CYPRUS will mark the passing of former President Tassos Papadopoulos with three days of mourning following his death yesterday from lung cancer.
Papadopoulos, 74, was hospitalised in Nicosia on November 22, suffering from breathing problems. His condition had been touch and go for the past week.
The Greek leadership yesterday paid tribute to the former President beginning with a minute’s silence at the Greek parliament.
In his message of condolences, Greek President Karolos Papoulias said he shared the deep sorrow of the people and the government of Cyprus.
THE MINISTRY of Interior is considering the option of increasing water rates in some areas, including Limassol and Larnaca, where water has been charged less than in other districts.
The aim is both to streamline water prices throughout the island and comply with an EU Directive which asks local water boards to adjust prices by 2010 to reflect water service provision costs.
CONVICTED rapist and murderer Antonis ‘Al Capone’ Kitas escaped from a private Nicosia hospital during the early hours of yesterday.
While police and prison officials grappled to come to terms with how one of the island’s highest profile, life sentence prisoners managed to give authorities the slip, Justice Minister Kypros Chrysostomides submitted his resignation.
THE HEALTH Ministry plans to upgrade Cyprus’ ambulance service with 10 new vehicles in a bid to achieve the EU’s vision of a 50 per cent decrease in road fatalities by the end of 2010.
THE HOUSE Legal Affairs Committee has started examining a bill for the creation of an independent body to deal with differences between banks and clientele.
As Committee Chairman Ionas Nicolaou of DISY explained, the body will work like a mediator between banks and clients to reach a compromise on differences they may have without having to go to court.
PROPERTY companies operating in the north have been banned from exhibitions in some Scandinavian countries after protests by Greek Cypriot developers, Overseas Property Professional magazine has reported.
The report said the Turkish Cypriot developers had been banned from a host of exhibitions across Finland, Norway and Iceland following complaints from Greek Cypriot companies.
THE GOVERNMENT aims to ban the sale of any GPS receivers that use maps featuring Turkish place-names for the occupied areas.
The bizarre story, broken by Politis, first came to light more than two years ago. The ministries of Foreign Affairs, the Interior and of Education are all involved, as is the Attorney-general.
But could Latin American soap operas really be behind the trend?
THE CURRENT school year has brought with it a new wave of interest in Spanish, with over a third of teenagers opting for the romantic language in the last two years of lyceum.
WHEN IT comes to practising the art of diplomacy, President Christofias has repeatedly been found wanting. Incapable of suppressing his emotions or exercising restraint when talking publicly, he has committed a series of mistakes which cannot be good for relations with EU partners or for the country in general.
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.
