Cyprus Mail: News Articles in English, 01-04-27

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From: The Cyprus Mail at <http://www.cyprus-mail.com/>

Friday, April 27, 2001

CONTENTS

[01] Joy and tragedy as Tsiakourmas freed at last

[02] Bulldozers in EU path

[03] Calls grow for Pittokopitis to stand down

[04] Iranian woman accused of smuggling drugs

[05] Holidays up

[06] CY in Greek crossfire

[01] Joy and tragedy as Tsiakourmas freed at last

Tsiakourmas' ordeal finally came to an end at midday yesterday when Judge Recep Gurler sentenced him to six months in jail, but ordered his immediate release because of time already served and good conduct.

But it was too late for Eleni Tsiakourmas, 79, who had died at 4am, whispering her son's name at the last.

Panicos Tsiakourmas had been in detention in the north since his abduction from British Sovereign Base land last December 13.

Yesterday was a roller coaster of emotions for Tsiakourmas and his family.

At 10am, the 'court' announced that the 39-year old Greek Cypriot contractor, who is married with three children, had been found guilty of possessing and trafficking cannabis.

He had to wait until midday before the sentence was announced.

"Taking into consideration the time the accused was held in custody, he is to be released immediately," said Judge Gurler, adding that his health and family circumstances had also been taken into account. Like his mother, Tsiakourmas is a diabetic and spent several days in hospital during his detention.

Tsiakourmas' wife Niki, his two brothers and one sister broke into tears when they heard the decision.

But there was a further tragic twist to come. Tsiakourmas did not know that his mother had died.

"I am very happy because the nightmare is over now. I am going to see my sick mother," he told reporters outside the 'court'.

But it did not take him long to figure out the truth, as everyone around him knew his 78-year-old mother had died just before daybreak.

Eleni Tsiakourmas had been admitted to Larnaca Hospital last Thursday after suffering a stroke that doctors said was brought on because of the trauma of her son's abduction and continued detention.

Tsiakourmas' mother had slipped into unconsciousness and was not responding to treatment. She died at 4am.

Her last breath was spent whispering Panicos' name, reports said.

"We had to lose one life to save another one," Panicos' sister said after her brother's release.

An hour later, Tsiakourmas crossed back to the free areas at the Ledra Palace checkpoint, where he and his family had been driven from Famagusta in a British High Commission vehicle.

"We are both happy and sad," Tsiakourmas said on his return. "I am going to see my mother at last although she is dead," he added in a charged atmosphere at the checkpoint.

"She sacrificed her life for Panicos," said his wife Niki, bursting into tears in her husband's arms.

The reunited couple then drove to Larnaca Hospital, where Eleni Tsiakourmas' body was held.

"Go see her. She will feel your presence, even now," Tsiakourmas' brother, Kyriacos urged him.

Eleni Tsiakourmas' funeral will take place today.

Tsiakourmas was abducted on December 13 last year from the Pyla-Pergamos road within British bases territory, taken to the north and accused of possessing 1.5 kilos of cannabis. His car was found abandoned with the doors open and the lights on early in the morning.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2001

[02] Bulldozers in EU path

"The European Commission is to seek assurances from the government of Cyprus that permission for development in Akamas will not be given before the area is declared a European Special Area of Conservation and a management plan agreed," Davies stated in a press release.

The MEP's statement came after a meeting of the European Parliament's Environment committee in Brussels yesterday, during which Davies and German MEP Mechtild Rothe advised European Commission negotiators to pressure Nicosia over Akamas.

"European MPs fear that developers will try to gain prior approval for their schemes in a bid to escape later restrictions," Davies said, noting that Akamas was slated for inclusion in the EU's list of protected wilderness areas later this year.

The MEP also vowed that the European parliament would not approve Cyprus' entry to the bloc unless Nicosia kept repeated promises to conserve the remote peninsula. "Cyprus needs the votes of MEPs if it is to join the EU. These votes come at the price of greater emphasis being placed on environmental protection," he stated.

In March last year, after years of promising to protect Akamas as a national park, the cabinet announced a controversial plan to allow "mild and controlled" development on the peninsula. The cabinet plan, slammed by greens, also proposed that the biggest Akamas landowner, Photos Photiades, be given free rein to develop a large plot in the Akamas forest. Photiades has made no secret of his ambitions to build a massive tourism complex on Akamas.

"Why should we support Cyprus' application if we suspect that this is a country where the power and wealth of a few developers can cut across the wishes of Cypriot parliamentarians and huge numbers of Cypriot people?" Davies said yesterday.

The Cyprus parliament has unanimously endorsed a 1995 World Bank plan recommending that tourism development on Akamas be restricted to within existing villages. The Cyprus-EU joint parliamentary committee again backed the World Bank plan when it met in Limassol early last month.

There is widespread support on the island for preserving the peninsula with its dramatic scenery, turtle-nesting beaches and rare flora. But villagers in the area support the plans of big developers like Photiades.

Three mukhtars from the area were in Brussels earlier this week to canvass support for greater development.

If Davies' response to the visit is anything to go by, then the community leaders - Sophocles Pittokopitis of Inia, Stelios Koupparis of Drousia and Savvas Theodorou of Neo Chorio - were given short shrift.

"I have not seen any development plans so far which seem compatible with the principles of landscape conservation," the British MEP said after meeting the three. He added that it was vital that conservation be combined with economic development for Akamas villages.

The mukhtars themselves, however, expressed complete satisfaction with their Brussels contacts, saying the "voice of the people of Akamas" had at last been heard by the EU. "When we said to them: 'Gentlemen, we want from you a sustainable development that fits in with EU norms', they were all surprised," Inia mukhtar Pittokopitis said yesterday.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2001

[03] Calls grow for Pittokopitis to stand down

For his part, Pittokopitis insisted a government-appointed probe committee had blamed the irregularities at the Paphos co-op on his subordinates at the bank. The opposition party heavyweight, who is standing for re-election in the May parliamentary elections, also said it was "up to the electorate" to judge him.

The chairman of the parliamentary watchdog committee, Christos Pourgourides of governing DISY, weighed into the bubbling debate by insisting the probe had found Pittokopitis guilty of "unprecedented" abuse of his position at the co-op.

On Wednesday, the cabinet was handed the findings of the committee appointed to investigate claims that Pittokopitis and other top officials at the Paphos co-op had vastly exceeded their overdraft allowances at their bank. The probe identified only disciplinary, and not criminal, offences, but did suggest that the actions of the co-op members in question constituted an abuse of trust punishable with sacking. The Cabinet decided to let Attorney-general Alecos Markides decide on further action.

Calls for Pittokopitis to resign have been frequent in the wake of the co- op scandal, but the government's response to Wednesday's report was notably muted, with Papapetrou focusing on the fact that the committee had found no criminal offences.

But Papapetrou changed his tune yesterday, saying he had been "shocked" that both Pittokopitis and DIKO chief Tassos Papadopoulos had rushed to claim the probe committee had completely cleared Pittokopitis.

"I am truly sorry that the muted tones maintained by the government on this issue have been misinterpreted by some, and especially some guilty parties, who consider that they can now go on the counter-attack," Papapetrou told his daily briefing. "For anyone who can read, the report uncovers an orgy of irregularities, which, if nothing else, create an issue of sensitivity, and, in particular, political sensitivity for those involved in politics," he added, pointing the finger at Pittokopitis.

Papapetrou refused to be drawn on whether he was calling on the DIKO man from Paphos and other co-op officials to resign, inviting reporters to draw their "own conclusions".

DISY man Christos Pourgourides was far less guarded in his attack on Pittokopitis. He said the probe report had unearthed "much and important" new information on the DIKO man's actions: "Mr Pittokopitis and members of his family mortgaged property for loans at excessively high prices. A property that an independent evaluator valued at £40,000 was mortgaged for £150,000. I do not think Mr Pittokopitis did not know the property was not worth £150,000.

"I conclude that there have been irregularities and improprieties on an unprecedented level. Even if the co-op had been an old shop belonging to Mr Nicos Pittokopitis and his family, they would have kept to the rules more rigidly than they have," the DISY man charged.

Like Papapetrou, he expressed surprise at the DIKO leader's response to the findings: "I expected Mr Tassos Papadopoulos to come out and say: 'Yes, after what has been found, we as DIKO withdraw the Pittokopitis candidacy'."

But this barrage of criticism from the government and the ruling party did not faze Pittokopitis. He called a news conference in his hometown of Paphos to insist the probe committee had cleared him of all wrongdoing.

He said the investigators had laid the blame for the irregularities at the Paphos co-op squarely at the feet of co-op officers who did not tell the bank's chairman about "different ways" of calculating breaches of overdrafts.

He also said it was also plain that it was unclear how much leeway on an overdraft a co-op official had: "I refer you to the findings of the report which show clearly that till today the Hellenic co-op bank of Paphos, other co-ops, the office of the commissioner of co-ops and the audit service have differing opinions about the way limits on loans to members are set."

Would he be taking Papapetrou's hint and resigning? "Political sensitivity can be shown in many ways and not just by resigning. Mr Pittokopitis has shown his sensitivity in many ways people of Paphos. It is up to them to judge me," was Pittokopitis' response.

He also insisted the attacks against him were politically motivated.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2001

[04] Iranian woman accused of smuggling drugs

Passport officers got suspicious of 33-year-old Farite Sakki after they saw that she had come to Cyprus three times in the recent past.

She arrived on the 9.30am Iranair flight.

Farite was led to Larnaca hospital where x-rays showed foreign objects inside her body.

The woman allegedly admitted to police that she had swallowed around 65 cylindrical objects stuffed with hashish.

But police later said the suspect had passed 42 objects containing 140 grams of what is believed to be heroin.

Earlier this month, police arrested another Iranian man carrying hashish in his body.

In what was described as the largest haul of its sort, the man passed 173 egg-shaped objects containing a total of 1,100 grams of hashish.

He is currently in custody awaiting trial.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2001

[05] Holidays up

Speaking at a news conference to launch the 'Taxidi 2001' Travel Fair, ACTA general-secretary Tassos Katsourides said that of the total number who had travelled abroad, 235,300 had gone to Greece.

And he added that in the first three months of this year, outgoing tourism was up five to seven per cent.

This year will be the fourth such travel exhibition with some 40 participants. The fair will be held from May 4-6 at the State Fairs grounds in Nicosia.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2001

[06] CY in Greek crossfire

CY spokesman Tassos Angelis said that out of the four daily flights to Athens from Larnaca, only two could be operated. "Two of the flights were cancelled," he said referring to the 7am and 9.30am flights yesterday. Angelis said one flight managed to reach Athens before the strike began yesterday morning and the other was expected to depart late last night after the strike ended.

"All passengers were informed in advance and other arrangements were made for them," he said.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2001

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