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EDEK quits government
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Cyprus
EDEK president Yiannakis Omirou enters the packed meeting in Nicosia (Christos Theodorides) THE Central Committee of Socialist Party EDEK voted late last night by an overwhelming majority to quit the government coalition, responding to leader Yiannakis Omirou’s unequivocal call for withdrawal based on the party’s “total disagreement” with President Demetris Christiofias’ strategy on the Cyprus problem.
Omirou said that EDEK’s support for Christofias in the second round of the presidential elections in February 2008 had been given “on the basis of specific written commitments on the solution we want and call for”, but “unfortunately, we consider that those commitments have not been kept”.
“The President rescinded the 8 July (2007) agreement in practice,” he said and entered into direct negotiations with Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat “without the existence of suitable grounds”, all of which EDEK had disagreed with.
However, Omirou said that, once Christofias decided to enter into negotiations, EDEK considered it its “patriotic duty” to support his efforts, but “for the 17 months since then, in our opinion the President has been following a mistaken strategy which the other side is using to its own advantage”, involving unilateral concessions such as the matter of the rotating presidency “which are not acceptable to the overwhelming majority of Cypriot Hellenism”.
Announcing the decision to the media after the meeting at the Cleopatra Hotel in Nicosia, Omirou said that the overwhelming vote in favour of withdrawal – 115 in favour, with eight votes against and three abstentions – had been taken “for the good of the country and its people”, adding that he had already informed the President.
Omirou confirmed that Agriculture Minister Michalis Polynikis and Communications and Works Minister Nicos Nicolaides will be tendering their resignations to President Christofias, but said that in line with common practice, EDEK will not be giving up its membership of the boards of various semi-governmental organisations.
EDEK’s decision now turns the spotlight on coalition partner DIKO, whose Executive Office meets today to make its own crucial strategic decision. The party has been riven by disagreement over continuing to support Christofias’ efforts to negotiate a solution to the Cyprus problem, with leader Marios Garoyian finding it increasingly difficult to rein in his party’s hard-liners.
Omirou said that EDEK’s withdrawal came after its own proposals had not been listened to, and the “Turkish side’s recent unacceptable confederative proposals essentially and openly muddy the waters for a solution”, and the “negative results” of UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon’s recent visit “proved we were right”.
“The margin (for manoeuvre) has been exhausted. The course we are following is wrong,” he said. “The necessary national consensus is lacking. Not only are our proposals turned down, but very often they are received in a negative or even insulting way.”
Omirou said there was a national need for a change in strategy and tactics now.
“Our disagreement with the President’s strategy on the Cyprus problem is now total… We cannot co-operate over concessions that are unacceptable to us. We cannot endorse a strategy that is harmful. We cannot participate in a course that is leading us into a dead-end, nor hide behind this.”
The EDEK leader said: “It is politically responsible and ethically correct to withdraw from the government. For us to stay would have been politically paradoxical and ethically unacceptable, and contrary to EDEK’s principles and history.”
The EDEK leader ignored a reporter’s question on the timing of his party’s decision. However, a report in Sunday’s Politis newspaper suggested that the decision may have been driven by the results of an analysis carried out by PR expert and party member Costas Panagopoulos.
According to Politis, the main conclusions of the analysis pointed to three main benefits: EDEK would be seen to acting in a principled way by putting clear water between it and Christofias over the Cyprus problem; by withdrawing from the government, EDEK may be able to attract disaffected DIKO members; and, if in so doing the party’s results in the 2011 legislative elections push it up to third place, Omirou would improve his chances of claiming the presidency of the House of Representatives, and his party could play a the role of king-maker in the 2013 presidential election.
DIKO Vice-President Nicolas Papadopoulos said yesterday ahead of today’s meeting that “the outstanding issue for DIKO is to what extent we can continue to support a government which at the end of the day will present us with a solution to the Cyprus problem containing a rotating presidency.”
Papadopoulos added that he wondered how his party could hope to exert some influence over its demand for the proposal for a rotating presidency to be withdrawn from the negotiating table “when it has been agreed not only between President Demetris Christofias and Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat, but has also been agreed in the presence of UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon during his visit”.
If DIKO’s Executive Office decides to recommend leaving the government, then the party’s Central Committee still has to approve the recommendation at its next meeting on February 16.
There was no immediate statement from the Presidential Palace last night. Speaking yesterday afternoon, government spokesman Stefanos Stefanou said that Christofias had agreed with the leaders of the main political parties to meet later this week and “talk everything through”. Stefanou said that “the various problems and complaints” would have been discussed, rejecting the suggestion that the President had not kept party leaders informed on the talks, and adding that “there are not complaints just on one side, there are some on the other, too”.
Anticipating EDEK’s decision to quit the government, Greens spokesman and MP George Perdikis said yesterday afternoon that he was surprised at the President’s “indifference” as he watched the government coalition break up, adding that “this is not the time for the internal front to break up, rather it is time for unity, and responsibility for this rests first and foremost with the President.”
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Petericia jakson from Londan comments:
I wish the presidential elections of north-cyprus will bring some good news for the tourism industry of Cypurs.
Fevzi from London & Kyrenia comments:
JT from UK: You need to see a psychiatrist, you cannot reason, you jump to stupid conclusions. I do not have a RoC passport. My passport is British and I also have the ID card of the Turkish Republic of North Cyprus. I am proud to be a Turkish Cypriot and would never want to be Greek. I am not bitter about anything. I am actually very relaxed and happy.
I just write about the Cyprus Problem because I lived through the events. I write the truth, unlike the Greek Cypriots who write and say LIES. Greeks are liars. It is a streak of your character. Look at Greece, your motherland. They told the EU lies about their statistics, lies after lies, and now they are going to the Germans with a begging bowl in their hands, totally humiliated. Everyone is talking about the Greek Tragedy.
What's all this about billions of people on the globe who are Greek or want to be Greek. This just shows how mad you are. You are a mere 10 million, one city in Turkey is alot more than you.
If you can only write like a ten year old schoolboy, don't bother.
Antifon from the World Wide Web comments:
Hadji, your arguments are stale baseless, tactless and unintelligent. I will fight for you to have the right to express them though.
Hadji comments:
Ok Antifon - stop dreaming.
The Greeks were in Anatolia too once upon a time so yes we can undo thousands of years your beloved history, which is now our history dude. Ancient Greece is dead man and modern day greece is bankrupt - get real. Hellenism and EOKA dead too-
Fact is you are a declining race:
Watch this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6-3X5hIFXYU
Here today, gone tomorrow.
See ya.
Antifon from the World Wide Web comments:
You should care. The Greek names of the towns remind all of us that you live on stolen land. The line is TEMPORARY. The Hellenic nature of the towns and villages is FOR ETERNITY.
'
36 years can NEVER be allowed to replace thousands. If we let such crime to happen then we would be letting go of a big chunk of our humanity.
'
I am sorry you cannot see things my way Alexandre. My way is the way of all civilized people on this earth.
Hadji comments:
JT - you are now sounding ridiculous - are the arguments of Turkish Cypriots finally getting to you? You think they all have RoC passports and wanting to be Greek. You are another arrogant Greek with a chip on your shoulder - fact is there is more chance you got Turkish blood running through your veins. Do you have fair or dark hair?
JT from UK comments:
Guys fevzi is one of the billions of people on the globe, who either are greek or want to be greek, he is sick as a dog that he isnt greek. he curses the day he was born because he isnt greek hence why he is so bitter and twisted. he is another who possesses a RoC passport and ID card in order to work in the free areas as well as travel overseas etc....plus use the hospitals and claim unemployment benefit etc....
read this fevzi
Meanwhile, Turkish Cypriot daily Star Kibris newspaper (09.02.10) reports that during his visit to London the self-styled prime minister, Dervis Eroglu asked for appointments with British officials, but he received a negative answer.
THEY DIDNT WANT TO MEET HIM BECAUSE HE IS NOT RECOGNISED AS ANYTHING.
Ankara Anatolia news agency (08.02.10) reported the following from London:
A Turkish lawmaker expressed on Monday Turkey's disappointment over the Orams case. Turkish MP Suat Kiniklioglu, also deputy chairman of the ruling Justice and Development (AK) Party for external affairs, said that Ankara was disappointed over the timing of the verdict of the British Court of Appeals regarding the Orams case. During a seminar organized by Global Strategy Forum at the House of Lords in London
WHAT DID THE TURKISH LAWMAKER THINK WAS GOING TO HAPPEN? DID HE EXPECT THE BRITISH COURTS TO FLUFF THE CASE BECAUSE IT SUITED TURKEY, THIS MAYBE THE TURKISH WAY BUT NOT IN A CIVILISED AND COUNTRY THAT IS A MEMBER OF THE EU. HE MUST HAVE BEEN VERY DISAPPOINTED AS YOU WERE fevzi
JT from UK comments:
Guys fevzi is one of the billions of people on the globe, who either are greek or want to be greek, he is sick as a dog that he isnt greek. he curses the day he was born because he isnt greek hence why he is so bitter and twisted. he is another who possesses a RoC passport and ID card in order to work in the free areas as well as travel overseas etc....plus use the hospitals and claim unemployment benefit etc....
read this fevzi
Meanwhile, Turkish Cypriot daily Star Kibris newspaper (09.02.10) reports that during his visit to London the self-styled prime minister, Dervis Eroglu asked for appointments with British officials, but he received a negative answer.
THEY DIDNT WANT TO MEET HIM BECAUSE HE IS NOT RECOGNISED AS ANYTHING.
Ankara Anatolia news agency (08.02.10) reported the following from London:
A Turkish lawmaker expressed on Monday Turkey's disappointment over the Orams case. Turkish MP Suat Kiniklioglu, also deputy chairman of the ruling Justice and Development (AK) Party for external affairs, said that Ankara was disappointed over the timing of the verdict of the British Court of Appeals regarding the Orams case. During a seminar organized by Global Strategy Forum at the House of Lords in London
WHAT DID THE TURKISH LAWMAKER THINK WAS GOING TO HAPPEN? DID HE EXPECT THE BRITISH COURTS TO FLUFF THE CASE BECAUSE IT SUITED TURKEY, THIS MAYBE THE TURKISH WAY BUT NOT IN A CIVILISED AND COUNTRY THAT IS A MEMBER OF THE EU. HE MUST HAVE BEEN VERY DISAPPOINTED AS YOU WERE fevzi
JT from UK comments:
Guys fevzi is one of the billions of people on the globe, who either are greek or want to be greek, he is sick as a dog that he isnt greek. he curses the day he was born because he isnt greek hence why he is so bitter and twisted. he is another who possesses a RoC passport and ID card in order to work in the free areas as well as travel overseas etc....plus use the hospitals and claim unemployment benefit etc....
read this fevzi
Meanwhile, Turkish Cypriot daily Star Kibris newspaper (09.02.10) reports that during his visit to London the self-styled prime minister, Dervis Eroglu asked for appointments with British officials, but he received a negative answer.
THEY DIDNT WANT TO MEET HIM BECAUSE HE IS NOT RECOGNISED AS ANYTHING.
Ankara Anatolia news agency (08.02.10) reported the following from London:
A Turkish lawmaker expressed on Monday Turkey's disappointment over the Orams case. Turkish MP Suat Kiniklioglu, also deputy chairman of the ruling Justice and Development (AK) Party for external affairs, said that Ankara was disappointed over the timing of the verdict of the British Court of Appeals regarding the Orams case. During a seminar organized by Global Strategy Forum at the House of Lords in London
WHAT DID THE TURKISH LAWMAKER THINK WAS GOING TO HAPPEN? DID HE EXPECT THE BRITISH COURTS TO FLUFF THE CASE BECAUSE IT SUITED TURKEY, THIS MAYBE THE TURKISH WAY BUT NOT IN A CIVILISED AND COUNTRY THAT IS A MEMBER OF THE EU. HE MUST HAVE BEEN VERY DISAPPOINTED AS YOU WERE fevzi
Hasan Kemal from UK/Kyrenia comments:
Chris,
I don't like the Turkish troops in Cyprus but Turkish troops are not the cause of the Cyprus problem.
Everyone knows that the cause of the problem is GCs desire to unite Cyprus with Greece.
As regard to Greece keeping big number of Troops in Cyprus, I don't think that many GCs will not welcome this.
When Grivas died early 1974 about 60 GCs marched through Kyrenia harbour. March was organised by Bishop of Kyrenia. At the time polulation of Kyrenia was about 4000 GCs and 1500Tcs.
However, I also remember thousands of Mainland Greek troops stationed around Kyrenia during 1967.Turkish Navy was few miles off Kyrenia and finally these Greek Troops with Grivas had to withdraw and go back to Greece.
Figures for GDP in North Cyprus is hot air. No one knows what the income is. Unfortunalately TCs administrators are not that clever. This is a figure just being circulated.
Presence of Turkish Troops does bring in income as well as tourism and TCs like me living overseas investing.
TCs sales to EU through green line procedure is minimal.
If we going to create a free trade I don't see why TCs cannot buy from the South and GCs buying from North.
The views expressed in the comments above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Cyprus Mail.