President Chrystodoulides determined to handle the nation on March fifth with an American-style State of the Union speech and to offer the general public along with his authorities’s twelve-month efficiency however to additionally talk about his plans for the longer term – writes Andreas C Chrysafis
The multi-TV broadcast attracted a nationwide viewers in expectations to listen to the president’s message on coverage issues and his plans to enhance the morale and the financial plight of residents; residents which have been bombarded with punitive taxation; rising prices of necessities, poverty and the advance of harsh residing situations going through the nation!
The general public’s anticipation of listening to encouraging plans didn’t materialize and neither did they hear any new measures to ease citizen’s anxieties. Aside from his recurring dismissive monologue, stuffed with self-praise and blaming exterior forces for the county’s issues, viewers have been in truth curious as to why the president bothered with such a meaningless charade? The choose panel of journalists appeared at a loss and didn’t obtain solutions to their questions however somewhat a well-orchestrated dismissive spin.
Residents nonetheless, heard the president’s willingness to begin negotiations with the Turkish Cypriot chief Ersin Tatar—Ankara’s puppet—and a person who refuses to barter something lower than a “two-state-solution”. Invigorated by Sultan Erdogan’s crafty plans of a worldwide enlargement to his Neo-Ottoman Empire, the stakes have now been raised to harmful ranges and Tartar is the person chosen to comply with Ankara’s directions to the letter.
On the similar time, there are harmful and suspicious claims by the Turkish military together with authorities officers that “the complete island of Cyprus belongs to Turkey and have been sorry they didn’t take all of Cyprus in 1974”. However, the Turkish Cypriot neighborhood chief, Tatar—a canny political opportunist—is making ridiculous claims that the British military bases in Cyprus pose a “army risk to his Northern TC Republic” and must be eliminated! Such statements usually are not meaningless however somewhat domesticate Ankara’s ulterior motives and urge for food for the complete area— together with the island—for the longer term!
Underneath the prevailing aggressive and bullying techniques, Mr Chrystodoulides is adamant to barter a Bi-Zonal, Bi-Communal Federation (BBF). He appears to disregard or refuses to simply accept realities that Turkey’s phrase of honour can’t be trusted—the very motive the Ottoman Empire misplaced Cyprus to Nice Britain in 1878 and signing the Peace Treaty of Lausanne in 1923.
A profession bureaucrat, ex-foreign minister and secretary to the previous president, Mr Chrystodoulides performed a pivotal function in policy-making of the Anastasiades authorities. He performed an integral half within the present issues going through Cyprus and people individuals that induced them within the first place can’t resolve those self same issues!
Confronted by Turkey’s intransigence, the president continues to dismiss Erdogan’s threats and persists to barter an apartheid-style resolution for Cyprus. His obsession to barter a BBF provides room for hypothesis!
Outdated Tales
In the meantime, there exists a political ethos and distortion that President Makarios III—and founding father of the Republic—did in truth accepted a federation resolution to the Cyprus drawback. At present, thosewords of a lifeless chief have been misinterpreted to imply BBF and have been twisted to serve geopolitical darkish motives.
Makarios’ prolonged interview with Oriana Fallaci in November 1974 makes his place crystal clear that he had by no means given his approval for a federation resolution andstated as such: “I don’t settle for it. As a result of I can’t acknowledge a fait accompli, I can’t legalize with my signature a scenario created by way of pressure. So-called realists advise me to barter “a geographical federation” with the Turks they usually say, I must be much less inflexible. As an alternative of holding on to forty p.c of the island— they repeat— the Turks is likely to be content material with thirty p.c. So be versatile. I don’t wish to be versatile.” Makarios stated and went on so as to add: “Kissinger by no means clearly informed me he was in favour of “a geographical federation”. He by no means informed me clearly what he’s doing. He at all times talked a few “resolution acceptable to either side.”
These two phrases, “geographical federation” have been construed and politically manipulated to accommodate geopolitical pursuits. The extensively accepted UN “BBF with Political Equality” has now develop into the buzzword as a substitute of coping with Turkey’s 1974 of a “Navy Invasion and Occupation” of Cyprus.
But, with out public consent, the Cyprus authorities is decided to barter a BBF, which might in the end dissolve the Republic; carve up the island in two ethnic states and introduce an apartheid system of segregation and discrimination on grounds of race and faith! In the meantime, most people are stored in complete darkness about this legendary BBF that guarantees panacea! But, no authorities or the UN and neither the EU have defined what this legendary resolution entails for Cyprus!
In reality the proposed BBF is none apart from the re-introduction of the failed UN Annan Plan rejected by 76% of the Greek Cypriot inhabitants beneath a referendum in April 2004. On the time, the plan referred to as for partitioning the island into two “element states” not a lot completely different from the proposed BBF! On contemplating Erdogan’s Neo-Ottoman threats that “the entire of Cyprus belongs to Turkey” a BBF may turn into the ultimate nail within the coffin and produce concerning the finish of the traditional Hellenic island of Cyprus!
By no means within the historical past of Cyprus has a partition of its sort has ever been negotiated to accommodate international geopolitical pursuits! With the assistance of the newly appointed UN particular envoy Maria Angela Holguin, the wheels at the moment are in movement to give you a particular political brew to set off the negotiations for a BBF.
Muzzling the Press
President Chrystodoulides appears very anxious to barter and has in truth launched into gagging any opposition to his plans however particularly the press. Motion is being taken to cease any form of criticism of negotiating the Cyprus situation however solely as he sees match; motion that’s harking back to despotism! Because it occurs, a president in Cyprus has extra powers than the US president and is accountable to none; not the parliament nor the judiciary — a president turns into divine!
Inconsistent to the EU Constitution of Basic Rights and the European Conference on Human Rights, the Chrystodoulides authorities has really tried to introduce legal guidelines to constrain the Freedom of the Press beneath pretext of “nationwide safety”. The gagging try backfired attributable to a not too long ago adopted EU directive calling that: “all member states are obliged to guard media independence and their sources of knowledge and all types of interventions in editorial choices are banned.”
After twelve months in workplace, coverage developments for certain reveal that the Chrystodoulides authorities behaves in an autocratic method that Large Brother is aware of greatest!
The Audit
The president’s intentions to overturn the unbiased authority of the Auditor Common Mr Odysseas Michaelides and substitute the Audit Workplace with a politically appointed “administrative committee” are a transparent indication of one other instance of an obsession by a authorities alchemy that calls for submission with out criticism to its authority.
Since his appointment in 2014, Mr Michaelides (AG) —the renegade maverick of the Republic—and his Audit Workplace, have develop into one of the revered establishments within the nation that benefit from the overwhelming reward and help of the inhabitants; a uncommon high quality for Cyprus certainly! Subsequently, the Audit Workplace of the Republic with over 400 devoted professionals has develop into a prickly thorn the current authorities —consistent with its predecessor—needs to prune!
Not a day goes by when the Audit Workplace doesn’t expose high-profile corruption instances; the squandering of thousands and thousands; bribes and devious behaviour by officers in energy, establishments and authorities that abuse the system. All instances beneath scrutiny are handed on to the police or the Judiciary for additional willpower and prosecution. Such unprecedented behaviour and transparency by a Cyprus establishment—which has develop into a nemesis to the established order—are the explanations some wish to take away Mr Michaelides (AG) from workplace, whose solely wrongdoing is to carry out his job with dignity and defend the pursuits of the Republic!
Thankfully for the Auditor Common, he’s not accountable to the whims of a short lived president or a fleeting authorities however to the European Fee by the European Court docket of Auditors and he can’t be fired beneath the Cyprus structure.
The subsequent twelve-months can be essential for EU-Cyprus however most necessary of all if the Republic is to outlive the onslaught of international pursuits and Europhile forces from inside; forces which have determined to partition the island for a Bi-Zonal, Bi-communal Federation and develop into loyal “Good Europeans!”
Andreas C Chrysafis
Creator/Artist/Author
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