Let’s not reinforce negative pictures of the ‘other’

Sir,

We can all reverse the division of our country, even in small ways.

If we all stopped calling each other Greek or Turkish Cypriots and referred to each other as Cypriots or just human beings then that will help eliminate prejudice. Why? Because if we say ‘Turkish Cypriot boy murdered’ or ‘Greek Cypriot couple attacked in north’ then this creates very negative psychological pictures of the ‘other’ community. But if we say, a boy was murdered or a couple were attacked then this forces people to be more objective and to judge each case individually, without jumping the gun.

We are doing untold damage to our country by the way our journalists report news.

The Cyprus Mail could be the first one to enforce this change.

Ayten Guler,
Famagusta

The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.