Minister’s Akamas commitment

By Jean Christou

AGRICULTURE Minister Costas Themistocleous has committed himself to measures for the protection of the Akamas by the end of the year, according to the international environmental group Greenpeace.

In a statement issued yesterday following the minister’s Sunday visit to the Greenpeace ship Sirius at Larnaca, Greenpeace said Themistocleous had promised an end to the Akamas saga by the end of 1998.

“We as the government need a special regime for Akamas in order to protect it as a national park,” Themistocleous said during his visit to the ship.

“We will also take into consideration the interests of the local communities so they will not have to pay the price for what in other terms is a correct decision by the government.”

While aboard the Sirius, Themistocleous met the ship’s captain and crew and was briefed by Greenpeace members about their campaigns in the Mediterranean. He was also given a tour of the ship and viewed the exhibition ‘Year of the Ocean’.

“After years of campaigning, we are glad to see that the government of Cyprus is getting serious in protecting the Akamas,” said Greenpeace’s Cyprus representative Irene Constantinou.

“We will however only know for sure for the protection of the Akamas when President Clerides signs the proposed bill without introducing any changes or watering it down.

“If the Akamas peninsula is protected this year, which has been declared by the United Nations as the Year of the Oceans, the government of Cyprus will put itself on the map of the worldwide environmentally sensitive countries. This protected area will be a landmark decision to be followed as an example by other countries of the region.”

The Sirius arrived in Cyprus last Tuesday as part of its annual tour of the Eastern Mediterranean. It was its ninth visit to the island.

It had already docked in Portugal, Malta, Greece, Turkey, Lebanon and Israel on its voyage which began in June.

Greenpeace has had a long-running campaign for the protection of the Akamas peninsula and the protection of the green turtle that it fears is endangered by development in the region.

They want the government to implement legislation to enact the World Bank recommendations that the Akamas be declared a national park.

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