Cypriot journalist rejects accusations by Turkey

From Toplum Postasi:

Incirli rejects accusations by Turkey

Mr Incirli stated: “I believe they wish me dead, not that they want to kill me, thanks to the EU factor they can’t do that.”

By Alkan Chaglar

Turkish Cypriot journalist Serhat Incirli talks to Toplum Postası about his feelings regarding the recent case brought against him by Turkey and the reasons behind it. Mr Incirli who writes a daily column in Afrika newspaper, formerly known as Avrupa newspaper, was questioned because of an article he wrote in on the 15th and 17th of July 2004 about the Turkish Army and the status quo in Cyprus. Mr Incirli is accused of ‘insulting Turkish national values’.

Asked about what he said that offended the Turkish Armed Forces, Serhat said: “I believe what they (the Turkish government) are demanding in Cyprus is something they would never give to the Kurds in Turkey. But the columns that I wrote are not strictly about the Kurdish problem; it’s about Turkish racism. The Turkish constitution has racist undertones in its wording.”

Referring to the conduct of politicians in both Turkey and Cyprus, Mr Incirli said: “When you look from a European perspective, many politicians in Turkey and Cyprus like Süleyman Demirel, Bülent Ecevit, Rauf Denktaş and Devlet Bahçeli, the semantics of their speech is racist. I’m not saying that this is their intention, but they should be careful not to present that image.”

This is the first time Turkey is opening a case against a Turkish Cypriot, however, Mr Incirli has both Cypriot and British dual nationality. Commenting on the implications of the case against him on Turkish-EU aspirations, Mr Incirli stated: “I believe they wish me dead, not that they want to kill me, thanks to the EU factor, they can’t do that.” Referring to the importance of the EU factor in the improvement of human rights in Turkey, Mr Incirli said: “If they cannot reach EU standards on freedom of speech, nationalists or fascists will do some terrible things in both Turkey and Cyprus.”

Previous posts on Mr. Incirli can be found here and here.

Papadopoulos Interview with L΄Express

Here is the full transcript of the President's recent interview with the French periodical L'Express.

Thinking about buying property in Occupied Cyprus?

Anyone considering buying property in the occupied North of Cyprus should exercise caution. Take a look at this recent letter (04.05.06) that was published in the Cyprus Times newspaper:

Sir,

I would appreciate your assistance in bringing to public attention the possible problems in purchasing property in `TRNC´. Last July 2005, my wife and I entered into a contract with a builder to have a property constructed in Alsancak (occupied Karavas). We signed contracts and deposited 19,000 Sterling Pounds as the initial installment. In October, we were advised by the Estate Agent who was managing the development that the builder had mistakenly signed the property to another party. From then until now, our lawyer has been unable to recover our money, despite promises from the builder.

I feel it may need to be brought to public attention and in particular any Europeans who may be considering purchasing property in `TRNC´ of the possible problems which may occur.

If your newspaper were to investigate the background to this problem it may assist others in the future, and hopefully prevent the reputation of the building industry from being tarnished.

I trust you find this of consumer interest, and look forward to hearing from you.

Regards,

Mr Jim Gallacher

Friendly Divorce

Take a look at this snippet from TDN:

President Klaus was also responsible for the friendly divorce of the Czechs and the Slovaks, which had been an artificial union for decades, in a peaceful manner. His easy answer to why there was no referendum on the partition was because the 5 million Slovaks would have voted for separation and the 10 million Czechs would have voted against it. This brings to Turkish minds the question of why there cannot be a peaceful divorce in Cyprus between the Greek and Turkish Cypriots following the Czech example.

Mr. Söylemez proposes an interesting question. I, for one, will lobby the government of RoC for a friendly divorce between the South and the ethnically cleansed land in the North. After all, the Czechs and the Slovaks had a friendly divorce, why can’t we do the same in Cyprus? Better yet, maybe Turkey can show the way by ceding its South-East to the Kurds. What do imaginative “Turkish minds” think about that option, Mr. Söylemez? Come on, lets all follow the Czech example!