Cyprus Mail: News Articles in English, 01-12-08

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

Saturday, December 8, 2001

CONTENTS

[01] Playing down expectations for a solution

[02] Brace yourself for a miserable weekend

[03] Underage rape suspects remanded in custody

[04] Too much crime, not enough judges

[05] Markides promises to meet Ropas' wife

[06] Armed guards for CSE

[01] Playing down expectations for a solution

GEORGE Vassiliou, the head of Cyprus' EU negotiating team, yesterday sought to play down some of the euphoria created by this week's agreement to resume talks to solve the Cyprus problem, warning there was still no proof of progress.

President Glafcos Clerides and Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktash agreed on Tuesday to return to face-to-face talks to be held under UN auspices in Cyprus starting in mid-January. On Wednesday night, Clerides attended a dinner in the north hosted by Denktash at his residence.

" We should not start celebrating because Denktash said he was ready to return to negotiations. Although I am happy for this development I do not think there is any real proof of a positive climate,"Vassiliou said.

The chief of the EU negotiating team pointed out he and House President Demetris Christofias had been denied access to the occupied areas last Sunday, as was a group of Greek Cypriots who planned to cross over to the north for a bi-communal meeting yesterday.

" There is still a long way to go until we reach a point when we will be able to say that there is a change of climate,"Vassiliou said.

Professor of political economy at Intercollege Andreas Theophanous was not too optimistic either.

Theophanous yesterday warned against cultivating a climate of euphoria about the Cyprus problem, and said coming developments could be both good and bad.

" In the first few hours (after the news of the talks) there was a feeling of euphoria in the air which subsided later on. Now people are positive and maintain some reservations about developments,"Theophanous said.

He admitted the climate was now better than before but warned of possible negative developments to come.

Theophanous cited a toughly worded speech by Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Mesut Yilmaz on Wednesday in which Yilmaz said the EU's policy on Cyprus was sure to lead to " confrontation" .

" Turkey's move towards resuming the stalled Cyprus talks had been foreseen because of US and EU pressures to achieve progress before Cyprus' accession to the European Union.

" Also keep in mind that Turkey is trying to strengthen its ties with the European union,"Theophanous said.

But a European diplomat sounded more positive yesterday.

" People are excited because in a week we have seen the most encouraging news on Cyprus for a long time. It is quite clear that Denktash has made a life move in his willingness to engage in this direction,"he told the Mail .

The diplomat, however, cautioned against expecting an instant solution.

" We must accept that there is a hard and long road ahead. But if everybody keeps working hard and approaches the negotiations in a spirit of trying to find a solution then there is no reason why we should not get one."

He said Cypriots should be positive in a sustained way instead of a burst of euphoria that would lead to disappointment later.

" Even when things are looking bad, people have to continue to support the two leaders to find a solution and not let themselves get distracted by leaks about this or that,"he said.

" In other words, don't get disappointed if a solution does not happen straight away."

In Ankara, the Turkish Daily Newsyesterday warned that " the positive climate might be ruined if the EU sticks to its decision to admit Cyprus as a full member before a solution."

Turkish Cypriot newspapers appear positive about recent developments but maintain some reservations.

Papapetrou said on Thursday the government was cautiously optimistic, adding that at this stage there were no indications that Turkish policy on Cyprus had changed. He said things would become clearer as the dialogue on substantive issues progressed.

Denktash has also cautioned against high hopes that the recent thaw in relations would lead to a quick solution to the island's 27-year-long division.

But UN envoy for Cyprus Alvaro de Soto appeared hopeful on Thursday that a political settlement could be found within the next six months.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2001

[02] Brace yourself for a miserable weekend

IT MAY be too early to tell whether it's going to be a white Christmas, but it's quite clear that this is going to be another miserable weekend, according to senior meteorological officer, Loizos Stefanou.

The weather prognosis for the next few days is appalling, with heavy showers, hail and wind on the agenda.

" People around the island can expect more of the same, if not worse, weather over the weekend,"said Stefanou.

He was unable to say what parts of the island would be hit the hardest, but did mention the capital tended to be sheltered by the Troodos mountain range.

" Nicosia is shadowed by the mountains, which is why its residents don't suffer the same degree of damage that residents in coastal or mountainous regions do."

Paphos fire services have already been put on full alert for an increase in emergency calls.

Acting fire sergeant Andreas Savva told the Cyprus Mailyesterday that although no one has been injured in the past few stormy days, they had had to respond to 35 emergency calls in the past 36 hours.

" One family that had made its home in a basement, was completely flooded out and had to go and stay with relatives for a few days, until the furniture dries,"he said.

However, such cases are rare and no one has actually yet lost their home due to extensive flooding, he added.

Roads were closed off in Larnaca yesterday and Stratigos Timagia Avenue remained impassable. Two accidents were also reported in the area due to the dangerous road conditions.

However, in spite of the recent rain, dams across the island remain well below their capacity.

Fedros Roussis of the Water Development Department said storage in the dams until Thursday, was 9.6 per cent of capacity and there had been an inflow of 1 million cubic metres on that day.

" We are happy with the current inflow and if it continues to rain like this, we will be fine,"said Roussis.

During the first six days of December there has been an inflow of 10 million cubic metres.

" We are still unhappy with the quantity: 9.6 per cent of a 26.3 million cubic metre capacity means the dams are still empty,"said Roussis.

This time last year, the dams were 7.3 per cent full.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2001

[03] Underage rape suspects remanded in custody

TWO UNDERAGE rape suspects were yesterday remanded in custody for six days by a Limassol district court.

On Wednesday, the two boys, both 15, allegedly entered an apartment bloc in the Kapsalos area and raped a Rumanian artiste after hitting and restraining her. The victim later told police one of the assailants held her down while the other raped her.

The perpetrators were caught in the act by another artiste who walked into the room 15 minutes later. Police said that yesterday the second boy, accused of raping the woman, also admitted to the act. He had denied the charges the day before, even though his accomplice had admitted to the crime.

Appearing before court yesterday, the two suspects told how earlier they had visited another apartment bloc inhabited by artistes, but their plans had been foiled. They then decided to try their luck elsewhere, the court heard.

Now authorities must determine how to deal with the two underage boys. Special legislation for minors ranges from reprimands for first-time petty offenders to imprisonment for more serious crimes. If a juvenile delinquent is considered as incorrigible, the case is forwarded to the Attorney- general's office, who may recommend prosecution or that a child be placed under the supervision of a custodian.

Limassol police deputy chief Andreas Kariolemos told the Cyprus Mailthat a rising trend in juvenile delinquency had been recorded over the past couple of years. The majority of offences are burglaries, thefts and damage to property; rape is low on the list of crimes committed by minors.

Under Cyprus law, rape is punishable by life imprisonment, but such sentences are rarely, if ever, handed out.

In a separate case, a 46-year-old taxi driver from Limassol was on Thursday remanded in custody for three days on suspicion of raping a 22-year-old Ukrainian woman.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2001

[04] Too much crime, not enough judges

But as the Cyprus Mailhas learned, the problem is not limited to criminal courts and is far worse in the capital's district courts.

Phileleftherosreported yesterday that criminal cases had recently accumulated to such a degree that serious crime cases referred to the Assizes are being scheduled for as late as March next year.

The backlog is set to create problems for the Legal Service in the current land scam case.

The service wanted to try all the cases in the same court, something would be practically impossible as things stand.

The prevailing thought at the legal service is to submit the cases at the Paphos Assizes.

But case accumulation is not only limited to the Assizes courts.

The situation at the Nicosia district court was much worse, insiders say.

A source within the courts told the Cyprus Mailthat the problem was the lack of judges, which was compounded by the dramatic increase in crime.

The source said a request for more judges had been approved by the government but approval of the necessary funds was still pending.

The district courts, which handle less serious crime cases, are faced with a huge bulk of work resulting in continuous pressure on the judges.

Two or three judges in Nicosia, assigned with the task of handling the least serious cases, are reportedly processing 80 to 100 cases in which a hearing is not required every day. In that way, they free up other judges to try cases.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2001

[05] Markides promises to meet Ropas' wife

ATTORNEY-general Alecos Markides has promised to meet with the wife of a convicted felon who claims she has new evidence clearing her husband of all charges.

Mary Christodoulou has been campaigning over the past year for the release of her husband Ierotheos Christodoulou, alias Ropas. She has accused police of negligence in investigations, which led to Ropas' conviction some three years ago.

Ropas was charged of masterminding and taking part in the 1998 murder of Marios Panayides, 29, in Limassol. His accomplices were found to be Nicos Nicolaou and Ara Haritourian, also found guilty and currently serving prison sentences. Christodoulou insists her husband was asleep at home at the time of the murder.

Ropas' appeal to a supreme court was subsequently turned down. Now, in the event new evidence suggests he is not guilty, a presidential pardon is the only way he gets out of jail. The recommendation for a pardon would come from the Attorney-general, who last week said he would be reviewing any new evidence presented to him.

Some of the new evidence Christodoulou is citing includes a letter by Haritourian in which he claimed he shot the victim and that Ropas was innocent. In the same letter, Haritourian pointed out the murder weapon, later found, and the hoods he and his accomplices wore on the night of September 16, 1998; the hoods were never recovered.

Ropas wife, who has lately taken her campaign on TV screens, has gone on a hunger strike, and over the past week has taken to camping outside the Presidential Palace, waiting to meet with the President. Reports suggested yesterday that President Glafcos Clerides referred her to the Attorney- general.

For his part, Markides has pledged to meet with Christodoulou; although last week the Attorney-general and other officials levelled criticism at Christodoulou, saying she was employing " populist tactics"by overly using media coverage. Reports yesterday suggested the Attorney-general would review Ropas' case sometime after 17 December.

Meanwhile Justice Minister Nicos Koshis yesterday turned down Christodoulou's request that a committee of inquiry be set up on her husband's case, saying that such committees could not be appointed for each individual convict.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2001

[06] Armed guards for CSE

The imposing CSE building, off the motorway leading out of Nicosia, and its premises will be assigned a special unit of 11 policemen as part of measures to beef up security.

Koshis said that the officers would carry firearms and would be on the payroll of the CSE, although they would come under the police department.

Other security measures proposed by the CSE board included a closed-circuit camera system to be installed throughout the premises.

A number of bomb threats that have all turned out to be hoaxes have regularly disrupted operations at the stock market.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2001

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