TURKISH CYPRIOT AND TURKISH MEDIA REVIEW
C O N T E N T S
No. 01/15 01-02.01.15
1. Turkish Cypriot paper reports that the Barbaros Hayrettin Pasa
vessel will launch a new seismic research
2. Talat comments on the developments in Cyprus’ Exclusive
Economic Zone
3. Eroglu: The Greek Cypriot side should return to the negotiating
table without preconditions
4. Columnist: Eide knows very well that the Cyprus negotiations
will not resume soon
5. Turkish Cypriot real estate agents expect 2016-17 to be the
“golden era” for their businesses
6. 49,142 registered firearms in the occupied area of the Republic
of Cyprus
7. Kilicdaroglu: #ResistDavutoglu
8. Turkish Health Minister: Mothers' only career should be
motherhood
1. Turkish Cypriot paper reports that the Barbaros Hayrettin
Pasa vessel will launch a new seismic research
According
to Turkish Cypriot daily Kibris (01.01.15), it is stated that the seismic
research vessel BarbarosHayreddinPasa, which belongs to TPAO [Turkish Petroleum
Corporation], will launch a new exploration to the south of Cyprus on 5 January
2015.
The paper
also reported that the TPAO has announced that the Barbaros is going to begin
hydrocarbon exploration once again to the south of the island starting on 5
January 2015.
According
to information obtained from TPAO, the Barbaros, anchoring one nautical mile
off of the port of occupied Famagusta in order to take on supplies, will lift
anchor on 5 January and this time will search for hydrocarbons to the southwest
of the island.
The
exploration is expected to continue until mid-February 2015, but it is noted
that this period could be extended yet further.
It is also expressed that Turkey is going to announce a new NAVTEX [marine
advisory] within the coming days.
The fact
that, after the Saipem 10000 drilling vessel being used by the Italian and
South Korean partnership ENI-Kogas extended its NAVTEX until 19 March 2014 [as
published; 2015 presumably intended] for new exploration in the well named
"Amathusa," the Barbaros vessel continues exploration to the south of
the island has dashed hopes in terms of the negotiations for a solution on the
island resuming in the first days of the new year.
2. Talat comments on the developments in Cyprus’ Exclusive
Economic Zone
Turkish
Cypriot daily YeniDuzen newspaper (02.01.15) reports that while it is alleged
that Barbaros Hayrettin Pasa seismic exploration vessel will launch hydrocarbon
explorations on 5 January 2015 until the mid-February in the sea south of
Cyprus, no statement is made on the
issue by Turkey or the Turkish Cypriot side, something which the paper
describes as “remarkable”.
The paper
publishes statements by former Turkish Cypriot leader, Mehmet Ali Talat, who argued that the developments are unofficially
taking place between Turkey and “south Cyprus”, as he called the Republic of
Cyprus. Talat criticized Turkish Cypriot leader Eroglu, noting that Eroglu should get the process under control
and administrate it.
Talat said
also that the Turkish Cypriots “are voiceless” in these developments, something
which he described as “worrying”. He alleged:
“The Turkish Cypriot side must defend its
rights. It has been accepted that the Turkish Cypriots have rights in the
exclusive economic zone. It is natural
for the Turkish Cypriots to ask Turkey’s support in order to defend their
rights. Things, however, are not developing within this framework”.
(I/Ts.)
3. Eroglu: The Greek Cypriot side should return to the
negotiating table without preconditions
According
to Ankara Anatolia news agency (31.12.14), Turkish Cypriot leader DervisEroglu
said that the “negative attitude of the Greek Cypriot administration (editor’s
note: the breakaway regime in the occupied area of the Republic of Cyprus)
should be abandoned”.
The
Greek Cypriot side should return to the negotiating table without
preconditions, Eroglu said on Wednesday. "We cannot give up our rights so
that the Greek Cypriots can return to the talks," said Eroglu in a
statement, adding that the Turkish Cypriot side continues to stay at the table.
The
Turkish Cypriots want a speedy solution and an end to injustices, claimed Eroglu,
saying that the Turkish Cypriot side is positive and wants “a result-oriented”
understanding in the peace talks.
Eroglu
further said that the “Turkish Cypriot government” is in harmony with Turkey
over the policies to be discussed during the Cyprus peace process.
He
said that “the solution to the issue would contribute to the development of the
island's two peoples and their welfare”, adding: "We believe the solution
will also boost relations between Turkey and Greece."
4. Columnist: Eide knows very well that the Cyprus negotiations
will not resume soon
Writing in
his column in Turkish Cypriot daily Havadis newspaper (02.01.15), BasaranDuzgun reports that Espen Barth Eide,
UN Secretary-General’s Special Adviser on Cyprus, is exerting intensive efforts for the resumption of the Cyprus
negotiations, but these efforts are in vain.
“Eide does not, cannot say it, but he knows
very well that it will not be possible for the negotiations to resume soon”,
writes Duzgun adding: “The Greek Cypriot
side insists on not returning to the negotiating table showing as pretext the
activities of the Barbaros seismic explorations vessel. Everyone thinks that
this insistence is the most important obstacle in the negotiations, but the
experts of this issue whisper about the elections in the North. The election race, which had started months
ago, has now turned into a full speed campaignand how correct would it be for
the negotiations to resume in such an environment. Is the existence of
candidates who are willing to carry to the election squares the discussions at
the negotiating table not an obstacle to the creation of a healthy negotiations
environment? […]”
Referring
to statements by Eide published yesterday [in the Greek Cypriot press], Duzgun interprets these statements as
following: “Eide does not say it, but the translation of what he said from
the diplomatic language to the people’s language, is the following: ‘Hey you Greek Cypriot side, hey you
Anastasiades, they will not allow you to eat alone the money from the gas.
They will not allow you to use this money as blackmail. If you do not come close to an agreement which will solve the Cyprus
problem, both the gas and the oil will become a dream’”.
(I/Ts.)
5. Turkish Cypriot real estate agents expect 2016-17 to be the
“golden era” for their businesses
Turkish
Cypriot daily Kibrisli newspaper (01.01.15) reports that Hasan Sungur, chairman of the “Turkish Cypriot Real Estate Agents’
Union”, has said that they expect a serious revival in their sector in the
period 2016-17, arguing that the prices of property in the
government-controlled area of Cyprus will increase in that period and many
Europeans who own property in the government-controlled area will sell it and
invest on property in the occupied areaof the island with a part of the
money they will get. Sungur said that
they expect that their sector will live its “golden era” during that period.
Sungur
noted that the property sales this year in the occupied area of Cyprus were not
at the expected level, in spite of the activity observed comparing to the past
seven years. He said that people this
year bought houses and residences and added that there was no demand for plots
of land.
Referring
to the problems which their sector is facing, he said that the non-registered
real estate agents cause a big trouble for the sector, adding that they cannot
follow the numbers of the sales of these agents because their contracts are not
registered in the “title deed department”.
(I/Ts.)
6. 49,142 registered firearms in the occupied area of the
Republic of Cyprus
According
to Turkish Cypriot daily Kibris (02.01.14), the number of registered firearms
increased to 49,142 in the occupied area of the Republic of Cyprus, which has a
population of 290,000 people, during the past few years. The figure shows that
one in every six persons owns a firearm. These are made up of shotguns (hunting
rifles), air guns, paintball guns, and handguns. Some 45,935 registered
firearms existed in “northern Cyprus” (translator’s note: the occupied area of
the Republic of Cyprus) in 2010. The figure increased to 49,142 in 2014.
According
to data released by the so-called ministry of interior, in 2010 there were
33,432 hunting rifles, 10,729 airguns, 135 paintball guns and 1,640 guns
(pistols). In 2014, there were 34,227 hunting rifles, 13,096 airguns, 129
paintball guns and 1,690 guns (pistols).
7. Kilicdaroglu: #ResistDavutoglu
Turkish
daily Hurriyet Daily News (online, 02.01.14) reports that the leader of the
main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) Kemal Kilicdaroglu said that
President RecepTayyipErdogan’s decision to chair the cabinet meeting that will
take place on Jan. 19 is a straightforward intervention against the Turkish state’s
tradition, calling Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu to resist and end such
interventions into his authority.
“The
President announced that he will chair the cabinet meeting in January. We’ll
observe one concrete example of a direct intervention against the state’s
traditions. We are aware of other
interventions towards Mr Davutoglu’s area of responsibility. I call
‘resistdavutoglu’. He has to resist,” Kilicdaroglu told the daily Hurriyet in
his first interview in 2015.
Although
the Turkish constitution authorizes the President to convene the cabinet,
former Turkish Presidents did rarely use this power, especially at
extraordinary times. President Erdogan put an end to the controversy by
announcing that he will use his right to chair the cabinet on Jan 19.
Kilicdaroglu
recalled that Turkey will go to the polls in June to renew the Parliament and
underlined that these elections will be crucially important. “During 12 years
of AKP (Justice and Development Party) rule, none of ours moral values have
been protected. All of our value judgments have been despised and have been
mocked with. In the past, there was a concept called morality. Today, however,
there is no any other concept that suffered from erosion than morality.
Unlawfulness became the rule,” Kilicdaroglu said.
8. Turkish Health Minister: Mothers' only career should be
motherhood
According
to Turkish daily Hurriyet Daily News (online, 01.01.15), mothers should not put
any career before motherhood, Turkish Health Minister Mehmet Muezzinoglu has said
during a visit to the first baby born in 2015 in Istanbul early on Jan. 1.
Muezzinoglu
and Istanbul Gov. VasipSahin visited the baby and congratulated her parents at
a hospital in Zeytinburnu while also giving advice to mothers.
“Mothers
have the career of motherhood, which cannot be possessed by anything else in
the world. Mothers should not put
another career other than motherhood at the centre of their lives. They should
put raising good generations at the centre of their attention,” Muezzinoglu
said.
President
RecepTayyip Erdogan has consistently exhorted women to have at least three
children, while also calling abortion as “murder” and rallying against
Caesarean sections.
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