Cyprus Mail: Press Review in English, 99-10-19

Cyprus Mail: Press Review in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article

From: The Cyprus Mail at <http://www.cynews.com/>

Tuesday, October 19, 1999

New revelations in expected in visa scam

WHILE one newspaper announced that more people would be implicated in the visa scam, another paper claimed the government was taking measures in order to improve its tarnished image.

Phileleftheros

reported that "new revelations" about the goings on at the Immigration Department would be made by "people in the know". Meanwhile several "well- known personalities are terrified" that the Chief Immigration Officer, Christodoulos Nicolaides, will reveal everything he knows and expose them. Several Immigration officials have told the government that they are willing to give information about all the irregularities that were taking place at the department.

These revelations may also cover Larnaca Airport at which there was a ring of immigration officials who helped foreigners get into the country in exchange for a fee. With investigations in Limassol and Nicosia gathering momentum, more arrests were expected to follow in the next few days, the paper said.

Haravghi

claimed that the government's communications and image consultants had demanded that an in-depth investigation into the goings-on at the Immigration Department be carried out. The poor public standing of the government, which has been compounded by the growing corruption and soaring crime rate, made action necessary. The consultants had advised a clean-up as soon as possible so that the political cost during the elections in three years' time would be small.

Opinion polls had shown the government's and Disy's support to be declining steadily, and this prompted the presidential palace to go ahead with the clean-up. According to the paper, the Presidential Palace had known about the activities of Bambos Anastassiades and the other suspects in the visa scam for four years now.

Politis

reported that the Mayor of Paralimni Nikos Vlittis and his son-in-law, who is employed by the municipality, were responsible for alleged irregularities and "biased decisions". Civil engineers who worked in the area had repeatedly accused Vlittis and his son-in-law, who is responsible for issuing building permits, of bias.

The matter had been investigated by the Ombudsman, who had found that, ever since 1988, the stance of the Municipality had been "totally negative", preventing the central administration from implementing the Town Planning Law.

To Tharros

reported that a "high-ranking" priest, who had tried "to save" a 17-year- old girl from "a group of Satanists", ended up being beaten up, in the church, by her furious boyfriend. The girl had been initiated in the cult, which consisted of "wild Cypriots and young foreigners" by her boyfriend.

"It was a trip to hell for me," she was quoted as saying. She had been in the cult for four months and needed great effort "to return to reality" as the Satanists "controlled her mind".

Simerini

reported that the US would try to introduce a dialogue on the Cyprus problem "by instalments". However, President Clinton would first try and secure the Greek government's commitment to lifting its veto on Turkey's EU candidate status.

Clinton would then try to make some official statement about progress at the OSCE meeting in Istanbul. This would contribute to the resumption of a "form of talks" before the EU summit in Helsinki in December, the paper said. These talks would last a few days and would prepare the ground for a new round of talks in the new year, after Turkey had secured EU candidate status.

Alithia

said the next few days would be critical for the Cyprus problem in view of the visit to the island of the two mediators. Alfred Moses, the presidential envoy, and Thomas Weston, State Department's special co- ordinator were expected in Cyprus today, after visits to Athens and Ankara.

© Copyright Cyprus Mail 1999

Cyprus Mail: Press Review in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article