Coalition parties threaten to leave the government

Uncertainty reigns over the future of the government coalition with the domestic political front showing signs of disarray in the wake of the UN Secretary-General’s visit and the conclusion of the intensified negotiations, the Cyprus Mail reports today.

Following President Christofias’ briefing of the National Council on Friday, government partners DIKO and EDEK are both holding meetings this week to consider whether to leave the coalition.

EDEK spokesman Demetris Papadakis said the main factor influencing his party’s support was the national issue.

DIKO spokesman Fotis Fotiou yesterday confirmed that three members of the executive office raised the issue of leaving the coalition on Friday - Andreas Angelides, Nicolas Papadopoulos and Kyriacos Kenevezos. The three have expressed their opposition to Christofias’ proposals in the talks on a rotating presidency, allowing 50,000 settlers to stay, weighted voting, and problem-solving mechanisms.

Angelides even warned yesterday that the future of the Republic of Cyprus was at risk. “What’s important now is not whether we will stay in government or not, but how we can save the Republic of Cyprus.”

Fotiou noted that if a decision was taken to leave the government on Tuesday, then it would be raised at the central committee meeting the following week. However, he said: “As things stand, I don’t see it happening, that is for the majority of the executive office to decide to leave the government, but you can’t prejudge these things.”

DIKO member and Foreign Minister Marcos Kyprianou had a different view: “If we felt that there was a policy which was putting the Republic at risk, we should have walked out a long time ago, and I would not have stayed in government either.” He added that what was important at the moment was how DIKO could contribute towards finding a good solution.

Meanwhile, EVROKO leader Demetris Syllouris yesterday continued the campaign to remove UN Special Adviser Alexander Downer, saying he was undermining the negotiations process. The Australian diplomat faced a barrage of criticism from EDEK, DIKO, EVROKO and the Greens on Friday for his alleged involvement in Ban Ki-moon’s visit to Mehmet Ali Talat’s offices, something which the UN has consistently denied.

Former president George Vassiliou said Downer was being used as a scapegoat by those who were not happy with the negotiations. “Any attacks on Mr Downer have nothing to do with Mr Downer himself, but are going against the negotiations rather than the person who in no way can be blamed for anything.”

“Downer is simply a coordinator, and enjoys the full trust of the UN in any case,” he added.

He added that the constant talk of withdrawing from government was an effort to put pressure on Christofias’ positions at the talks.

Makarios Droushiotis writing in Politis says that the UN have set an indirect timeframe to clarify (not necessarily to solve) the Cyprus problem through Ban Ki-Moon's visit to the island. The elections in the north on 18 April are critical. If Eroglu is elected the UN considers that the talks will be meaningless and for him not to be elected there must be some kind of spectacular progress in the talks in all chapters. Thus the talks must proceed intensively between now and then otherwise they will inevitably come to an end.

Ban Ki-Moon is the sixth UN S-G who undertakes an initiative to solve the Cyprus problem and possibly the last. While on the island he said the solution has lasted for decades and "now is the time for a solution". He called on the leaders to show greater "courage, flexibility and vision as well as a spirit of compromise”, while to the people he said "your destiny is in your hands".

In short Mr Ban Ki-Moon conveyed the message that time is running out and that if there is no drastic movement now time will not be revived.

Turkey meanwhile has since September set the April elections as clear timeframe for a solution and has been actively working in this direction. More than just because it's a regional power, its arguments ring positive in the ears of the international community. It accepts a timeframe; it wants the active involvement of the UN; it proposes procedures (five party meeting, four party meeting, conference outside Cyprus etc).

In other words Turkey has a clear policy that it has been implementing successfully. In contrast Cyprus has been following a policy of just reacting to developments, just like in 2004 under Tassos Papadopoulos.

Talat has asked for two rounds of intensive negotiations with the aim of substantial convergence on the three chapters of governance and power sharing, economy and EU) so that something positive could have been announced to help Talat win the elections. Christofias agreed to the intensive talks assuring party leaders these were just so as to help Talat and publicly said there was no chance of a solution before April and that he would continue the talks with whoever was elected. Talat then announced his willingness to proceed to another round this time on the property issue, and with the document he submitted he made clear that his intentions were beyond simple pre-electoral politics. The G/C side, aiming at a slower process, outright rejected the document as being confederationist, whereas in reality they viewed it as positive, proof being that despite Byzantine bargaining tactics and hair-splitting, there was broad convergence as regards governance and power sharing. The writer says that both UN circles as well as government circles have confirmed to the paper that this chapter has practically been closed.

It was in view of this progress, and with Turkey's commitment for a speedy negotiation of the remaining chapters that the UN went ahead with Ban Ki-Moon's visit. The aim of the visit was to announce this progress, to commit the leaders to carry on at the same speed, to come close to an agreement in all chapters, to announce this, for Talat to be reelected, and for the talks to conclude by June. The reason Christofias held back was that he felt he was losing control of public opinion and his cooperation with the coalition parties. Nonetheless Ban Ki-Moon came and spread his message of urgency.

Meanwhile Alexander Downer is busy trying to arrange the dates for the continuation of the talks though not at an intensive rate. The Turkish side is increasing pressure wanting talks up until the day before the elections, while Talat himself is proposing a conference outside Cyprus.

The international community credits Christofias with decisiveness to solve the Cyprus problem, but finds that Talat more eager to speed things up while Christofias is trying to slow things down, something that could prove fatal if Talat loses the elections.

If the G/C side does not cooperate in making full use of the time up until the April elections, then they will also have to bear the responsibility. And that is the dilemma that Christofias faces today.

The Cyprus Mail's satirical column, Coffeeshop, this week says that everyone appeared to be pulling fast ones and setting traps before, during and after Ban Ki-moon’s much-hyped visit to the island of martyrdom and victimhood.

But what do you expect when the hastily-arranged visit itself was declared a diplomatic scam by several of our conspiracy-busting hacks and politicos. It was allegedly set up by the devious Big Al and the Yank at UN HQ Lyn Pascoe, who forced Ban to visit by feeding him misleading information about the peace talks.

Worse still, they supposedly arranged the visit without consulting the comrade president beforehand; the hunky Aussie was said to have announced the news to our bemused leader, who was not too keen on having Ban over, for fear he might demand that talks moved faster than at the current snail’s pace. But he could not come out and say that he did not want the Secretary-General to visit.

The comrade got his own back on the scheming Al, by pulling a fast one when Ban was here. He dug his heels in when it came to announcing the big progress made in the talks, with the UN having to play it down in Ban’s official statement. He also refused to agree to any arrangements for a new bout of intensive talks, even though he agreed in principle to continue meeting.

So Ban had nothing tangible to show for his visit and had to regurgitate the predictable platitudes about the time for a solution and the two leaders’ courage and determination.

This was not the only punishment inflicted on Ban for visiting. At the official banquet at the people’s palace on Sunday night, the comrade arranged for the South Korean to be seated next to the lethally dull Marios Garoyian, which was pretty vindictive.

The award for the stitch-up of the visit had to go to duplicitous Mehmet Ali Talat, who double-crossed Big Al big-time, set up Ban for an embarrassment and infuriated the comrade, not to mention the fact that he sparked mass hysteria among our ruling elite.

I refer to the way he deceived the UN (even though many Greek Cypriots have accused Downer of being party to the scam) and met Ban in his pseudo-office instead of his pseudo-residence as he had pseudo-officially agreed. The UN had been informed about the Turkish trap while Ban was on his way to the pseudo-presidential compound and Big Al called Talat to ask him to revert to the original plan.

But Talat refused to budge, reportedly telling the Aussie that the red carpet leading to his office had already been laid and it was too late to change his arrangements. If the UN did not want the meeting taking place in the pseudo-office, the visit would have to be called off, Talat supposedly told Al. The Aussie, we suppose, decided that calling off the meeting would have been more embarrassing for the UN, even though he knew that his decision to go ahead with the meeting would boost Greek Cypriot thirst for his blood.

You had to feel some sympathy for poor old Ban Ki-moon, a good man, who ended up being a pawn in their games or, to be more poetic, a prawn in their egg-fried rice.

A positive consequence of the meeting at the pseudo-office was the re-deployment of the Ethnarch’s most powerful diplomatic weapon – the cocktail party boycott – by the bash-patriotic parties. And how fitting that the boycott was staged on the very same evening a gathering to honour the Ethnarch’s memory was being held. It was a reminder that his legacy lives on. DIKO, EDEK, EUROKO and the Greens all stayed away from the reception given by Ban at the Ledra Palace Hotel on Monday evening, to underline their strong disapproval of the meeting in the pseudo-office. Ban did not seem too disappointed with the snub, relieved that he would be spared the ordeal of engaging in conversation, however brief, with Garoyian for a second night running.

The DISY fuhrer was at the reception and provided the only entertaining moment. As Talat was about to leave, he approached him and said, quite loudly, “Get a move on Mehmet, you’re going to be late for Tassos Papadopoulos’ memorial event.”

The bad news is that the visit was not a meaningless exercise or part of Turkey’s communications games as the town-criers of negativity and rejection had been claiming. In fact not only had significant progress been made (the chapter on power-sharing and governance was almost completely agreed), but the comrade was told in no uncertain terms that the talks needed to continue by hook or by crook.

He was not happy about the UN turning the screw, but he also realised that his favoured slow motion approach would not be tolerated and he ran the risk of being blamed if there was no more progress. The comrade had become the Hamlet of the Cyprob, fearing taking any decision because whatever he did, he would be crucified and the guy’s only desire is to be loved.

He is still dithering, but at Friday’s National Council meeting he decided to spill the fasoulia about the progress made and his intention to carry on talking. He could no longer keep the party leaders in the dark, even though they remained in denial spurting their torrents of negativity, like always

Garoyian, Omirou et al insisted there was no progress even after Friday’s meeting. Omriou, the high priest of negativity, said after the meeting: “Our view was that the general account of the talks was negative; the general account of the Secretary-General’s visit was negative...”

On Monday the EDEK central committee is meeting to discuss the general negativity surrounding the Cyprob. It could decide to take a positive step and leave the government alliance so it can spread its negative message without restrictions.

The Bash Patriots at DIKO met immediately after the National Council meeting and will meet again on Tuesday to decide whether they would leave the government. The party is split in two. Junior and the Ethnarch’s disciples want out, but Garoyian and the DIKOites serving as government ministers, believe the national interest would be better served if they did not give up their posts.

Garoyian wants to stay because next year there will be parliamentary elections and he knows that without AKEL support he would not get another term as House president. And the House presidency, like the foreign ministry, is definitely worth turning a blind eye to the large-scale concessions made by comrade president at the talks.


Sevgul Uludag writing in Politis remembers growing up in Famagusta/Varosha. She says that in 50 years time my son will be 70. He will remember the house he grew up, the places he visited, the beaches he walked along, the colour of the sky, he will have his own memories of this island and the things he loves. He has never seen Varosha so he will never have any memories of my aunt's house there. He has never smelled the strong smell of the sea there, mixed with flowers, fresh and fruity like nowhere else. He has never visited that house and does not remember climbing up that green spiral staircase, the little pond full of goldfish, nor does have memories of walks along the beach, smelling coconut oil suntan lotion, the heat, walking for miles in the heat with our feet in the water staring at the tourists and the sea.

My aunt would wake up early in the morning to make breakfast, boiled eggs and home-made apricot jam, while my uncle did his exercises in the bath. We would then go by bike to the Palm Beach Hotel, then the Constantia and spent all morning at the beach. This beach with its white sand, and turquoise sea, the beach where i would practice speaking English to the tourists. I was 15 years old and dreaming aof a wonderful world, unbeknownst of what was about to happen to us all. The beach that hadn't yet been hit by the war, where i could dream a million dreams with a small red transistor radio to my ears learning all the words to the songs, my long hair flying, my tanned body and a purple bikini. My uncle and aunt settled in Famagusta long before i was born having first lived many years abroad but always dreaming of a house by the sea. They eventually came back, bought some land by the sea and built a two-story house. The doors, i remember, were painted a light green colour and the floors of some of the rooms were wooden. My uncle had a collection of seashells which i used to secretly touch when they weren't looking lest they scold me for fear that i would break them. All my life since i have been collecting seashells and people always wonder why. They don't realise that i'm trying to recreate the memories of my 15 year old self and life at the fabulour beach in this house in Famagusta.

The house is still there but a tree has grown through it. Snakes and mice live there now and Famagusta is a dream that exists only in our memories, because it is a ghost town. Famagusta will one day open up, but my uncle will not see it as he died years ago and nor will my aunt who is nearing 100. And neither will my son ever have memories of that house in Famagusta. In 50 years time there will be noone to remember all that went on in Famagusta. We will die with our memories of places and beaches, and shells and happiness, of what Cyprus used to be like many years ago. Future generations will have other memories of different places, different houses, different beaches they loved. Only geography will determine what we love or don't love. I am now the same age my aunt Fattush was when she made apricot jam in that house in Famagusta. The women of my family live very long, they are strong and remember very well all the smells, the recipes, the walks, the jokes they ever knew.

But it is all in their memories. None of it exists, because Cyprus has changed, Cyprus has been changed and will continue to change. In the same way Famagusta exists in her memory as it is in mine and as it is in everyone else who once lived there. But all these memories will die along with us and we will never have Famagusta as we remember it. Famagusta will exist one day, but not as we lived it. I will always have memory of Famagusta, the smell that i can find nowhere else, the white sand, the turquoise sea, my uncle's shells, the wooden floor, the starry nights and being 15 years old and listening to John Vickers on the radio in 1974. Because that was the last time i ever was in Famagusta.