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Cyprus PIO: News Update in English, 01-09-24Cyprus Press and Information Office: News Updates in English Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: The Republic of Cyprus Press and Information Office Server at <http://www.pio.gov.cy/>Monday, 24 September 2001CONTENTS[01] Minister of Defence returns from ArmeniaThe Minister of Defence Mr Socrates Hasikos returned to Cyprus on 22 September 2001, from an official visit to Armenia at the invitation of his Armenian counterpart Mr Serge Sargsyan.During his stay in Armenia Mr Hasikos held talks with the President of Armenia Mr R. Kocharian, the Prime Minister Mr Andranik Margaryan and the Foreign Minister Mr Oskanan. He also met with the President of the Armenian Parliament and the Patriarch of Armenia The Defence Minister had the chance to brief his interlocutors on the latest developments in the Cyprus problem, on the island's European Union accession course and the Cyprus Government's defence policy. Armenia's political and religious leadership expressed support for the struggle of the people of Cyprus for survival and freedom. With his Armenian counterpart Mr Sargsyan, Mr Hasikos had the opportunity to discuss the contents of a defence agreement to be signed between the two countries during Mr Sargsyan visit to Cyprus in the near future. [02] Cyprus denounces the continuous and systematic plundering of its cultural heritage by Turkey"The continuous and systematic plundering of the religious, historical and cultural identity of a country, by a foreign force, does not constitute merely a painful violation of human rights and an insult to human dignity. It is also a provocation to the whole international community, which strives decisively in institutionalizing, through a series of treaties and conventions, the protection of international cultural heritage," the Cyprus Representative to the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Ambassador Andreas Georgiades has stated.Speaking at the OSCE Human Dimension Meeting on 19 September in Warsaw, on the "Protection of Cultural Heritage", Mr Georgiades pointed out that the systematic destruction of the cultural heritage of one country by another, constitutes one of the most ruthless violations of the principles of human rights. "Unfortunately such is the case in the northern part of Cyprus invaded and occupied by Turkey since 1974", he said. "The continuing occupation of almost 40% of Cyprus' territory by the Turkish armed forces, contrary to all UN relevant resolutions, is accompanied by a policy of Turkification of the occupied part of the island amounting to another grievous aspect of the Cyprus problem", he added. Mr Georgiades referred to the endless list of archaeological sites, museums, private collections of antiquities and libraries that have been plundered and destroyed in the occupied area. "The greatest destruction inflicted however has been the to religious sites and monuments, monasteries, churches and cemeteries, holy icons and sacred relics", he said. He noted that the evidence gathered from an abundance of reports in the Turkish Cypriot and foreign press, as well as from other sources, demonstrate the magnitude of the destruction caused to the cultural heritage of Cyprus. "Such evidence proves that almost all of the 502 registered Greek Cypriot churches and chapels and 17 monasteries in the towns and villages under occupation, have been looted, deliberately destroyed and even demolished. At best some have been converted into mosques", he said. In parallel important archaeological sites have been completely neglected and have been under constant risk of destruction and plundered. Moreover, illegal excavations have been carried out in Kyrenia Famagusta and the Karpass Penisnula, he said. Mr Georgiades accused Turkey, a contracting party to the 1954 Hague Convention, for failing to abide by and respect her contractual obligations and for persistently acting contrary to the provisions of pertinent international instruments. "The destruction of Cyprus' Cultural Heritage and Antiquities that Turkey has been promoting for so many years in the occupied northern part of my country will be a loss not only to Cyprus but to the rest of the world as well", he concluded. [03] German Foreign Minister discusses Cyprus problem with UN Secretary GeneralThe Foreign Minister of Germany Mr Joschka Fischer had a meeting in New York on 20 September with the UN Secretary General Mr Kofi Annan.In a statement to the press after the meeting, Mr Fischer said that with the UN Secretary General he discussed a wide range of issues including terrorism, Iraq, the Middle East and the Cyprus problem. From the Republic of Cyprus Press and Information Office (PIO) Server at http://www.pio.gov.cy/Cyprus Press and Information Office: News Updates in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article |
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