Scramble to limit political damage

2010-12-24

THE government yesterday scrambled to launch a damage limitation exercise following the violence against a Turkish basketball team by a faction of APOEL hooligans, which has handed Turkey the PR coup of the year.

Government spokesman Stefanos Stefanou said that on the instructions of President Demetris Christofias letters were being sent to the United Nations and the European Union in a bid to put things into perspective and to give the whole story.

The incident, which took place on Tuesday night after the end of a FIBA Eurochallenge game between APOEL and Pinar Karsiyaka, was also condemned by all political parties yesterday.

Our View: Turkey scores big off of Greek Cypriot hooliganism

2010-12-24

TUESDAY night’s incident at a Nicosia stadium where APOEL hooligans attacked Turkish team Pinar Karasiyaka during a FIBA Eurochallenge basketball game could not have come at a worse time, or become so blown out of proportion politically.

The Cyprus talks are already flagging badly and the amount of negative publicity surrounding the incident is another nail in the coffin, whether it was random mindless thuggery or a politically motivated organised attack.

Although the Cypriot team had won the game, as soon as the final whistle blew 500 APOEL fans from the 2,000 attendees started throwing things at the Turkish team’s bench. Police escorted the Pinar Karasiyaka members to their locker room for safety. The mob tried to storm the room but were prevented.

‘Who’s the naked lady on your passport?’

2010-12-24

BIOMETRIC passports have been criticised on many counts, including impinging on civil liberties, but in the case of Cyprus they apparently may offend sensibilities of an altogether different nature.

Local press reports yesterday said the sketch of a nude Aphrodite on Cypriot biometric passports may offend authorities in Islamic countries and cause problems for the new passport holders, prompting Interior Minister Neoclis Sylikiotis yesterday to downplay the concerns.

According to an article in Phileleftheros, diplomats have expressed reservations and fears as to the reactions that may be provoked by the sketch of the naked goddess.

Could Eurocypria be back in the air soon?

2010-12-24

EUROCYPRIA airlines, which went bankrupt last month, could be ready to resume operations under a different name and structure as early as the start of next year.

Chris Iacovides, the liquidator appointed by creditors to oversee the wind up of the company, said yesterday that a five-year business plan for the reactivation of the airline is ready to be submitted to interested private investors.

There are currently around 10 interested parties from Cyprus and abroad, Iacovides said, including the Archbishopric. Iacovides said the business plan would be handed over to Archbishop Chrysostomos and his advisors “today [yesterday] or tomorrow.”

The business plan shows that a new downsized company could make a €30 million profit in five years.

Ballistics expert cross examined in Hadjicostis murder case

2010-12-24

IN THE ongoing trial for the murder of Sigma boss Andis Hadjicostis, the defence yesterday sought to cast doubt on the testimony of a ballistics expert who earlier told the court that both fatal shots were fired from the same weapon.

Police officer Victoras Akamas, a witness for the prosecution, was being cross-examined by the defence, which questioned the accuracy of the report he filed following ballistics tests on the two cartridges recovered from the crime scene.

A day earlier, Akamas told the court the victim was killed by two shots to the chest. The first was from around two metres away when the victim was exiting his car, and the second about a metre away, he said.

Leaders to meet next Tuesday

2010-12-24

FEARS OF delays in the Cyprus talks have been laid to rest after the UN confirmed that the two leaders will meet again this Tuesday.

Turkish Cypriot leader Dervis Eroglu was rushed to Ankara last weekend for heart surgery to unblock a coronary artery after his personal doctor ran tests on him in Cyprus. Last Tuesday’s meeting with President Demetris Christofias was cancelled as a result, while no new dates were confirmed.

There was concern and speculation that the talks could suffer as a result, given that the normal time for recovery is usually between one and three months. Even Eroglu’s spokesman suggested that the January 26 meeting between the two leaders and UN chief in Geneva could be pushed back a week or two.

Children’s rights being violated authority figures

2010-12-24

A TOTAL of 170 complaints were filed to Child Commissioner Leda Koursoumba in 2009, with her annual report showing that children’s rights in Cyprus were being violated by teachers, policemen, parents and others in authority.

Presenting her 2009 report to President Demetris Christofias, Koursoumba underlined a series of problems, involving indecent and violent assaults against children as well as serious insufficiencies in domestic legislation.

The majority of complaints, according to the report were made against the Ministries of Labour and Social Insurance, Health, Education and Interior.

Farmers dump tomatoes in frustration

2010-12-24

FRUIT AND veg farmers from the Famagusta District were left fuming yesterday as the demand for tomatoes remained low despite the equally low prices. Farmers blamed the high retail price for the huge surplus left behind.

According to Larnaca Press Agency, farmers the last two days have been selling tomatoes at 20 cents a kilo, while the price in the market for the consumer is as high as 70 cents a kilo.

In total, 39 tonnes of top quality tomatoes were disposed of yesterday. Farmers vented their frustration in a symbolic tomato dumping exercise on the road network, closing main thoroughfare Protaras Avenue in Paralimni for around half an hour.

‘Cyprus file’ almost concluded

2010-12-24

THE REPORT by the Committee for the File of Cyprus will complete its work in January, Committee Chairman Marinos Sizopoulos of EDEK has announced.

Referring to the report, AKEL’s Aristophanis Georgiou said some elements would “make an impact”, while DIKO’s Zacharias Koulias said he hoped the Committee’s report would be the start of a more assertive course in the Cyprus problem. The Committee had wanted to reach a conclusion at the start of 2011.

A small number of witnesses remain to testify, while the final draft will be handed over to House President Marios Garoyian. It will then be submitted to the House Plenum for approval.

Early morning blast in Limassol

2010-12-24

POLICE yesterday sought one suspect in connection with an early morning bomb explosion at the entrance of a house in Limassol.

The device had been placed at the entrance of a home belonging to a 55-year-old man who was lying on the couch in the living room at the time of the explosion but was not injured.

The 4am blast caused extensive damage to the entrance of the 55-year-old’s home and a neighbouring house.

Police said based on information they received the issued an arrest warrant against a man, they did not name.

Limassol CID chief Yiannakis Georgiou said the motives behind the bomb seemed to be financial.

The 55-year-old recently returned from the United States where he lived for the past 30 years.

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.