Palestinian ‘tent city’ springs up at Mackenzie beach

TWELVE Palestinian families of asylum seekers have been camping out at Mackenzie beach, in Larnaca, for the last five days.

They are currently living in tents as they claim that the Welfare office has cut their benefits.

A spokesman for the twelve families, consisting of around 30 people including women, men and children, said that they were forced to leave their apartments and set up tents on the beach because the District Labour Office and Social Security stopped their benefits. As a result they did not have money for rent and food.

However, according to the Welfare office they refused to work in positions suggested by the Labour Office, and were now trying to put pressure on the government. However, the Palestinians deny that they refused to work, stating that their prospective employers refused to take them on because they were Palestinian refugees.

“The Labour Ministry is trying to work it out with the Palestinians [but] they themselves deny that the Ministry found them work and they refused,” said Larnaca Mayor Andreas Moiseos. “They say that they want to work given the chance,” he added.

They families were also reportedly offered the opportunity by the Civil Registry and Migration Department to be moved to pre-fabricated houses at the Kofinou reception camp.

However, they turned down the offer, citing an alleged directive of the European Union that they are eligible for additional protection and for this reason do not want to move to Kofinou.

Moiseos added that it would be quite difficult  to remove the families from the beach as there was no court order to do so. “From the first moment that we discovered Palestinians pitching tents on the beach we took action, discussing with the police and the relevant ministries, in order to resume order, but without a court order we cannot intervene with something like this,” said Moiseos.

He also visited the beach to let them know that the demonstration will count against them in the end “as it is provoking an opinion from town residents,” as both residents and restaurant owners are asking for them to be removed from the area.

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