The Syrian crisis and the Middle East

2013-01-20

We start with a supposition which has the guarantee of becoming reality, namely that President Assad and his Baath regime will be overthrown. The only question is when. Today, we are facing an impasse, after 21 months of conflict which has left 60 thousand dead, thousands of refugees and a country in ruins. 

President Assad, in a speech delivered on January 6, offered no concessions and vowed never to talk to foes he branded terrorists and Western puppets, while the UN-Arab League mediator, Lakhtar Brahimi ruled out a role for President Assad in a transitional government, stressing that “In Syria… what people are saying is that a family ruling for 40 years is a little bit too long”.

A poker honour fraught with potential embarrassment

2013-01-20

 

That Cyprus has been chosen to host the prestigious 2013 Nations Cup poker tournament this March would ordinarily be considered an honour.

So why is Antonis Theophanides, vice president of the Cyprus Poker Association (CPA), viewing the event with more than a little trepidation?

To put it simply, he’s scared of the police. In July last year, police raided two venues in Larnaca and Limassol and arrested 31 CPA members on various charges relating to illegal gambling. Players insisted they were taking part in initial tryouts for the national team and that they weren’t playing for money which is illegal in Cyprus.

A mixed bag of candidates

2013-01-20

 

Kostas Kyriacou, known as ‘Outopos’, is a farmer, who studied philosophy at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. He is divorced with three children. He hopes to create four city-states in Cyprus: three for Greek Cypriots and one for Turkish Cypriots. Weddings would be forbidden and free love abound. He calls for “an Earth without mountains, an endless valley which could feed and nourish 57 billion”. His goal is for a single world government; a unique language and culture. In contrast to the three main candidates, he seems committed to his beliefs, as crazy as they seem. 

Politicians slowly learning the value of a tweet

2013-01-20

 

AMONG the thousands watching this week’s presidential debate for next month’s elections on their TV sets, many were also online on social media services Facebook and Twitter in what marks the internet’s first real entry in Cyprus’ political elections. 

The three main contenders, Stavros Malas who is backed by ruling party AKEL, DISY leader Nicos Anastasiades who is also backed by DIKO, and EDEK-backed Giorgos Lillikas, discussed the economy for over two hours on Monday night.

The debate on the economy of our indebted island was broadcast live by Cyprus’ four main TV channels Sigma, Mega, CyBC and Ant1. 

People could also watch it online.

It’s time to set up a political psychiatric ward

2013-01-20

 

I WOULD like to make a suggestion that I believe would contribute to the raising of the quality of our political life. We should set up a political psychiatric ward. This would operate along the same lines as a psychiatric hospital in which people with psychological problems are treated. 

The political psychiatric hospital would offer treatment (in the form of reality checks and political training) to our politicians who are suffering from job-related ailments. The legislature could pass regulations and procedures so that any politician who engages in demagoguery or makes grossly stupid suggestions would be taken there.

A letter from London: From a pond to the ocean

2013-01-20

 

Things in Cyprus are bad. Really bad. Everyone says so. 

“Now is the time to go and get your CV out there. Greeks, Italians, Spaniards, they’ve all made the jump. We’re next on the list. Better to get out first before a flood of Cypriot CVs hit the European market and yours is lost in the masses,” says my younger sister, a 32-year-old media professional who keeps her eye on the ball.

But where does one go? What does one do? And will what you find be any better than the situation you’re already in?

Green light for real ale

2013-01-20

 

A FAMILY-OWNED Paphos-based micro brewery which has been fighting red tape and bureaucracy in Cyprus for almost three years has finally been granted permission to brew by the government.

The decision came in the nick of time as the Ginn family was on the verge of relocating their business to Malta, after facing delay after delay in Cyprus.

Although Cyprus had always been the first choice of the family, it looked like they were not going to be able to fulfill their dream and they had visited Malta several times in recent months.

“We are all over the moon and would like to thank the government for finally granting us our permit,” Bill Ginn said this week.

The French will learn that Mali is no Libya

2013-01-20

“Those days are over,” said Frances President Francois Hollande last month, when asked if French forces would intervene in the war between Islamist insurgents who have seized the northern half of Mali and the government in Bamako. But the days in question weren’t over for very long. Last Friday France sent a squadron of fighter-bombers to the West African country to stop the Islamist fighters from taking the capital.

A film for all senses

2013-01-20

 

THE CONTINUING transformation of Nicosia’s Ledra Street is about to receive a further boost with the up-coming opening of a 6D cinema at the junction of Ledra Street and Onasagorou.

People may have heard of 3D but 6D? The Sunday Mail spoke with the creative director of MoviXD, the 6D cinema chain which already has a branch at Mackenzie beach in Larnaca, 26-year-old Nastia Motovilova to find out the difference. 

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.