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Cyprus News Agency: News in English (AM), 01-05-25
ÐÅÑÉÅ×ÏÌÅÍÁ
[01] To CNA subscribers:
[02] Chief Returning Officer - Campaign ends at midnight
[03] "Avrupa" - Occupied areas - Reaction
[04] Cyprus Stock Exchange
To CNA subscribers: On the CNA website ( www.cyna.org.cy ) on Sunday, May
27 and Monday, May 28, you may find all our news about the parliamentary
elections in Cyprus, in English and in Greek, in full length, as well as
cumulative results (by electoral district, national, and for the religious
groups of Maronites and Armenians).
To access the election news, simply click on the phrase "Election coverage"
for English or "ÊÕÐÅ - CNA - ÅÊËÏÃÅÓ 2001" for Greek.
The title for each item will begin with the word "Elections".
1140:CYPPRESS:01
[01] Chief Returning Officer - Campaign ends at midnight
Nicosia, May 25 (CNA) - The campaign for the May 27 House of
Representatives elections officially ends at midnight tonight with the
handing over of ballot boxes to the election officers of polling stations.
Chief Returning Officer Kyriakos Triantafyllides told CNA that due to the
increased electorate, there will be an additional number of polling
stations. "We will have around 10 thousand civil servants and policemen
working on the day of the elections and will be assigned at the 1.131
polling stations", he said. The number of registered voters has risen to
467.182 compared to 409.996 in 1996.
Each polling station will have six civil servants and policemen will guard
the entrance of each station.
The Republic's eighth parliamentary elections are expected to cost a little
higher than the 1996 elections, reaching 1,9 million pounds (One Cyprus
pound trades at around 1.5 US dollar). These elections are cheaper,
compared to the cost of the 1998 presidential elections which reached 2,5
million pounds when there was a second round of voting.
Regarding the political parties' cooperation in the preparation of the
elections, Triantafyllides told CNA that many meetings have taken place
under Interior Minister Christodoulos Christodoulou "where all problems
with political
contents were resolved".
Concerning the increased number of female candidates, Triantafyllides said
this reflects the quality of the two genders and it is a "positive
element".
Sunday's parliamentary elections are the eighth in the history of the
Cyprus Republic. They are being held under the system of proportional
representation, first introduced in at the 1996 Parliamentary Elections,
replacing the reinforced representational system. With the system of
proportional representation, a party receiving 1/56 of the valid votes or
(1,79%) elects a House member.
Cyprus is divided into six constituencies, each for each town, Nicosia,
Limassol, Famagusta, Larnaca, Paphos and Kyrenia. The House voted for its
dissolution on 19th April 2001 and the first session of the new House will
be held on 7 June, 2001.
There are 454 candidates, 368 men and 86 women, competing for the 56-seat
House, representing eight parties. They are the ruling Democratic Rally,
chaired by Nicos Anastasiades, AKEL (Progressive Party of the Working
People) headed by General Secretary Demetris Christofias, the Democratic
Party chaired by Tassos Papadopoulos, KISOS (Social Democrats Movement),
chaired by Vassos Lyssarides and incorporating the Eurodemocratic Renewal
Party chaired by Antonis Paschalides, the United Democrats of former
President George Vassiliou, New Horizons headed by Nicos Koutsou with the
Kyrenia - Return Movement incorporated, the Movement of Ecologists and
Environmentalists (the Cyprus Green Party) and the Fighting Democratic
Movement of former Interior Minister Dinos Michaelides.
The small Maronite and Armenian religious groups will elect their
representatives in the House (one each). The Latin group representative,
Benito Mantovani, was re-elected unopposed. There are a total of 3.164
Maronites and 1.825 Armenians who will vote twice on the same day, once at
the special polling stations for their representatives and a second time
for the deputies of their districts.
A total of 10 special centres have been set up for Maronites and a further
four for Armenians while special polling stations will operate for the 432
enclaved who will travel from the Turkish- occupied northern part of
Cyprus.
Polls will open at 0700 hours local time (0400 GMT) with an hour's break
for lunch from 1200 to 1300. Voting will be completed at 1700 (1400 GMT)
although election officers in charge of polling stations are entitled to
extend voting hours if they consider this necessary.
The Press and Information Office (PIO) will be channelling results through
the Internet at its website. Already, its website (www.pio.gov.cy) has
information concerning this year's elections, general background
information, past parliamentary elections and parties contesting the
elections.
Preparations began last December and culminated with four television
stations for the island's TV channels based at the International Conference
Centre. Radio stations with a pancyprian coverage will have their own
booths and the Cyprus News Agency its own office and website at
www.cyna.org.cy.
The PIO has also undertaken the task of accompanying and assisting around
20 journalists from the Turkish-occupied north of the island that will
cross over to cover the elections. They will cover the voting of President
Glafcos Clerides and political party leaders voting in the capital.
PIO Director, Androulla Laniti, told CNA that the PIO will provide a 48-
hour service to all media and PIO officers will be allocated at all
district counting centres to help local media.
Facilities will also be available for the foreign members of press who wish
to cover the elections. The PIO's website has an English site too where
results will be posted at and PIO officers are ready to accompany foreign
journalists at counting centres. Special telephone lines have been set up
for easier communication of these journalists with PIO officers.
CNA GSA/MM/ECA/GP/2001
1500:CYPPRESS:03
[03] "Avrupa" - Occupied areas - Reaction
Nicosia, May 25 (CNA) – Despite yesterday's bomb attack against outspoken
Turkish Cypriot daily "Avrupa" in the island's Turkish- occupied north, the
newspaper managed to circulate Friday.
The newspaper carried its main headline with the title "Bomb of the Turkish
Republic", and reminded that last November the newspaper was again the
target of a bomb attack but no culprits were arrested.
CNA SA/ECA/GP/2001
1515:CYPPRES:04 Cyprus Stock Exchange
Nicosia, May 25 (CNA) - The Cyprus Stock Exchange (CSE) All Share Index
closed at today's stock exchange meeting as follows:
CSE General Index 185,54 (-0,28)
Traded Value CYP 10.346.396
FTCE/CYSE 20 CYP 3.220.307 751,64 (-0,53)
Sectural Indices
Banks CYP 1.095.025 187,62 (-0,29)
Approved Investment
Companies CYP 1.208.066 190,71 ( 0,30)
Insurance Companies CYP 67.767 64,49 (-0,02)
Manufacturing Companies CYP 289.030 64,89 ( 0,28)
Tourism Companies CYP 876.634 150,32 ( 0,30)
Trading Companies CYP 298.081 48,12 ( 0,27)
Building and Cement Companies CYP 111.519 67,35 ( 0,10)
Énformation Technology
Companies CYP 1.133.852 44,38 (-1,11)
Financial Services Companies CYP 1.491.473 37,06 (-1,49)
Fish Culture Companies CYP 41.691 57,07 (-0,54)
Hotels CYP 1.840.259 100,73 ( 0,09)
Other Companies CYP 1.403.637 223,69 ( 0,20)
The third column presents the percentage variation of the indices as
compared to the last meeting.
CNA/RG/2001
CNA ENDS
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