Clerides stands firm on grant of title deeds

DESPITE opposition from the House, President Clerides appears determined to go ahead with his controversial plan to grant tittle deeds for refugee homes.

House president Spyros Kyprianou yesterday sent a letter to Clerides expressing the desire of the majority of the House for the plan be scrapped. As Thursday night’s House plenum, Diko deputies broke ranks with their government coalition partners Disy to vote with opposition parties against the plan.

However, Government spokesman Manolis Christofides said the President was not thinking of changing course on the issue.

“The President believes in the correctness of the policy he is following on the issue and the provision of title deeds to refugees will go ahead,” Christofides told his morning press briefing.

He said 5,000 deeds were already ready and would be handed to refugees.

Kyprianou repeated the reasons why he, his party and opposition parties were against the whole idea. He said it “would give the impression to third parties” that the refugee problem had been solved.

“Whether we like it or not, the Turks will take advantage of this,” he said. He said the Turkish side would maintain that an exchange of properties was taking place, with Greek Cypriot refugees getting Turkish Cypriot land in the free areas and vice versa for the occupied areas.

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