Cyprus News Agency: News in English, 11-04-13

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From: The Cyprus News Agency at <http://www.cyna.org.cy>

CONTENTS

[01] GOVERNMENT SPOKESMAN - CENSUS

[02] PACE - REPORT - CYPRUS PROBLEM

[03] PARTICIPATORY DEVELOPMENT PROJECT

[01] GOVERNMENT SPOKESMAN - CENSUS

``With regard to the issue of the census we would like to clarify that no agreement has been reached on the matter``, Stephanou said in a written statement issued here today.

He recalled that the Greek Cypriot side has submitted certain proposal ``on the basis of which we request the continuation of the discussion.``

``We insist on our proposal,`` Stephanou added.

Noting that the Greek Cypriot side`s proposal provides that ``the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) or another international organization (OSCE, or the Council of Europe) organize, supervise and carries out a simultaneous census in the whole of Cyprus,`` Stephanou pointed out that ``we de not believe that the census carried out in the occupied areas are credible as has been repeatedly asserted by Turkish Cypriot organizations and parties.``

The Spokesman also noted that the Greek Cypriot side`s proposal also provides ``that the census should be carried out according to UNFPA`s internationally accepted standards and specifications and that the UNFPA should confirm and announce the census results``.

[02] PACE - REPORT - CYPRUS PROBLEM

The report that was adopted unanimously, points out that bilateral guarantees, such as those provided in the Treaties for the Independence of Cyprus, did not prevent conflicts. On the contrary, according to the report, the guarantees were used in the case of Cyprus, as a pretext for unilateral military action in breach of Article 2 (4) of the Charter of the United Nations and the relevant provisions of international law, prohibiting the use of force.

The explanatory memorandum of the report notes, that according to experts, there are serious doubts whether the Treaty of Guarantee may still be regarded as valid, because of the principle which dictates that the validity may be questioned when reasons for the establishment of a treaty no longer exist or because there was a serious breach of the Parties to the Treaty, as in the case of Cyprus by Turkey`s military intervention.

The report also questions the legitimacy of British ``sovereign military bases provided by the Treaty of Establishment.

The report notes that the right to self-determination of national or ethnic minorities shall not confer an automatic right to actions ending to the division of a country. The resolution calls on all member-states of the Council of Europe, not to recognize or support in any way de facto authorities in territories which are the result of illegal division, and especially those based on foreign military interventions.

It is also pointed out that military operations as carried out by Turkey in Cyprus in 1974, resulted in massive human rights violations and have not brought, as claimed by Ankara, a permanent solution to the problem.

[03] PARTICIPATORY DEVELOPMENT PROJECT

The project, with an available budget of almost 510.000 euros, due by the end of this year, is supported by the UNDP and funded by USAID.

ETEK President Christos Efthyvoulou, while taking the floor, said that the Chamber, having KTMMOB as its partner, may contribute to the project by promoting reconciliation on the island. The focus, he said, is on enhancing cultural and natural heritage projects through participatory approaches.

Such a mode of engaging citizens, he added, is standard practice in the EU, but has come of late to Cyprus. The current project, Efthyvoulou said, is a serious step forward in institutionalizing the process in a more productive way.

йтллоб President Omer Cagnan said in his speech that the Chambers ambition through this initiative is to emphasize the importance of civil participation in decision-making processes. He also added that the projects main objectives are to increase knowledge, promote technical cooperation amongst members, endorse cultural and social activities and ultimately contribute to the peace process in Cyprus.

UNDP-ACT officer in charge Tzvetan Zafirov referred to numerous inter-communal cultural and natural heritage conservation projects, supported by the UN program, that have demonstrated how Cypriots from both communities can work for the restoration of their common heritage.

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