” Tatar argued, adding that following his election into office in October 2020, the Turkish Cypriot side has tabled a solution model based on the sovereign equality and equal international status of the two sides which includes developing institutional collaboration of the sides.

“We condemn the Greek Cypriot leadership’s attempts to discredit the Turkish Cypriot side’s constructive vision as well as the efforts to conceal their guilt by distorting the facts on the island,” Tatar stressed.

Noting that a common ground between the two sides have not yet been found, Tatar said the Turkish Cypriot side has asked the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres following Jane Holl Lute’s resignation to appoint a new ‘personal envoy’ with the same mandate as Lute.

“Following the trilateral meeting in New York on September 27, the SG has shared a draft UN statement with the sides clearly stating that Guterres had accepted the appointment of a personal envoy,” Tatar said, stressing that the real reason for the lack of appointment is Greek Cypriot leadership backing down from the initial agreement.

Tatar, on the issue of natural resources, recalled the Turkish Cypriot side’s initiatives in 2011, 2012 and 2019, saying that the proposals tabled aimed at establishing dialogue and collaboration on the matter.

“The Turkish Cypriot side’s proposals on our resources, which all relevant sides had accepted that the resources belong to the two communities, are still on the table,” Tatar said, refuting the claims made by Anastasiades that the Turkish Cypriot side did not even touch on the issue during the talks from 2012 to 2017.

Moreover, Tatar highlighted that Anastasiades’ proposal to establish an escrow hydrocarbon account for the Turkish Cypriots to take their shares from the revenues on the condition that Turkey recognizes exclusive economic zones (EEZ), unilaterally declared by the Greek Cypriot side, reflects the Greek Cypriot leadership’s hegemonic mentality.

“The issue of natural resources cannot be reduced to a simple revenue sharing problem. It is about having equal say in the decisions to be made and in the management of the resources,” Tatar stressed, adding that the Turkish Cypriot side and Turkey will not refrain from taking the necessary steps to protect their rights and interests in the Eastern Mediterranean.

KEY ACTORS
Tatar
>> GC leader is distorting the facts. The reason for the non-solution of the Cyprob is the GC side’s refusal to share power & wealth with TCs.
>> Not possible to reach a federal settlement under the current conditions.
>> New UN envoy must have the same mandate as his/her predecessor.
>> TC side’s proposals on hydrocarbons are still on the table.
>> Hydrocarbons issue cannot be reduced to a simple revenue sharing problem. It’s about joint decision-making & co-management.


Ankara rejects claims Oruç Reis is acting in line with GC position

Yenidüzen, Kıbrıs, Diyalog, Havadis, Avrupa
Energy, Regional/ International Relations

OVERVIEW

The Oruç Reis seismic research vessel is not acting in line with the Greek and Greek Cypriot administration’s theses regarding the Eastern Mediterranean, the Turkish Defence Ministry said in a statement on Tuesday.

Various circles in Turkey had been arguing that the latest Navtex (navigational telex) issued is within the lines drawn in the so-called Sevilla Map, which both Greece and the Greek Cypriot administration have been insisting on.

“The claims are false and misleading,” said the ministry adding that the Turkish vessels have been acting in line with Turkey’s continental shelf in line with scientific and technical realities and needs.

“In this regard, a Navtex was issued for the Oruç Reis Seismic Exploration vessel to carry out work southwest of the Gulf of Mersin,” the statement read, stressing that Turkey will continue to defend its rights and interests in the Blue Homeland.

The statement also noted Ankara has been in favour of resolving all outstanding problems in the region as well as in the Aegean through dialogue and in line with international law.

“Ankara is determined to protect the rights and the interests of Turkey and the Turkish Cypriots against excessive claims violate their sovereign rights,” the statement concluded.

Meanwhile, Yavuz Selim Kıran, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, on Tuesday reiterated Ankara’s desire to overcome disagreements in the region through dialogue.

Speaking during the OSCE Mediterranean Conference entitled “post-pandemic recovery and security in the OSCE and the Mediterranean regions to strengthen resilience,” via videoconference, he also touched on the Cyprus problem.

“The Turkish Cypriot people’s inherent rights must be reaffirmed for peace and stability on the island and in the region,” Kıran said, urging the international actors to support the proposal to hold a regional hydrocarbons conference.

KEY ACTORS
Akar (Turkey)
>> Oruç Reis’s activities are not in line with GC & Greece’s theses.
>> Turkish vessels have been acting in line with Turkey’s continental shelf in line with scientific & technical realities.
>> Turkey will continue to defend its & TCs’ rights & interests in the Blue Homeland.
>> Ankara in favour of resolving all outstanding problems in the East Med & Aegean through dialogue.


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