Fact-finding mission on minorities

A DELEGATION from the European Council’s Secretariat for Protection of Minorities concluded a trip to Cyprus yesterday with a visit to Nicosia’s Catholic School, Terra Santa.

Andreas Scotinos, who sits on the Board for the school, said yesterday: “This visit is part of a routine fact-finding visit by the Delegation. They are looking to find out how the Convention on Minorities is being implemented in Cyprus, and how the government is assisting us.”

The government invited the delegation to Cyprus to meet minority organisations and representatives of civil society.

The trip marks the start of the third monitoring cycle of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities.

The school is one of Cyprus’ oldest, founded in 1646 by Franciscan monks from Palestine. It has been an important centre for Catholics since the Ottoman era, when Christians were excluded from occupying high positions within the state. As one of the first Christian schools in the country, it offered a primary education to Christian children, who were then able to work as interpreters or tour guides in the Ottoman era.

Today the school attracts students from various communities. “We have around 400 students, from different communities, including Greek Orthodox, Maronite, Armenian and Latin religious groups, as well as pupils belonging to various other religions or other denominations.

The school offers education for children in the age range 3-19 years old. It is provided in three cycles. The kindergarten cycle is offered for children of three-year old. The primary cycle is offered in six classes for children 6-11 years old. The secondary cycle is offered in seven classes for children 12-19 years old

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.