TV discussion show

1. TV discussion show on developments

A television discussion on the state channel CyBC last night focused on the joint declaration debacle. Guests included former government spokesmen Stefanos Stefanou and Michalis Papapetrou, as well as former Foreign Minister Nicos Rolandis. Also present were Marinos Sizopoulos from Edek and Chris Triantafyllides as a representative of Disy.

Stefanou started out by admitting that finding a solution to the Cyprus problem is paramount. As time goes by, things get worse, he noted, pointing to the increased number of Turkish settlers in the north today, the destruction of the cultural heritage, the g/c properties. He expressed his party’s position that the talks should have started where they had left off in March 2012 when Eroglu used Cyprus’ EU presidency as an excuse to break them off. He expressed his support for a laconic statement just stating the desire for a solution, rather than this whole discussion. He said a dealock or collapse of the talks is not an option because there will be responsibilities allocated and there’s no guarantee that we wouldn’t be blamed.

Edek’s Sizopoulos said no one doubts that everyone wants a solution. The question is what kind of solution. Would any old solution do? Or should a solution be functional and safeguard the existence of Greek Cypriots in Cyprus. Let’s not forget that Turkey’s aim is to take over the whole of Cyprus, he said. So the talks must start well which is why we supported a joint statement that lays out the basic aspects of the solution.

Papetrou said while he doesn’t object to a common declaration, he would have handled things differently. He said the Turkish Cypriot side is on record that it accepts the three s – single sovereigny, single citizenship, single international personality. Yet now Eroglu doesn’t accept these things. Why open the door and start talks from the beginning, he asked.

“We should have told Eroglu that we agree to start from where we left off as he wanted. That presupposes that he would have had to accept all the statements that had previously been released. If he didn’t accept him, then let him come into conflict with the UN and the international community, not us”.

He said that what’s happening now is we are just playing with words. We’ve reached a point where we’re debating whether to put a full stop here, a comma there. This is not how we are going to solve the Cyprus problem. The Cyprus problem will only be solved if there is political will. We have to find that will through the talks. He added that all the UN resolutions have one thing in common – they tell us to go sit down at the negotiating table and solve it on the basis of a compromise.

“How many on our side are willing to do so?” he asked. “The truth is that in the past many of the deadlocks came from our side. I would just like to remind you that in the days of Denktash we were hiding behind Denktash’s intransigence. The big problems arose when Denktash’s policy began to collapse whereupon we started hearing things on our side that we hadn’t heard before”, he said.

Rolandis pointed out that issues have now become obstacles that never used to be such. They had been acceptable in all the various plans submitted. “It makes me wonder what will happen when we move on to other big issues like the settlers, the property issue, territory, and Morphou, which we fought so hard to bring over to our side. But now the Turks have made massive investments there. What will happen over issues like that?”

He went on to say that we’ve been singing the same song for the last 40 years. “Didn’t we reject proposals that we should never have rejected? Like the American plan for example, which was an excellent opportunity”, he said. “These were followed by the Cuellar indicators. We rejected those and I quit as Foreign Minsiter. The joint documents. Papandreou refused to talk to our president because we rejected those. The international community has never despite all the efforts we made, never justified us. And take the Annan plan which was the worse plan of all. (Because as time goes by they get worse)”.

He referred to Security Council resolution 1475 which called it a unique plan for a solution. “It passed unanimously and all our friends, the Russians, the Chinese, the French, everyone the whole global community thought it was unique, except us”.

Mr Rolandis clarified that even though he supported the Annan plan he didn’t think it was a good plan and pointed out that we had rejected all the previous plans that had been better.  He said as time passes the occupation gets solidified.

“There is a third generation there, of settlers and Turkish Cypriots who don’t know us. Have you ever been to the other side to see what’s going on? Well I have, and I continue to go. I go there deliberately. That is still the territory of Cyprus. Yes there are some practical difficulties in doing so but it’s still my country. I go to see the people there, to find out how they think what they’re doing. It’s a different world there, a different society, a different economy, everything”, he said.

Stefanou said if we feel that Turkey’s aims are unchangeable then that’s like saying there’s no prospect for a solution. If we don’t feel there are any prospects for a solution then we should tell the people so and go and agree on partition and get whatever we can if we’re ok with that. Prospects for a solution exist within the various interests so a solution must be a win win situation. We must look at how Turkey can be persuaded that it has an interest to solve the Cyprus problem because in doing so they will have something to gain as well as other players.

Sizopoulos said they managed to prevent the implementation of the Annan plan which would have been a disaster. And there where everyone was telling us that it was the last chance, and it would be an asia minor catastrophe, and the sky would fall on our head, it didn’t. And Cyprus joined the European Union.

The CyBC moderator quoted from the late Glavcos Clerides’ book who said that history has shown that every time we tried to achieve what we wanted without any compromises ie what was desirable as opposed to what was feasible, we failed.

Papapetrou referred blamed the parties Disy and Akel which never decided to put aside their differences for a few months and solve the Cyprus problem. “ After that they could have all the centuries ahead of them to scratch each other’s eyes out to their hearts content”, he said.

He then reminded Sizopoulos that the president at the time that the Annan plan was rejected had urged the people to vote against this “dreadful plan” and then promised that with Cyprus’ entry into the EU, better days would follow and a better solution would come.

“Tell me today, with all these committees in the north, with our deadlocks in the European courts, with the indirect recognition of the pseudostate, have better days come, or is it more of the same? he said. “Being absolute and doesn’t lead us anywhere”.

Referring to the slogan “the cyprus problem is an issue of invasion and occupation” which Sizopoulos kept on chanting, Papetrou agreed that from 1974 onwards it is.

“But unless we look at the other aspect of the problem which is an issue of relations between the two communities, then we lose sight of reality. Ten years before the invasion Cyprus had a UN contingent here. What did they come here to do, tourism? We must rememberr that, thanks to Denktash’s policy, as well as to ours, a large number of Turkish Cypriots lived for many years in a ghetto. If we try to erase all that and pretend history starts from 74, just as they try to end history in 74, then we will go nowhere” he said.

Rolandis kept on apologising for being a pessimist and explaining it stems from his many years of experience.  He said he feels we’ve reached a deadlock. Eight months have gone by and we haven’t been able to solve something which in the past took us one day, he said.

“My message to Nicos Anastasiades, who I know, because I’m in touch with him, truly wants to solve the Cyprus problem and is trying very hard to, is that we should replace this statement with an opening statement by the S-G and then start some kind of dialogue”, he said.

He added that plan B or plan Cs are ridiculous. “We’ve been dealing with the Cyprus problem for 50 years now, we know what the possibilities are.

He added: “When as a school kid I was being taught about the Catastrophe in Asia Minor, it seemed like those events had happened in the depths of time, yet it was just 28 years previously. Now the Cyprus problem is 50 years old. And we’re still trying to agree on something that so far used to be acceptable to all. And the decades go by. Will the Cyprus problem still exist in 2050? Does it exist now?”

Papapetrou said if time is allowed to go by, the de facto events that have been imposed on our country will become permanent.

“Even monstrous arrangements that have stood the test of time, have eventually become incorporated into international law. This is what will happen in Cyprus. That’s why we must hurry up. We must come to terms with the fact that the solution cannot after 50 years be ideal, it must be as good as possible and from then on we must attempt from within the framework of the European club which we have chosen to join to make it as viable and functional as possible”, he concluded.

2. Eroglu: Aim is to establish a new partnership

Turkish Cypriot leader, Dervis Eroglu has said that the main aim of the Turkish Cypriot side is the establishment of a new partnership in Cyprus with the powers given by “two sovereign peoples”.

In an interview with Kibris, Eroglu explained that this is where the current difficulty lies and added that the Turkish Cypriot side is not against the partnership state being sovereign and having a single international personality.

Eroglu claimed that the Cyprus problem could not be solved through letters, as the Greek Cypriot side is trying to do in order to gain time, adding that the two sides should sit at the negotiating table and find a solution.

Asked what he felt when he read the Greek Cypriot proposal that he received yesterday morning, Eroglu replied that the proposal contained “delicate tactics”. He said that they were expecting the Greek Cypriots to say “yes” or “no” to the proposal submitted by the Turkish Cypriots, but the Greek Cypriot side submitted its own proposal instead of doing this. “If they want to play games, we can do this too”, he said.

Asked whether the deadlock on the issue of the joint statement could be overcome, Eroglu replied that it could be overcome. “If the Greek Cypriots looked with good will at the text which we have put forward and gave a reply, the negotiations would start immediately. They do not have good will”, he said.

Asked about foreign minister Ozdil Nami statements that a solution could be achieved and whether Nami is part of his team or acts separately, Eroglu said “Mr Nami was Mr Talat’s special representative for five years. He has acquired some habits from that period and some friendships.”

Eroglu also said he had relaxed after Davutoglu’s visit and seeing that Turkey supports their actions.

3. Ertug says they expected a yes or no from the Greek Cypriots

Osman Ertug, Turkish Cypriot leader Dervis Eroglu’s special representative, has said that they do not accept the Greek Cypriot document that had been sent back as a response and added that they were expecting a “yes” or “no” answer.

In statements to Kibris, Ertug noted that the last proposal of the Turkish Cypriot side had been prepared with the participation of the government and the main opposition party at Eroglu’s office and added that Turkey also supported this proposal, as did the UN.

Ertug argued that the Turkish Cypriot side and the UN do not intend to carry on this “writing exercise” forever and alleged that the counter proposal made by the Greek Cypriot side is a “tactic for the ball to remain in Turkish Cypriot side’s court”.

Commenting on rumours that the Greek Cypriot side is preparing to implement a Plan B in case its proposal was not accepted, Ertug alleged that this is a new tactic for gaining time.

4. Davutoglu contacts

Turkish Cypriot daily Havadis reports that the Turkish Foreign Minister Davutoglu has asked the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to solve the crisis created with the proposal of the Greek Cypriot side.

Moreover, Turkish Cypriot daily Afrika reports that Davutoglu came to the island after reaching an agreement with Britain and Greece on a document, which would be submitted to the Greek Cypriot side as a Turkish proposal.

According to the paper, Davutoglu put this paper in front of the Turkish Cypriot leader Eroglu and said: “Whether we like it or not, there can be no objection to this”.