IF READERS of this column have that ‘here we go again’ feeling, please remember that our editorial writers also have to tread the same road time and again, because one of the continuing difficulties in Cyprus is, it seems, endemic. We are talking of enforcement of the law – or rather, the lack of it. Whether the subject is road traffic regulations, environmental infringements or, in this case, animal cruelty, the problem, and the solution, is the same. The penalties for offenders exist but the law is ignored because it is not applied as often and as painfully as it should be.
In a special report this week, The Sunday Mail highlighted the cruel practice of lime-sticking and mist-netting in Cyprus which results in the massacre of millions of migrant birds. Trappers go about their business – which has moved from its traditional rural base into a lucrative industry — apparently unconcerned they will ever be caught or prosecuted. They can make rich pickings from the death of songbirds, despite the fact that trapping wild birds is illegal, as are the lime-sticks and the nets.
In fact, the trappers use a combination of old technology and new — the birds are often lured to their death by audio-taped bird songs — to the extent that some 2.2 million birds die on lime-sticks or caught in mist-nets every year in Cyprus, according to a study by the International Council for Bird Preservation.
Who will stop the trappers? Police or game wardens appear unwilling to clamp down on this cruelty despite the fact that they have the law on their side. And those who would intervene to rescue the birds are understandably reluctant to do so because of threats of violence from the offenders, as a number of letter writers to this newspaper have testified.
Yesterday, on the front page of the Cyprus Mail, came more evidence that animal abuse on the island is as bad as it ever was. The Veterinary Services Department admitted that out of 84 reported cases of animal cruelty between May and August this year just two were being pursued through the courts. Does anyone believe that just two cases were worthy of prosecution? Of course not: we agree with the Cyprus Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (CSPCA) that these figures reflect the government’s apathy and reluctance to prosecute rather than any significant improvement in the way people treat animals.
Vet. Services said that its officers always spoke to the owners after being told about cases of ill-treatment and stressed that a follow-up visit was always made to ensure that if the problem was not rectified the matter would be reported to the police. What good will that do? In a case recently reported to this newspaper, neighbours complained to a local vet that a dog was kept chained inside a metal tank on the roof of a house during summer’s searing temperatures. The dog was rescued by the vet, its owner called the police, the dog was given back and the police assured the vet that they would keep an eye on the situation. Is anybody surprised that the vet later found the dog being kept in the same appalling conditions?
Until the authorities stamp down hard on animal cruelty, enforcing the laws, prosecuting, penalising hard and publicising such cases, the abuse will continue and Cyprus will remain notorious as one of Europe’s killing grounds.
Massive falls as market hits new low
The market dashed all hopes for recovery yesterday when it plunged to 308 points, a new year low and a drop of 4.27 per cent on Wednesday’s close.
Opening around 321 points the all-share index nosedived immediately to 309, gaining insignificantly before seeing massive falls in the last ten minutes of trading.
The shock was felt throughout all sectors with across the board losses ranging between 0.86 per cent for IT companies to 6.54 per cent in the banking sector.
Since Bank of Cyprus (BoC) has ceased trading until Monday pending its Greek IPO, Laiki has bore the brunt in the banking sector and was the sole reason for dragging the market down yesterday.
Laiki shares lost a whopping 61 cents to close at £7.66 with almost 900,000 shares changing hands as the bank suffered the knock-on effect of BoC’s Greek issue set last week between £5.20 and £5.70. The bank’s volume stood around £7 million, almost one-third the day’s trade.
“This morning I said we would have a five per cent drop because of the small decreases in Laiki yesterday,” said investment consultant Demos Stavrides of AAA Stockbrokers.
Stavrides said he estimates BoC will being trading on the Athens Stock Exchange at around £5.80 to £5.90. “The orders on BoC will push the price of Laiki down,” he said. “This is the main reason for what happened today.”
Stavrides said he didn’t believe investors should compare the two banks. ‘Investors are immature and somehow see a link between them,” he said.
“There really is no relationship between the two but Laiki is paying the price.”
He estimates that there will be no let up on the market’s downslide, at least not during today’s session. “I estimate that Laiki will drop between 25-30 cents and the index will drop around one to one and a half per cent tomorrow,” Stavrides said.
Observers predict that when BoC returns on the floor on Monday its price will drop around 25 cents because the maximum price of the BOC at the Athens bourse would be in this range.
Elsewhere yesterday the day’s few winners included Lanitis Bros, which gained one cent against all odds to close at 67 cents after hitting a high of 74 cents. Nearly five million Lanitis stocks were traded.
Another of this week’s newcomers Atteshlis Shipping also gained, adding three cents to end at £1.01. Agros gained 12 cents to end at £1.75.
The IT sector performed poorly with Logicom losing 18 cents to close at £4.60 and GlobalSoft dropping two cents to finish at £6.00 with nearly 900,000 shares traded.
Exactly a year ago yesterday the CSE index closed at 584.13 points. “Back then everybody was happy and millionaires were created overnight,” yesterday’s CSE web analysis said.
“Nowadays, it is a whole different ball game. The CSE is becoming a nightmare and investors are totally amazed while watching their life savings disappear.”
From yesterday’s performance it is obvious investors have little faith left in either the CSE or the government which has jumped in to help with a series of incentives and pledges to investigate allegations of dirty dealings.
“The investors’ lack of trust towards the government as well as the stock exchange is prompting them to sell at any price in fear of losing all their money,” the analysts said. “Today investors rushed to sell and stockbrokers were unable to convince them otherwise.”
