Cyprus Mail: News Articles in English, 03-02-28

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

Friday, February 28, 2003

CONTENTS

[01] 'Save us from Denktash'

[02] The stakes don't come much higher than this

[03] Supermarket under fire in escalating union row

[04] Pittokopitis under fire for party donation from billboard company

[05] Cold weather forces food prices up

[06] Police insist on better stadium security

[07] Patients picket for return of suspended doctors

[08] Baby pythons 'are not dangerous'

[01] 'Save us from Denktash'

AROUND 40,000-50,000 Turkish Cypriots marched in occupied Nicosia yesterday urging UN Secretary-general Kofi Annan to save them by clinching an agreement to reunify the island.

Annan is on the island in a last-ditch attempt to get the leaders to agree to his reunification plan. As the Secretary-general yesterday met Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktash and President elect Tassos Papadopoulos, the Turkish Cypriot demonstrators poured into a square in the occupied part of the capital.

The peaceful march, characterised by a sea of blue balloons and flags bearing EU symbols, was marred by the discovery of two small homemade bombs in the area where the protestors had gathered. Security forces took away the explosives without any incident.

Protestors carried banners saying 'Save us Mr Annan' and 'Dear Annan. We want to live as human beings'. Other placards called on Denktash to sign the UN deal or quit “Save us from him, Mr Annan,” one said.

They also carried olive branches and chanted slogans such as “Hail brotherhood of peoples”, “Denktash, resign” and “You cannot prevent peace”. There were only a few Turkish or Turkish Cypriot flags in evidence at the march.

Shops and businesses closed while teachers also attended the rally, which was organised by trade unions and other civil society associations.

US State Department Co-ordinator for Cyprus Thomas Weston, accompanied by US Ambassador in Nicosia, Michael Klosson, went to the occupied areas to watch the rally.

An embassy spokesman told the Cyprus News Agency: “they were observing the right of the people in a democratic society to express the right to freedom of assembly and freedom of expression.”

Speakers said the protest was a message to Denktash and they asked him to listen to the “people's will”. Demonstrators jeered whenever reference was made to Denktash.

They also said that demonstrations would continue until a solution was found, while one speaker said, “If there is no solution, there will be a social uprising.”

Attending the rally were the leader of the United Cyprus party Izzet Izcan, Mehmet Ali Talat of the Republican Turkish Party, Communal Liberation Party leader Hussein Angolemli and the Chairman of the Turkish Cypriot Chamber of Commerce Ali Erel.

Talat said “today, history is being made”. He told CNA that he believed Denktash did not want to sign the Annan plan.

It was the second-ever largest demonstration to be held in the north. In January this year, even more Turkish Cypriots, around one third of the population, took to the streets calling on Denktash to resign after he failed to ensure an agreement was signed during the EU summit in Copenhagen in December.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2003

Friday, February 28, 2003

[02] The stakes don't come much higher than this

AFTER several months of haggling it appears crunch time has arrived for the two sides on the island.

United Nations Secretary-general Kofi Annan's arrival on the island has dispelled any doubts concerning the existence or not of developments in the Cyprus problem.

From the moment he set foot on the island, Annan has turned on the heat on Greek and Turkish Cypriots alike, leaving those who, throughout the election campaign, staunchly disputed the likelihood of critical developments with the huge responsibility of taking the decision on solving the Cyprus problem.

Ironically, President elect Tassos Papadopoulos, who had been branded the hardliner, appears more ready to play ball than his partner in the government, AKEL leader Demetris Christofias, whose party has always been seen as more conciliatory on the Cyprus problem.

The pair, who are now feeling the pressure away from the safety of the opposition benches, visited outgoing President Glafcos Clerides on Wednesday to discuss the developments and to ask him to go to the meeting with Annan.

Clerides is believed to have said that he would only go on condition Papadopoulos would not try to wriggle out of an agreement.

Clerides warned that if the UN Security Council blamed the Greek Cypriot side for the failure to reach an agreement, the consequences for Cyprus would be devastating.

Papadopoulos seemed to accept this position and that is probably why Clerides agreed to go to the meeting.

Christofias, on the other hand, appears to have insisted that the plan should be rejected outright.

Though publicly he says the plan should be negotiated, it is understood Christofias has told close associates he opposes the signing of a peace plan, creating a rift within his own party.

Annan, however, appears determined to resolve the issue one way or another.

With the apparent backing of the United States, Annan has made it clear this was the last chance, at least as long as he was UN Secretary-general.

“This is where it all ends,” he said on Wednesday.

So it is crunch time for Cyprus, but it seems the leaders of both communities are unwilling to arrive to any sort of agreement on the plan as is.

Papadopoulos says it needs to be negotiated while Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktash claims it is totally unfavourable for his side.

Denktash said that if he decided to reject the plan he would immediately hold a referendum so the Turkish Cypriot community could decide if he should remain their representative.

A 'yes' would mean approval of his policy while if the answer is 'no', then he has pledged to resign.

Professor of Turkish Studies at the University of Cyprus Niyazi Kizilyurek has struck a note of caution concerning Denktash's intentions.

Kizilyurek suggested Denktash had the power to get the result he wanted - a rejection of the Annan plan - out of the referendum.

He said Denktash's concern was not to see what Turkish Cypriots thought of the plan but to find a way out by rejecting the plan without having to say 'no'.

Kizilyurek suggested the Greek Cypriot side should make a clear expression of political will to help undermine Denktash and further encourage the Turkish Cypriot people in their effort to get rid of him.

“It's not the time to try to gain time; it's time to say the big 'yes' or the big 'no',” he said.

He argued that if Denktash had his way, he would go ahead to secure annexation of the occupied north by Turkey.

“He won't keep the status quo and give the chance to anyone in the future to speak of a solution,” the professor said.

He added: “If the prospects for a solution are lost I don't know when again we will talk about a solution and under which conditions.

“I don't think the status quo will remain the same if the chance is lost; if Denktash wins, the north will be annexed,” Kizilyurek said.

So the Greek Cypriot side is now left with a stark choice: either to pray Denktash will reject the proposals and take all the blame, or decide to take the plunge and be the first to agree, putting the Turkish Cypriot leader in a bind, considering the opposition he faces from his people.

Everything will ultimately be decided at the ballot box, but right now the loser will be the one who blinks first.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2003

Friday, February 28, 2003

[03] Supermarket under fire in escalating union row

TRADE unions PEO and SEK have accused Christos Orphanides, owner of Orphanides supermarkets, of sacking Cypriot employees attempting to join unions, and employing foreigners in their place.

The allegations are the latest in a long-running dispute between the supermarket giant and the unions. The conflict has been ongoing for two months, after government-mediated talks between the two sides failed to resolve the quarrel.

In a statement released on Wednesday, SEK and PEO accused Orphanides of trying to crush workers' organisations by threatening employees wanting to join unions, even going as far as to sack four employees.

Pambis Kiritsis, General Secretary of PEO reiterated the union's position yesterday, saying that the unions had ample proof that Orphanides' employees wanted to become union members.

“The majority of Mr. Orphanides' employees want to join a union -- we have presented signatures proving this to the Labour Ministry already.

“He has now resorted to terrorism and pressuring employees to try to prevent them from doing so.

“Neither is it a coincidence that four people were sacked recently, especially when they were all advocates of union membership,” he added.

Kiritsis warned the unions would take “decisive action” soon if the deadlock continued.

“Very soon we will act, we want to organise properly as we are a serious organisation with a long history. But we will ensure the workers' rights. No one can behave like (Mr. Orphanides) in 2003 - it's anachronistic.”

Orphanides was yesterday quick to dismiss the unions' claims, and told the Cyprus Mail that he had never sacked a single employee for wanting to join a union.

“I have never dismissed an employee for this reason.

“The unions have been threatening action now for months. But these are empty threats -- they don't have a single member from my company. The truth is that only four employees out of a total of 825 have ever expressed the desire to become union members.

“The vast majority of my staff will not have anything to do with the unions, so how are the unions going to take action as they keep threatening?”

Orphanides stressed that his employees were happily employed, and were tired of the unions harassing them to join a union.

“My employees tell me every day that they are sick of being hassled by the union.

“In fact, it is the unions who are being anti-democratic, not me: they cannot accept that staff have the democratic right not to be a union member if they choose. It's a democratic right to belong or not to belong to a union.”

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2003

Friday, February 28, 2003

[04] Pittokopitis under fire for party donation from billboard company

DIKO deputy and House Communications Committee chairman Nicos Pittokopitis has rejected press reports that his party had been sponsored by a billboard company at the time when his committee was discussing a government bill providing for the removal of most advertising hoardings.

The bill was submitted in November 2001, but was never really examined until a year later.

It was so heavily amended that the government was forced to withdraw it as it had become “a vehicle for legalising the current situation”, according to outgoing Communications Minister Averof Neophytou.

The withdrawal came amid reports that business interests had influenced deputies' judgement.

With the issue still in the air, Politis this week claimed that a Limassol billboard company had donated £1,000 to the Paphos branch of DIKO at about the same time as the issue was being discussed in the House.

Party officials referred Politis to Pittokopitis, who had apparently made the revelation himself during a live radio show in the run up to the presidential elections.

Pittokopitis allegedly admitted to the donation after he was accused by DISY deputy Costas Constantinou of receiving £15,000 from billboard companies to withdraw the issue from the House.

Pittokopitis said the owner of the company had sent the cheque to DIKO and that a receipt had been issued for it along with a thank you letter.

But in a letter to Politis yesterday, Pittokopitis “rejected the report with disgust” claiming it was all imaginary.

In his letter, the outspoken DIKO deputy confirmed there had been a donation, but added the billboard issue was not being discussed at the time because of the summer holidays.

He wondered how it was possible for DIKO to favour companies that had a turnover of millions for a mere £1,000.

The daily countered that the report had not been inaccurate and was the result of an investigation among party members.

“DIKO officials said they did not know anything about the businessman's cheque and referred us to Mr Pittokopitis,” the daily said.

Pittokopitis said he would sue Constantinou, who replied he was looking forward to going to court.

During a live radio show, Constantinou said he had proof about Pittokopitis' alleged meetings with a group of owners of billboard companies and the promises he had given them.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2003

Friday, February 28, 2003

[05] Cold weather forces food prices up

THE RECENT frosty weather has caused a surge in market prices of fruit and vegetables. Consumers are complaining that the cost of perishable goods has shot up, doubling in price.

Commerce Ministry official Michalis Yeroudis said frost in the countryside would have the likely effect of temporarily cutting supply, causing an inevitable increase in price.

“It's always the same phenomenon when we get bad weather. There's a shortage in supply, a surplus of demand and an increase in price. Consumers will have to accommodate themselves to these temporary conditions,” said Yeroudis.

But the ministry official indicated that producers could do something to soften price changes in the market. “Vegetable prices are liberated in the market, there's no roof on them. So, one day you might pay a ludicrously small price for a crate of tomatoes and the next day, you pay quadruple. Consumers get shocked by such extreme fluctuations in price. They don't mind when it's really cheap but they are taken aback when it jolts up,” said Yeroudis.

“Producers need to get together to organise supply in the market and come up with more logical and stable prices. This will benefit both producers and consumers while avoiding dramatic price fluctuations in the market,” he added.

President of the Consumers' Association Petros Markou appealed to consumers to use their own judgment when managing the family budget. “Personally, I would temporarily abstain from purchasing products at exorbitant prices, and I appeal to other consumers to do the same,” he said.

He confirmed that prices had gone up tremendously in the perishable goods market as a result of extreme weather conditions. “Outside cultivation has been destroyed by frosty weather conditions. But the price of plantation inside the greenhouses has also been affected because they needed more heating, resulting in increased oil expenses,” said Markou.

However, Markou added this did not justify the high prices observed lately. “Cucumbers have jumped from 50/60 cents a kilo to £1.90, and the prices of tomatoes and green beans have also jumped.”

The problem appears to lie with the producers again. “The marketing system for agricultural produce is suffering. It hasn't been undertaken by the producers themselves as the acquis communautaire provides. The middle men are still involved, which means prices will go up,” said Markou.

“We have consistently appealed to agricultural organisations for farmers to undertake their own marketing. This will avoid extreme fluctuations. Of course, there will be variations but not so excessive as they are now,” he added.

Agriculture Department officer Kyriacos Patsalos told the Cyprus Mail that vegetable crops had been affected by the sudden drop in temperature but not wiped out completely. “Agricultural produce has been affected by the frosty low temperatures, especially vegetables, but they haven't been erased.”

Patsalos maintains the damage was not extensive. “There has been no major damage, I think we just got away with it,” he said.

The head of the Organisation for Agricultural Insurance, Georgios Photiou, said that vegetable produce had been affected by the bad weather, but not fruit. “The fruit have not been affected by the harsh winter because most are not on the trees right now. They are in the refrigerators, so there is no reason for increases in fruit prices as a result of frost,” Photiou said.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2003

Friday, February 28, 2003

[06] Police insist on better stadium security

POLICE yesterday said they would wait to see if the measures they suggested were implemented before deciding on whether to provide police protection for football matches scheduled at two stadiums.

Police have threatened not to provide protection at Limassol's Tsirion and the municipal stadium in Paralimni if their conditions are not met by the sports' authorities.

Spokesman Demetris Demetriou told the Cyprus Mail that police yesterday held a meeting with the football federation (KOP) and the athletics federation (KOA) where they told them that certain measures were necessary at those two stadiums if police were to undertake to provide security.

Demetriou said that because of construction works outside the Tsirion, there were stacks of stones that could be used as weapons in the hands of hooligans.

The same goes for Paralimni, Demetriou said.

Police have asked for the removal of any dangerous materials or for fences to block supporters' access to them.

“If the police is satisfied, then we will go ahead and provide the force,” Demetriou said.

The federations apparently responded immediately and pledged to take the necessary steps, though police will take the final decision today after inspecting the stadiums.

The problem emerged in the wake of serious trouble last weekend, when fans in Limassol used stones to pelt each other and police vehicles.

There was also trouble in Nicosia, where around 200 fans beat up a sole supporter of a rival team.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2003

Friday, February 28, 2003

[07] Patients picket for return of suspended doctors

KIDNEY patients in Larnaca have taken to the streets, calling for the return of their suspended nephrology doctors.

The two kidney experts, Drs Efthyvoulos Anastassiades and Polycarpos Polycarpou, had recently resigned from Larnaca hospital's nephrology department, following rifts between themselves and their superiors over annual assessments.

As the Health Ministry moved to bring medical disciplinary charges against the doctors, who had walked out on patients without notice, they in turn started legal procedures against outgoing Minister Frixos Savvides, alleging they had been persecuted by the hospital's administration.

Although the Ministry and hospital claimed the experts had been replaced and the patients were happy, on Wednesday the Larnaca-Famagusta Kidney Patient Support Association picketed the hospital and called for their return.

The patients said they wanted the nephrology department to be upgraded, as promised by the minister, so that it could meet increasing needs and so that both Anastassiades and Polycarpou could return to their duties.

“We hope that with this action we will show the Health Ministry that these two excellent doctors must come back to continue their work,” said Martha Fokki, the association head.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2003

Friday, February 28, 2003

[08] Baby pythons 'are not dangerous'

VETERINARY Services are investigating whether or not the two baby pythons stolen from a Nicosia pet store Monday night were illegally on the island, senior official Klitos Andreou told the Cyprus Mail yesterday.

Shop owner Georgios Pallas reported thieves had broken in through the back door late at night and taken the snakes.

Pallas said he bought the snakes from a breeder in Limassol who has a collection of snakes, and admitted that he was not sure if they were legal.

“We are sending a district officer to visit this man in Limassol to see if he's doing the breeding or if they had been smuggled in,” Andreou said. “For the past 10 years, we haven't issued a licence to anyone to import pythons.

“These animals may have been imported 20 years ago, in which case we cannot restrict breeding.”

Both Pallas and Andreou were keen to emphasise that, contrary to popular belief, the pythons are not poisonous and pose no real danger to human beings.

They typically feed on birds and small warm-blooded mammals, which they kill by squeezing in their coils.

Instead, they are threatening to people only in the panic they may evoke.

“Of course we are concerned by this. Can you imagine if someone released this animal into a house or a public place to threaten or scare people? Can you imagine if a child encountered one of them? They would be horrified.” Andreou added.

He said Cypriots were not familiar with snakes, and would be particularly frightened if they came across one unexpectedly.

The baby snakes are already a meter in length and are brown with beige stripes.

In addition to the snakes, the thieves walked away with two decorated fish tanks, making the total of their loot worth £800.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2003

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