TRNC News Today 14th November 2014

Bozkır: “EP resolution has no validity for us”

Turkish EU Minister and Chief Negotiator Volkan Bozkır stated that the resolution of European Parliament (EP) has no validity for Turkey.

Bozkır made evaluation during a reception which was held before the voting of the EP resolution, containing also the issues concerning the activities of Turkish seismic research vessel – Barbaros Hayreddin Pasa, at the General Council.

Stating that the incorrectness of the resolution was expressed during the meetings with High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy – Federica Mogherini and European Commissioner for European Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations – Johannes Hahn in Brussels, Bozkır said “In the nature of things, this decision will end up like the similar resolutions issued before. It has no validity for us. After this resolution is accepted and delivered to our permanent representative in Brussels, it will be sent back. Now it has no importance”.

Alliance of European Conservatives and Reformists has reacted against the resolution by the EP

The Alliance of European Conservatives and Reformists (AECR) has reacted against the resolution by the European Parliament concerning the tension in Mediterranean over natural gas.

In the statement made by AECR which brings European conservative and reformist parties together, it was stated that the opinions of Ankara, which is criticized harshly for the reason of seismic researches, were not regarded and the issue has not been analyzed in detail.

John Koenig: “What has Turkey done? Nothing”

USA Ambassador to South Cyprus John Koenig said: “Turkey is the strategic ally of the US in the region, understand this. What has Turkey done? She has done nothing.

In the news under the headline ‘American Ambassador: “Turkey is the strategic ally of the US in the region…The situation will be worse if you don’t solve it now”’ Greek Cypriot newspaper Simerini published that Koenig said the above in a dialog with an unspecified Greek interlocutor who conveyed that ‘Turkey should be pressurized to cancel her plans in the Eastern Mediterranean for the resumption of the negotiations.’

Number of unemployed people reached 70,000 in South Cyprus

It has been indicated that the number of unemployed people as of the end of October reached 70,000 in South Cyprus and 81% of them are the Greek Cypriots.

Greek Cypriot newspaper Alithia published that Greek Cypriot Rightist Workers Unions (SEK) declared that the number of unemployed people as of end of October reached 70,000 in South Cyprus.

In the statement, the union said that 81% of the unemployed people are the Greek Cypriots and defended that the policy of providing jobs for the third country citizens should be amended for creating jobs for the Greek Cypriots.

Our View: Who dares abolish the Archbishop’s Name Day?

ALL SCHOOLS in the Republic of Cyprus yesterday had a holiday because it was Archbishop Chrysostomos’ name-day. In the 21st century Cyprus children still get a day off school to celebrate a living priest’s name-day. This is not a celebration of a national hero, a great benefactor or some fount of wisdom (the name-days of such people are not honoured), but of an undistinguished priest who managed, through sordid wheeler-dealing, to become head of the Greek Orthodox Church of Cyprus.

Why are the schools of a supposedly secular state honouring such a man? By this reasoning, the name-day of the president, whoever he may be, should also be a school holiday. In fact, this was the case back in the eighties when Spyros Kyprianou was president and he would do anything to win votes – an extra school holiday would have won over a few indolent teachers. Kyprianou’s successors did not follow this absurd practice, even though we suspect another school holiday was given in lieu because teaching unions would never have agreed to give up a holiday. The idea of observing the Archbishop’s name-day is owed to the late Archbishop Makarios and his courtiers. His successor, Chrysostomos I, who also suffered delusions of grandeur, demanded a school holiday on his name-day and, as he was followed by another Chrysostomos, when he passed away the 13th November remained a holiday.

Now, more than 50 years of having a school holiday on the Archbishop’s name day, it has become a fixture. If the education ministry attempted to abolish it, the teaching unions would be up in arms protesting that their conquests were being taken away from them; they would lift their objections if another saint’s day was declared a school holiday. The ministry probably does not want the trouble that would come with taking such a decision. It does not want to be accused of keeping the Church out of the schools and other such nonsense.

The truth is that even though the Republic is a democratic, secular state that has been a member of the EU for the last decade, it has not been able to cut its ties to the Church, the Archbishop being treated as royalty, with the president deferring to him about matters that should not be his business. Presidents still seek his approval before appointing the Education Minister, even though he knows nothing about education, and confer with him about the Cyprus problem.

The authorities even arrange for visiting foreign dignitaries to pay him a courtesy call as if he were the Head of State. It is time for all this nonsense to stop, even though it is difficult to see the current President taking this long overdue decision. (Cyprus Mail)