Cyprus Mail: News Articles in English, 02-09-29

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

Sunday, September 29, 2002

CONTENTS

[01] Transplant chief warns of trade in human organs

[02] Antenna 'could make Cyprus an Iraqi target'

[03] 'Buy Cyprus products', campaign urges

[04] £100,000 heist on jewellery shop

[01] Transplant chief warns of trade in human organs

INCREASING demand for transplants and an acute lack of donors in Cyprus could lead to illegal trading in human organs, a top doctor said yesterday.

The Director of the Paraskevaideon Surgical and Transplant Foundation, Dr Georgios Kyriakides, told the Sunday Mail that Cyprus had the largest number of kidney transplantations in the world per population, calculated at 60 transplants per million people per year.

There has already been one case of a patient buying kidneys from Lebanon, Kyriakides said, and warned that the illegal trade in human organs was a worldwide problem that demanded serious attention.

He called for new legislation that would establish a registry of organ donors, like in Britain, giving the opportunity for those who wish to register voluntarily to do so. In such cases, doctors would not need to seek consent from the family of the deceased.

There are 150 people urgently awaiting organ transplants in Cyprus; 120 of those are for kidneys, which is the sole form of transplant operation available on the island. Kyriakides warned that the number of patients needing new organs was increasing steadily but the lack of public awareness about organ donation meant that there was a serious shortage of organs.

Since 1986, 516 transplant operations have been performed in Cyprus: 314 organs were used from living donors and 202 from recently deceased bodies (cadaveric donations).

“Cadaveric donations are vital for many people who don't have the option of a living donor for lack of suitability, availability and many other reasons, ” Kyriakides said. “These donations are taken from brain-dead patients whose respiration is provided by mechanical means. Legally, scientifically and ethically they are considered deceased.”

He stressed that of the 120 or so fatal accidents that occur each year, at least 15 of those could be used to save someone else's life. At present, six or seven cadaveric donors are used annually.

Because of the medical care available, organ transplants have a 95 per cent success rate in the first year. This falls slightly to 80 per cent in the 10th year.

The 'Fourth European Day of Organ Donation and Transplantation' will be held in Nicosia on October 5. International experts will be giving seminars and lectures on organ transplants at the Hilton Hotel.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2002

[02] Antenna 'could make Cyprus an Iraqi target'

GREENS Deputy George Perdikis yesterday warned that the powerful new PLUTO antenna under construction by the British bases would be dangerous for Cyprus if there is an attack on Iraq.

Speaking at a news conference yesterday, Perdikis expressed concern for the safety of cities close to the bases in the event of a missile attack by Iraq.

“We are particularly concerned after hearing that the British consider the bases to be a likely target for Iraqi missiles,” he said.

“If we take into consideration the range and the technical specifications of these missiles, especially the fact that they could miss their target by a few kilometres, we believe that the whole of Cyprus is in danger -- especially residents of Limassol.

“Cyprus is a target in a war it wants no part of. This is because the British continue to use the bases as a launching point for their military operations against neighbouring countries.”

Perdikis said that the installation of the new antenna should be considered a dangerous upgrade to the Anglo-American war effort against Iraq.

“Because of its importance, the antenna could be prone to attack by Iraq or by terrorists,” he said.

“Cyprus does not have weapons that could be used to intercept enemy missiles. Crete does, because they are using our S-300 missiles.”

The deputy also slammed the government for their stance on the British implementation of the acquis communautaire on the British Sovereign Bases after Cyprus' accession to the European Union.

“The basis of negotiations with the British is wrong,” he charged. “Cyprus must ask the British to confine their activities within the military areas and not the entire Sovereign Base Area. The rest of SBA property, which under the 1960 Treaty of Establishment is controlled by Great Britain, should be released and the acquis communautaire implemented.”

Perdikis said there had been reports that the British had requested that the Akrotiri Salt Lake be included in the Ramsar Convention for the preservation of wetlands without informing the government or local residents.

“They agreed that the installation of the antenna would divide the salt lake, meaning that it would no longer be a unified ecosystem.

“The government should submit its own plan for the inclusion of the Akrotiri Salt Lake and Phassouri Marsh in the Ramsar Convention, and they should report Great Britain to the Council of Europe for breaching the Berne Convention regarding protected migratory birds and the ecosystems that sustain them.

Meanwhile the Greens are staging a demonstration at Akrotiri today in an effort to bring an end to the construction of the new antenna.

An SBA spokesman told the Sunday Mail the bases did not expect any problems, but he warned that the bases police are ready to act in the unlikely event of trouble.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2002

[03] 'Buy Cyprus products', campaign urges

CCCI Permanent Secretary Panayiotis Loizides said the aim of the campaign will be to improve Cyprus industry in the face of the intense competition because of accession to the European Union.

Loizides said Cypriot industry has been under continuous pressure caused by the increasing international competition and the implementation of the acquis communautaire, the entire body of European laws.

He stressed the need for modernisation, improving competitiveness and for more support from buyers and consumers.

The campaign which starts on Tuesday and will last until the end of the year, will consist of advertising on television, in the press and radio, and outdoor promotional activities.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2002

[04] £100,000 heist on jewellery shop

The raiders triggered the alarm system at Athos jewellery store on Gladstone Street at around 4am. They broke in through the main door using a large piece of wood, and fled the crime scene just minutes later.

Police Superintendent Theodoros Stylianou said police arrived at the shop within seven minutes but the thieves had already made good their escape.

The owner, Athos Ioannides, said the stolen goods were of a very high quality, adding that they were insured. He also said this was not the first time his shop had been broken into.

Stylianou said the modus operandi of the crime matched two previous jewellery break-ins in Nicosia and Limassol over the past five months.

CID says it is continuing its investigations and collecting evidence of what it believes to be a gang of thieves responsible for the burglaries.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2002

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