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Cyprus Mail: News Articles in English, 00-11-30
CONTENTS
[01] Beef sales down over mad cow scare
[02] Bird baiting and EOKA B
[03] Turkish forces at greatest strength since 1974
[04] Shareholder confidence at a low point
[05] `Things are being made easier for offshore workers'
[06] 66 extra flights over Christmas
[07] Support group strikes out at treatment of foreign housemaids
[08] Third day of rain brings misery and ecstasy
[09] Rainwater leaking into refugee homes
[01] Beef sales down over mad cow scare
BEEF sales are down due to fears over mad cow disease, but the seasonal
Greek Orthodox fasting period is fudging the issue, butchers said
yesterday. Butchers Association president Demetris Ioannou told the Cyprus
Mail that meat sales were usually down by around 20-25 per cent at this
time of year, but he did confirm that butchers had noticed that the demand
for beef had dropped by around 25-30 per cent this year. He said that even
if people had not stopped buying beef altogether, more customers were
asking questions. "Sales of beef have gone down, about one third I would
say," Ioannou said. `Some of it is because of the mad cow disease and some
is because of the fasting, but people are more afraid and keep asking
what's going on." Ioannou said butchers had not been informed on what the
government was doing to alleviate fears. "They don't know what's going on
either, and they are talking too much, and others are talking and scaring
people," he said. Ioannou said that for the past 10 years the majority of
Cypriot butchers had been selling only local beef rather than imported,
apart from a few who specialised in meat for restaurants. Some supermarkets
also stocked imported beef, he said. "We will have to wait until after
Christmas to have a clear picture," Ioannou added. The butchery department
of a major Nicosia supermarket said that sales all over Cyprus had been
affected by the mad cow scare, but echoed Ioannou's comment that this was
partly down to the fasting season. He said his supermarket has registered a
drop in sales of around 40 per cent. "There is a lot of scaremongering
going on," he said. "Customers are asking a lot whether the beef is local
or imported, but as soon as I tell them they buy, buy it's not as much as
before." The butcher, who lived through the BSE crisis in the UK doing the
same job, said Britons had had the same attitude in the beginning, but when
the scaremongering stopped, they forgot again and went back to buying. He
said Cypriots, however, were suspicious even of Cyprus beef. "It's funny
because most Cypriots smoke and the packet says that can kill you, but they
go and buy cigarettes anyway," the butcher said. He did say he believed
that Cypriots were also afraid that the government might be lying or trying
to cover up the truth about the whole issue, just like the British
government had tried to do. "It's food for thought, isn't it?" he added.
Even McDonalds says it has noticed a small drop in burger sales. But Renos
Andreou, the manager at the burger giant's headquarters in Larnaca, said
the drop had not been dramatic and that he would not put it down to the BSE
scare. He said other factors were involved, such as the time of year and
the weather. "Occasionally we have a customer who asks where our beef comes
from and if it's safe to eat," he said. Andreou said McDonald's beef came
from cows specially raised in Italy.
[02] Bird baiting and EOKA B
A COMMITTEE debate about the illegal baiting of songbirds yesterday turned
into a vicious row about the EOKA B militia and its responsibility for the
1974 coup, as flabbergasted parliamentary reporters looked on. The argument
broke out during a meeting of the House Interior Committee, as deputies
were waiting for ministry officials to show up so the committee could start
considering hunting issues. While they were waiting, DIKO deputy Marios
Matsakis said he had heard that illegal devices were being used by hunters
to attract birds. He said the devices mimicked mating cries that attracted
females and joked that perhaps he ought to place one in his car to pull
women. The ambelopoulia issue has caused tension among deputies over the
past weeks, with animal rights campaigners suggesting the lucrative
practise of bird baiting was tantamount to a massacre, while some deputies
defended the illegal hunting as a local tradition. DISY deputy Antonis
Karas - who has been outspoken in his defence of the bird baiters -- was
not amused by Matsakis' remarks: "Why don't you go outside to make
statements to the media?" he wondered. "Maybe you would like to make
statements about Disy's paramilitary secretariat," Matsakis retorted,
referring to recent allegations that an illegal paramilitary secretariat
was reporting to DISY on the political persuasions of army officers. This
only further infuriated Karas, who accused of Matsakis of "talking crap".
"At least I wasn't involved in EOKA B," Matsakis hit back. "I didn't murder
innocent people and I didn't try to overthrow a democratic government. And
now I don't try to hide from a bloody past like others who pretend to
denounce EOKA B." A livid Karas turned on Matsakis: "You were serving in
the British Army in 1974. You could be the one involved with EOKA B." "I
was too young for that," Matsakis replied. "People the same age as you were
involved," Karas retorted, calling on Matsakis to submit a report to the
Committee, outlining where he was serving in 1974 and whether he was
involved with EOKA B. Trying to calm the tempers, KISOS deputy Doros
Theodorou appealed to his colleagues: "There is a science which is called
reason. There is no sense talking about birds and ending up arguing about
EOKA B." Andreas Philippou of KISOS, who had just arrived at the meeting,
was asked to comment on the matter. But he managed to push away the
poisoned chalice: "I am a mathematician and I only have to deal with
matters that make sense." That only gave Matsakis another cue: "The coup
made no sense and that must be established," he said.
[03] Turkish forces at greatest strength since 1974
DESPITE it already overwhelming superiority, Turkey this year continued to
reinforce its occupying forces on the island to a degree unprecedented
since 1974. During that time, Cyprus has not carried out any substantial
moves to upset the current military imbalance on the island, the Director
of the Cyprus Centre of Strategic Studies Aristos Aristotelous, told a news
conference yesterday. Turkey's superiority is more acute in air and sea
forces due to the non-existence of such forces in the National Guard and to
the proximity of Turkish bases to Cyprus compared to those in Greece.
Aristotelous said that apart from the procurement of a number of TOR-M1
anti-aircraft missile systems, Cyprus had effectively done nothing to
disturb the balance of power on the island. Turkey, on the other hand, has
reinforced its personnel and equipment, paying special attention to
offensive weapons such as tanks (MBT's), artillery, and armoured personnel
carriers (APC), effectively widening the gap with the National Guard
forces. According to Aristotelous, the occupying forces were reinforced by
a further 6,000 troops - 60 per cent of the National Guard - reaching 36,
000 men for the first time since the 1974 invasion. The number of American-
made M-48A5 MBT's were increased to 386 from 300, recording the largest
number of Turkish tanks on the island since the invasion. The number of
APC's has also been stepped up to 476 from 265, upsetting the balance
concerning these vehicles, which had before been in favour of the National
Guard. Aristotelous stressed, however, that large numbers of MBT's and
personnel were not always in favour of the army that possessed them. In a
small theatre like Cyprus, this could lead to saturation of the battlefield,
causing loss of effectiveness, logistics problems, and even huge losses.
Another important move by Turkey was the upgrading and reinforcement of
electronic warfare equipment capable of carrying out telecommunications
surveillance, that could seriously disrupt the National Guard's electronic
equipment, including radars and missile guiding systems. With these
measures, Turkey was trying to reinforce the current imbalance, upset in
past years by National Guard efforts to improve its position, Aristotelous
said. Other reasons could be the psychological effect that such
reinforcement could have in the south, supporting Turkish Cypriot
intransigence during talks, and giving Turkey the luxury to blackmail the
Greek Cypriot side while creating and sustaining fait accompli situations.
[04] Shareholder confidence at a low point
LAIKI BANK traded ex-bonus yesterday and the Bank of Cyprus announced its
impressive nine-months results but the market ended up washed out along
with the rest of the country. The all-share index dropped another five
points or 2.37 per cent to close at 233 points, another year low. Trading
opened under Tuesday's 238-point close and headed steadily downhill until
session's end on a volume of only £9.9 million -- leaving all sectors,
except trading, well into the red. Losses ranged from1 1.10 per cent in the
`other companies' sector to 5.3 per cent for tourism with losers outrunning
gainers 122 to 38 while 47 companies remained unchanged. Banking again
sustained a heavy loss of 2.51 per cent despite Bank of Cyprus (BoC)
announcing a 17 per cent operating profit for the first nine months of the
year. The group took in £95.5 million during the first three quarters of
2000, compared to £81.6 million for the same period in 1999. Profit after
tax went up by 9.2 per cent compared to the same period last year, reaching
£50 million. Despite the impressive results, BoC shares shed another 12
cents to close at £4.14, making number one on the active trading list with
a volume of £1.7 million. The share fared little better on the Athens
Stock Exchange (ASE), losing 2.65 per cent to finish at 2,570 (£4.29) while
the general index rose 0.55 per cent. BoC said in an announcement its
results were judged "highly satisfactory" especially given the poor
performance of the Cyprus Stock Market this year. Laiki went ex bonus on
the CSE yesterday resulting in a share readjustment which saw the bank's
stocks close at £3.08 compared to Tuesday's £5.29. GlobalSoft also
succumbed to the bad weather shedding 22 cents to close at £5.08. "The only
thing that the Laiki ex bonus showed is that the investor who bought today
is in a much better position than the one who bought yesterday," said
broker Demos Stavrides. "Considering the poor performance of the CSE the
BoC earnings should have received a warm welcome by investors," the
market's web analyst said. "However, investors were not convinced and
therefore the stock continued the downslide along with the rest of the
gang. Nothing seems to matter now days. Earnings, fundamentals,
acquisitions, joint ventures; the Cypriot investors do not care about these
factors." Stavrides said nothing short of a miracle would be needed at this
point since the market was now operating on a purely on a psychological
basis. "We need some kind of a big event to help boost the psychology of
the investor," he said but added he really could not think of anything that
might do the trick at the moment. "Under the current climate there is not
much hope," he said. "The conditions at the moment are more than dramatic.
We have been operating under conditions of panic selling for the past ten
days and we have to feel sorry for the investing public." The web analyst
said the complete lack of trust in the CSE and the people running it has
forced investors to continuously liquidate their positions- quite often at
a loss "as if there is no tomorrow". "The investor psychology is at such a
low-point, that selling seems the only reasonable thing to do at this point,
" he said.
[05] `Things are being made easier for offshore workers'
THE government has relaxed immigration requirements for members of the
international business community in recognition of the huge contribution
that the sector makes to GDP, Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of
Interior, Kyriakos Triantafyllides announced last night. He outlined the
new measures to members of the Cyprus International Business Association
(CIBA) in Limassol at an evening function. The Immigration Department has
made a concerted effort to smooth things for offshore workers, who will
lose their preferential tax rates when Cyprus joins the EU. "Get together
is our motto in the ministry, with you, with all people visiting Cyprus,"
Triantafyllides said. He said Cyprus would prolong preferential tax rates
for offshore companies for as long as possible, until the OECD and European
Union force tax harmonisation. In 1999 international businesses (IBs)
accounted for 4.7 per cent of GDP, employing 2,565 local staff and 2,662
foreigners. A new channel for employees of international businesses has
been set up at Larnaca airport to make arrival quicker. Work permits for
directors, executives, managers and foreign support staff, will be issued
"within days". Triantafyllides stressed that recent changes to family
reunification laws, in accordance with EU requirements, do not affect
existing arrangements. IB personnel do not have to submit a medical
certificate to Immigration, nor a bank guarantee for repatriation. Guests
of IBs are also exempt from submitting a bank guarantee as long as the
company takes written responsibility for them. Although the law is liable
to change, offshore households can employ a maid for as long as they like,
rather than the four-year maximum specified for Cypriot families, without
providing any evidence to qualify for permission. Foreign offshore
employees will continue to enjoy duty-free privileges. Training permits are
to be granted for six months to minimise red tape and re-entry visa stamps
will eliminate hassle for multiple travellers.
[06] 66 extra flights over Christmas
CYPRUS Airways (CY) has laid on a total of 66 extra flights to Greece,
Britain and other European destinations for the Christmas holiday period,
spokesman Tassos Angelis said yesterday. Angelis said the increase in
flights translated into 15,000 extra seats for the period December 15 to
January 8, 2001, mainly designed to bring home students and Cypriots living
abroad for the holidays. The bulk of the extra flights - 29 -- will be
operated on the Athens route on top of the three current daily flights to
the Greek capital. Another 24 of the flights will go to Salonica, six to
Heraklion in Crete, three to London, two to Paris and two to Milan. "These
are all over and above the regular flights to these destinations," Angelis
said. The CY spokesman said the special fares introduced at the beginning
of this month would still apply over Christmas, but passengers travelling
to central European destinations could incur a surcharge on some fares. The
new fares, which will run until the end of March 2001, offer up to 50 per
cent reductions to people over 63 and to accompanying families where the
head of the household pays the regular fare. CY has also slashed regular
fares with return tickets to Athens costing just £96 on a day flight and
£86 on the night flight. Passengers must book and pay 10 days in advance
and tickets are non-refundable and cannot be changed.
[07] Support group strikes out at treatment of foreign housemaids
THE ALIEN Support Movement is accusing the government of illegally
arresting two housemaids and attempting to deport them. It says the
insensitive attitude and blatant neglect of their rights is unacceptable
and members are now calling for new legislation to prevent it happening
again. The first incident they highlighted involved a housemaid from Sri
Lanka, who was arrested by the Immigration Department in Nicosia after a
report by her employer, who falsely accused her of abandoning her place of
work. The second, which was highlighted by the Cyprus Mail at the weekend,
refers to a Filipino, who the movement claim was illegally held by Paphos
police while they investigated her complaint that she was forced to escape
from her employers because they treated her so badly. The support group was
successful in securing the release of both women, but it says that because
neither incident was isolated, more should be done to prevent a repetition,
and it accuses the Immigration Department of violating people's human
rights. The support movement cited Article One of the European Convention,
which says an alien must be allowed to defend himself against being
deported and that they should be able to be represented before the
appropriate authority. Article Eight is also highlighted, stating
immigrants cannot be detained simply because they have lost their job and
that this is not a reason to revoke their work permit. In addition, they
state aliens should be entitled to change employers as and when they feel
necessary. The movement points out that these types of incidents have
resulted in immigrants becoming suspicious of the government. It says to
resolve the problem an appropriate legal framework should be put in place
to protect their rights, thus increasing their feeling of security. Members
are calling for the respect and enforcement of the relevant International
Conventions, which have already been ratified by Cyprus.
[08] Third day of rain brings misery and ecstasy
HEAVY RAINS fell for a third consecutive day yesterday, with more damage
reported as leaks opened up at Paphos hospital and airport and factories
were flooded in Limassol, causing thousands of pounds worth of damage.
Widespread disruption was also reported from other regions across the
island. But despite the problems in Paphos, there was a feeling of euphoria
among farmers hopeful the rain would go some way to replenishing the
parched aquifers. They said it was the first time in two years of drought
that water had begun flowing in substantial amounts into the Paphos dams.
But apart from the chaos caused in Paphos on Monday, when trees and
electricity pylons were knocked down and homes and businesses were flooded,
the protracted rainfall has exposed more weaknesses. Water leaked into the
duty free storage room at Paphos airport yesterday, destroying a number of
items. Leaks were also reported at Paphos hospital and at the public
kindergarten in the village of Mouttalos. No patients were affected by the
hospital leak, officials said. Roads in the Panayia area in the mountains
above Paphos were only open to four-wheel drive vehicles, or those fitted
with chains. In Limassol, the Ayios Athanassios industrial estate was
turned into a lake, flooding three factories and causing thousands of
pounds worth of damage. In some factories the water level reached one
metre. In Zakaki, things looked much worse. Houses and roads were flooded,
with cars stranded for hours, trees uprooted, and water tanks flying off
roofs. Fire service and Municipality crews were working all morning,
pumping water out of flooded facilities. The Limassol Fire Service said
half of its personnel had been working since Tuesday afternoon, responding
to distress calls from the public. Some roads in the Limassol countryside
were yesterday dangerous for traffic, especially in mountain areas. In the
Larnaca and Famagusta districts, torrential rains continued, causing floods
in many areas. In Larnaca, Stratigou Timagia Avenue was flooded once more,
infuriating drivers, who said it happened all the time and nobody was doing
anything to fix the drainage problem. In other areas, the fire service was
busy pumping water out of flooded houses and freeing stranded cars.
Several roads in the Larnaca countryside were deemed dangerous because of
rockslides, police warned. In Paralimni and Ayia Napa, crews were out
trying to repair the damage, while floods were reported in many places,
especially where road works were being carried out. Agriculture Minister
Costas Themistocleous said that from 8am on Tuesday until 8am yesterday, 1,
088,000 cubic metres of water had flowed into the dams. But Themistocleous
struck a note of caution, saying the situation in the dams was still very
bad due to the protracted drought. The water behind the dams yesterday
accounted for just 6.7 per cent of total capacity. "We have a long way to
go to consider our water supplies satisfactory," Themistocleous said. The
minister said that by yesterday, November had had 94mm of rain - 177 per
cent of the 30-year average of 53mm. Virtually all that rain has fallen in
the last three days. Only last week, the minister was warning that November
2000 was set to become the driest November in a hundred years.
[09] Rainwater leaking into refugee homes
TWO and a half thousand refugee estate homes have suffered from severe
leaks in the last three days of rain, the House Refugee Committee
complained yesterday. Members of the Committee, as well as Interior
Ministry officials, have received thousands of calls from refugees, forced
to put buckets underneath their leaking roofs to stop their homes from
flooding since heavy rains started falling on Monday, Committee President
Aristophanis Georgiou of AKEL told reporters at the House yesterday.
Interior Minister Christodoulos Christodoulou said yesterday afternoon he
had instructed the Town Planning Department as well as the local
authorities to be on full alert and offer help to residents on the estates.
He promised his ministry would compensate refugees whose houses had been
damaged by the rain. "Those houses suffer, among other things, from roof
problems. The Committee has called on the Interior Minister to take urgent
action to face the problem," Georgiou said. The ministry announced a few
months ago that it had started a campaign to renovate and rebuild refugee
estate houses, which had become inappropriate for habitation because they
were old or made of bad materials. The Committee has asked from the
ministry to speed up procedures to carry out the renovation, and if
necessary to hire extra staff or even assign part of the project to the
private sector. DIKO deputy Zacharias Koullias said: "The government has
been proved ineffective in addressing the refugees' problems. In some cases,
by the time they fix half of a house's roof, they say they have run out of
money, pledging to fix the other half next year." Lefteris Christoforou of
DISY said residents of refugee estates were living in grim conditions and
that the fact that the government had not managed to help them overcome
their problems by now, 26 years after the invasion, was unacceptable. "The
society and the state must stop regarding refugees as second class citizens
while our society is considered affluent."
Cyprus Mail 2000
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