HEALTH Minister Charis Charalambous continued his defence of the situation at the old Nicosia General Hospital yesterday, claiming that the human bones found had originated from unrelated excavations.
“Any human remains located during excavations when people dig up their houses or drill for boreholes go to the General Hospital, where they are examined by both the police and the Archeological Department. If they are found to be of no use, the hospital arranges for them to be burnt,” Charalambous said.
He added that the human bones photographed by Phileleftheros journalists on Monday were remains found “here and there”, while they had undergone all the necessary procedures and were destined for cremation.
Local journalists had found human bones stuffed in plastic bags and boxes in the mortuary of the out-of commission hospital earlier this week. They also discovered scores of death certificates and medical records.
Charalambous vehemently defended the security measures in place, saying that all necessary procedures to restrict entry were implemented. The Minister also went on the attack, branding the way reporters had entered the decommissioned hospital as illegitimate.
“I spoke to the Attorney-general and he has allowed me to quote him on this. He told me that entry without permission into a government building that is enclosed and is being guarded is classed as illegal. I have also contacted the police to patrol the area,” he added.
Personal Data Protection Commissioner Goula Frangou, however, reiterated her belief that the situation was not up to scratch.
“The people from our office that went to the old hospital on Monday went in from the main entrance opposite the House and walked to the psychiatric ward without any problems or intervention. Of course, we are not the appropriate authority to judge whether the medical files found were needed, however this is simply not the issue,” she said.
“Either they are useful and are kept properly, or they are disposed of. They cannot be left exposed like they were. The people that were there at the time reported what they saw. Doors were left unlocked, lockers with files were left open, and personal IDs were found as well. Whatever measures are now in place have been implemented since the event,” Frangou added.
The Greens yesterday expressed their disappointment at the “foul” situation at the old General Hospital.
“For there to be documents and human bones just left lying around in an area so easily accessible to anyone can be regarded as a very serious act of negligence, if not a criminal offence,” a statement from the Green Party read.
The party has urged the Health Minister to look into the issue further.
“The matter of medical files left unprotected as well as the obligations of the private company employed to guard the grounds of the old hospital should be examined. We are waiting for the Minister to deal with the matter in a dynamic and decisive way,” they said yesterday.
In another incident on Tuesday night, Charalambous reported that the police was alerted after three people attempted to go into the old hospital with a camera. He added that he was not aware whether or not they were journalists.
The Nicosia General Hospital was relocated to a massive, new, three-storey building in the Athalassa area on October 7 last year.
