Lymbia community leader confident 16 protesters won’t be prosecuted
LYMBIA community leader Sophocles Savva said yesterday expressed hope all charges would be dropped against the Nicosia district villagers who had been involved in mass demonstrations earlier this year.
“I believe – I hope – logic will prevail for the good of the community and in general,” he said.
“The state must solve problems and not create them,” he added.
Savva was speaking to the Cyprus Mail regarding the community’s fury that 16 of its own were facing prosecution for events that took place seven months ago.
He said: “The whole community was involved in the demonstrations and yet only 16 are being charged. That is not fair… They are only now remembering incidents that turned the community upside down.
“We solved the issue peacefully back then and accepted the project. After compromising the way we did we thought the issue would be dropped and no charges would be pressed.”
Savva was referring to violent clashes between village residents and police in April after the government announced its plans to build a waste disposal plant near their village.
“These people are not criminals. They acted spontaneously in support of their beliefs about what effects the plant would have on the community, the environment and public health. They acted in the heat of the moment.
“Why should only 16 people be blamed when everyone in the community was involved?” the community leader said.
As well as blocking the highway on April 17, the protest involved hurling cars off a motorway bridge, throwing stones at police cars and setting a number of cars on fire.
Nine people were hospitalised, including Savva who was had had to be admitted to Nicosia general hospital’s intensive care unit with heart trouble.
On Thursday, 16 of the 200 or so villagers who partook in the demonstration were served court documents listing 17 criminal offences. These included causing a public disturbance and obstructing justice.
“We have written to the Attorney-general, the Interior Minister, the Justice Minister and the Chief of Police asking that these charges be dropped. We hope they will listen and nothing will happen,” he said.
Savva said the municipal council had been in contact with people who had pull with the AG and who would speak to Petros Clerides on their behalf.
“It is up to the Attorney general whether he chooses to write off the charges or not. We are hoping that he will,” he said.
The community leader would not name the people whom he believed could influence the AG in their favour.
If the charges were not dropped, Savva said the municipal council would meet to discuss what measures to take.
“At this point I can’t say what we will decide,” he said.
But Justice Minister Sophocles Sophocleous was sceptical about the weight of promises made to the Lymbia residents.
Speaking to reporters following a meeting of the Crime Council, the minister said he would look into who had been making promises that the state would drop the prosecutions.
“Only the Attorney general can decide something like that,” he said.
As for residents’ threats that they would take similar steps as they had in April, he said: “The state cannot, must not and will not be held hostage by such behaviour.”
He said there were much more orthodox ways for a person to seek justice, if justice was on their side.
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