NICOSIA can learn from other European cities how ethnic minorities can be successfully integrated into society, the capital’s Mayor said yesterday.
Speaking at a conference of Central and Southeastern European capitals in Nicosia, Michael Zampelas said “peaceful and creative coexistence” could be achieved but “we need to rethink our approach.”
Zampelas said Cypriot officials had visited Athens and learned “many lessons” on how to integrate minorities.
He also said Cyprus could draw on its experience of bi-communal co-operation between Greek and Turkish Cypriots to face the challenge of integrating immigrants.
Kalliopi Bourdara, Deputy Mayor for Athens, stressed the importance of treating migration “as a fact, not a problem”.
“Migration is not a problem if managed well.”
She said the municipality of Athens had adopted integrating measures such as employing bilingual officials who spoke the language of migrants, providing Greek language classes for children and adults, as well as legal advice and counseling. A new service center for immigrants is also being set up which could act as “a medium for Greeks to familiarise themselves with the cultures of migrants.”
Yiannis Papadakis, Assistant Professor at the Department for Social and Political Sciences at the University of Cyprus, said the exclusion of ethnic minorities in Cyprus could be seen in Nicosia among domestic “helpers” from countries like the Philippines and Sri Lanka.
“The name itself (domestic ‘helper’) is a euphemism and expresses the core of the problem: they are seen as domestic helpers, not workers to be given proper workers’ rights.”
He said much could be learned from the “good practices” of other European cities, ranging from festivals celebrating multiculturalism to practical measures regarding health, accommodation and work.
Earlier this week, a United Nations report on refugees in Cyprus found the main problems facing immigrants were a lack of information regarding their rights, high rents for accommodation and poor provision for learning Greek.
The report said refugees also reported discrimination in employment, with several complaining of being typecast as “black” or “Arab”.
