Cyprus Mail: News Articles in English, 01-06-21

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

Thursday, June 21, 2001

CONTENTS

[01] Remains of Greek soldiers handed over for burial

[02] New tests to check safety of toxic dump

[03] Villagers vent their anger over cement work discharges

[04] New labelling for eggs and poultry from August 1

[05] Government offers housing aid to low-income families

[06] Immigrant group slams government on World Refugee Day

[07] Theodorou urges single candidacy to KISOS leadership

[08] Paphos and Scarborough: twin towns of the future?

[01] Remains of Greek soldiers handed over for burial

THE REMAINS of two Greek soldiers killed during the 1974 Turkish invasion were yesterday handed to Greek army representatives during a ceremony held at the Foreign Ministry.

The remains of Asimakis Burekas, a soldier who had served in the Greek Force in Cyprus and whose name was on the missing persons list, and of Alexis Christopoulos who was killed during the invasion, are due to be taken to Greece and be given to their families for burial today.

In an emotionally charged atmosphere, Foreign Minister Yiannakis Cassoulides spoke with tears in his eyes, explaining the remains had been covered with the flags of Greece and Cyprus, "something that indicates the common struggles of Greece and Cyprus."

Since 1999, the Cypriot authorities have been conducting tests on remains in marked and unmarked graves at two cemeteries in Nicosia, and so far about 180 remains have been identified through DNA testing; 26 of those relate to cases of previously missing persons, 76 to military personnel known to have been killed and six to civilians dead.

Cassoulides on Tuesday admitted that remains belonging to Cypriots killed during the 1974 invasion could have been incorrectly identified during earlier exhumations as those of Greek war victims and sent for burial in Greece.

It appears Greek families may now be forced to dig up what they believed to be their loved ones' remains so they can be returned to Cyprus for further tests.

The minister said the possible confusion concerned remains exhumed in a "non-scientific" manner from unmarked graves in Cyprus by Greek teams between 1979 and 1981.

"All necessary measures are being taken so that, if remains of Cypriots have been handed over to Greek families, these can be identified and returned to Cyprus," Cassoulides added.

Nicos Theodosiou, the chairman of the Association of Relatives of the Missing, said yesterday he was aware of " this chaos" and called on the Greek and Cypriot governments to address the problem.

"The authorities should do everything in their powers to return the remains in Cyprus, where they belong. They should handle this matter with respect to the relatives of the missing," he stressed.

Theodosiou said that in general, exhumations and identification procedures had been carried out in a scientific manner.

The Association yesterday submitted a memorandum to embassies, calling on foreign governments to use the May 10 European Court verdict slamming Turkey over mass violations of human rights in Cyprus to restore the rights of the relatives of the missing.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2001

[02] New tests to check safety of toxic dump

THE government is moving to close one of the darkest chapters in the island's environmental history, by commissioning what it hopes will be the definitive study of the Ascarel dump at Kato Polemidia, Limassol.

Thirteen years after hundreds of tonnes of earth contaminated with the highly toxic PCB chemicals known as Ascarel were dumped in a sealed pit in the Limassol suburb, the Agriculture Ministry has announced that a team of Swedish experts has been brought in to assess the risk to man and the environment.

Environmentalists and local residents have long protested about the dangers posed by the Ascarel dump, despite the precautions taken when the poisoned earth was entombed in early 1988. Kato Polemidia is a cancer hot spot, and some have claimed this could be linked to the presence of the dump of carcinogenic PCBs in the area.

The pressure from greens and local residents would now appear to have paid off.

"The Geological Survey department of the Agriculture Ministry announces that it is pressing ahead with conducting a study to re-examine and assess the methodology and citing for the Ascarel dumping site at Kato Polemidia," an official statement read on Tuesday,

Swedish consultants SWECO have been brought in to carry out a two-year study, and a team of experts came over for a first site visit earlier this month.

The Ascarel arrived on the island inside massive electrical transformers imported from France by a scrap metal firm in 1987. Workers at the Limassol scrap yard, apparently unaware of the poisonous nature of the polychlorinated bi-phenyl (PCB) waste, removed 20 barrels of Ascarel from the transformers and dumped it in a nearby abandoned quarry pit.

When the authorities got wind of what the scrap merchants had done, they intervened and recovered about 900 tonnes of contaminated earth from the quarry. "It would have cost a huge amount of money to take the tonnes of earth to Belgium, where the waste could be incinerated, so it was decided to make a special pit at Polemidia instead," George Sideras, the Labour Ministry's pollution expert said yesterday.

The pit for the Ascarel was carefully sealed with concrete and a plastic lining, but fears about possible leaks into surrounding soil and groundwater persist. Bore holes were sunk in the area around the PCB dump, to allow monitoring of any leachate from the entombed earth.

The Swedish team now re-examining the dump will be sinking fresh bore holes both within the dump and around it.

Sideras noted that PCBs are particularly insidious toxins because they are not biodegradable but instead persist in the environment "for thousands of years", accumulating in the fatty tissue of any creature unlucky enough to ingest them. PCBs have been linked to cancer, liver damage and suppression of the immune system.

The irony of the Ascarel saga is that the scrap merchants who originally imported the environmental headache into the island have not had to pay a penny in compensation, as the law did not contain any anti-PCB provisions in 1987. The cost of removing the PCB contaminated waste from its original dumping site in a disused quarry and redepositing it at Kato Polemidia is estimated at around £300,000.

Since the 1987 disaster, the government has set up a special chemical treatment plant at Vasiliko for neutralising PCBs.

SWECO's remit includes recommending a way of re-treating the Polemidia Ascarel waste if the ageing dump is found to be an unsafe solution.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2001

[03] Villagers vent their anger over cement work discharges

VILLAGES down-wind of the Vasiliko cement works are protesting about the factory's "suffocating, repulsive and unacceptable impact".

The cement works last month proudly unveiled an initiative to burn "green coal" to power the plant: chopped up tyres, rubbish and meatmeal. Factory bosses say emissions tests have given the alternative fuel experiment a clean environmental bill of health. But local communities beg to differ.

In a letter to Commerce and Industry Minister Nicos Rolandis released yesterday, the co-ordinating committee for Vasiliko area villages spoke of "noxious discharges" from the factory, citing June 14 as a particularly bad day. "There were thick clouds of fumes, combined with fearsome noise and disgusting smells, making for a suffocating, repulsive and unacceptable impact on the surrounding area," the co-ordinating committee informed the Minister.

The villagers spoke of "continuing use of inappropriate and improper materials" at the cement works. "These material include sewage from Limassol, meat powder from abattoirs, tyres from the automotive industry, industrial and household rubbish and other dirty materials," the protest letter stated.

The Vasiliko plant has a bad reputation for spewing cement dust and fumes over the surrounding area but cement works bosses insist the have now cleaned up their act and are now even helping solve waste management problems through the "green coal" initiative.

According to local communities, however, this is all just 'green-wash'. They charge that the government has consistently turned a blind eye to the Vasiliko plant's environmental record.

"It is the state's disinterest which allows the situation to continue. Once again we strongly protest and request you to take real and decisive action to monitor and control emissions from the Vasiliko cement factory," the villagers told Minister Rolandis.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2001

[04] New labelling for eggs and poultry from August 1

NEW regulations on poultry products aimed at stopping false advertising and improving product quality will take effect in the coming months, officials at the Department of Agriculture have confirmed.

The guidelines for eggs and poultry meat are part of the EU harmonisation effort and are "absolutely, completely in line with European Union Standards," said Senior Animal Husbandry Officer Kyriacos Charalambous yesterday.

From August 1, eggs will be classified according to freshness, "A" for fresh eggs, "B" for eggs preserved by refrigeration or other means and "C" for eggs that are not intended for the retail market.

They will also be separated into four different weight categories from extra large to small. Cracked or dirty eggs will be discarded.

The new legislation will ban certain terms on packaging, such as "village", "light", "healthy", "nutritious" or "low cholesterol".

Licensed plants will, however, be able to market eggs under one of five approved designations. These are "extra fresh", if the date of production is stamped on the package; "free range" if the eggs come from certified "free range" birds; "extensive indoors" if the egg-laying animals were raised in a large, enclosed area; "outdoors" if they were raised in a completely open, unsheltered environment; and finally "litter" or "floor eggs" which are not machine incubated, but laid naturally on wood shavings.

Along similar lines, poultry meat regulations will come into force on October 1 and will apply to unprocessed meat from chickens, ducks, turkeys, geese and guinea fowl.

Again, meat from these birds will be classified into two categories, which must be listed on the label: "grade A", which is destined for the retail market, and "grade B", which will be cut up. The new standards call for a sell-by date on the package and a designation as "fresh", "frozen" or "quick-freeze", according to how the meat is stored.

Producers will be allowed to label four special types of meat: "free range", "outdoor", "extensive indoors" and another designation for animals raised on a special diet.

Charalambous said yesterday that he had had several visits from smaller producers worried about implementing the changes, but he remained optimistic that within a few months, the whole industry should be up to standard.

The Animal Husbandry Officer said the agriculture department would "be a little bit flexible in the beginning with enforcement if they are trying to implement the rules".

But, he warned that, "if somebody is not trying to do anything, then no mercy".

"By the end of 2002, we must enforce these regulations by any means," he said in reference to the EU accession target date.

"I have 32 years of experience in this sector and I know everybody by name and I feel that they will do it," he added.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2001

[05] Government offers housing aid to low-income families

THE GOVERNMENT yesterday announced a housing plan aimed to help low income and large families acquire their own home.

Speaking at a news conference yesterday, Interior Minister Christodoulos Christodoulou conceded that since independence in 1960, government housing policies had gradually become more "citizen-oriented", but had failed to address the needs of people who could not acquire their own home without generous financial help from the state.

The new plan would cover those with an annual income up to £10,000, and large families with an income up to £12,000.

The help given to the needy would be twofold, the minister said.

First there would be a grant from the state, then long-term loans with very low interest rates.

The implementation of the plan has been assigned to the Cyprus Land Development Organisation (KOAG), which has already been allocated £6 million to start with.

The plan would also cover single-parent families, engaged couples, and people with special needs.

The grants vary depending on the size of the house.

For one bedroom it would be £5,000, got two bedrooms £7,000, and £8,500 for three.

Loan interest would be set at three per cent for up to 25 years.

Christodoulou said that in the case of large families the income bracket was higher -£12,000 - but families would get a larger subsidy, with a top- up to the grant given to normal low-income families, depending on the case.

The same rule applies for families with special needs, Christodoulou said.

He added that the details of the plan would be published by KOAG, who will begin with the construction of 200 housing units every year.

The construction will be preceded by an announcement for those interested to apply to the organisation for approval.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2001

[06] Immigrant group slams government on World Refugee Day

THE Immigrant Support Group yesterday accused the government of violating the rights of refugees and asylum seekers, despite conventions and laws governing their protection.

In a statement issued to mark World Refugee Day yesterday, ISAG claimed the government used various methods that were in violation of the United Nations treaty to obstruct people from requesting asylum from Cyprus.

The group said the most blatant violation was the practice of heading off boats carrying migrants before they approached Cyprus' territorial waters without considering that legitimate asylum seekers might be on board.

The group further charged that despite ratifying the Refugee Treaty when it became independent, only last year, and after considerable pressure, did Cyprus approve special legislation for the protection of refugee rights.

But the island still does not have the proper framework or the necessary regulations that would enable the enforcement of the law, the pressure group said.

The refugee and immigrant laws make no allowance for supplying refugees with special residence permits; rather they are provided with short-term visitors' permits, which creates practical problems for them.

The support group said asylum seekers who were not recognised as refugees and were often deported by the authorities without assessment of their mental or physical well being when they were sent to countries where they might be in danger.

In other cases, refugees are jailed or illegally held and generally treated like criminals, while their right to work is not recognised or protected on an equal bases with that of Cypriots, the statement said.

The group urged the government and all political parties and organisations to act immediately and secure the rights of asylum seekers who arrive on the island looking for a better and safer future.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2001

[07] Theodorou urges single candidacy to KISOS leadership

THE KISOS succession battle yesterday gathered pace, with senior party members jostling for position.

The party is to hold an electoral conference on July 22 to elect a successor to Vassos Lyssarides, who announced he would not stand again after KISOS took a hammering at the parliamentary elections in May. It will also vote on a new party leadership.

The conference will signal the official end of 82-year-old Lyssarides' three-decade stint as party leader.

The leadership race is expected to be between front-runners Takis Hadjidemetriou and Yiannakis Omirou.

Hadjidemetriou failed to get re-elected on May 27, even though he received more preference votes than any other of the party's candidate. He automatically made way for party leader Lyssarides, who took KISOS' only seat in Nicosia.

Omirou, who was Defence Minister during the party's brief stint in coalition with the Clerides government in 1998, did make it into the new House.

Veteran party deputy Doros Theodorou yesterday urged members to give 67- year-old Hadjidemetriou the chance to lead the party for a period of three years before a younger member takes over.

Hadjidemetriou -- among the first to criticise Lyssarides for clinging on to power -- has vowed that he would only stay at the party's helm for three years if chosen.

"I think this is the only way for the party to regroup and get back its old faithful. Hadjidemetriou is a veteran socialist who represents the party and its proud history. So he could help the party back on its feet in this critical phase and then hand it over to someone else. We cannot let this opportunity slip through our fingers," Theodorou said.

"If we carry on with the conflicts and confrontations we will shrink the party further. That's why we should not have two candidates for the leadership. Because in war everything goes, the results will be devastating and I don't think that we can afford more losses," Theodorou warned.

But Omirou, the acting-chairman of the party, yesterday put forward a different opinion: "The elections must be conducted on the basis of democratic principles. It would be unthinkable for a socialist party to fear democracy. By having only one candidate we will betray our members' desires," he supported.

Marinos Sizopoulos, KISOS vice-chairman and one of Lyssarides' closest allies, backed Omirou.

But some KISOS members feel Omirou should make way for Hadjidemetriou and then take over when he steps down after three years.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2001

[08] Paphos and Scarborough: twin towns of the future?

PAPHOS and Scarborough could soon become twin towns, if a recommendation by a Cypriot lecturer at Hull University wins the day.

Scarborough councillors are apparently discussing the possibility of contacting Paphos municipality about twinning the two towns.

Both Paphos and Scarborough are coastal resort towns and Hull lecturer Michael Paraskos suggests they make ideal twinning partners. The towns are similar in population size and have very similar economies, Paraskos argues in a report recently presented to Scarborough town council.

The report admits that Paphos tends to get more sunshine than Scarborough, but suggests that this should not blind people to the similarities between the two towns.

Twinning arrangements between towns are common within the EU, allowing communities to share experiences, develop trade and draw on EU cash for joint projects.

Paphos Mayor Phidias Sarikas could not be contacted for comment yesterday.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2001

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