Day: January 28, 2023

The UNSG’s Special Representative in Cyprus, Colin Stewart, has Antonio Guterres’ full support, the UNSG’s spokesperson Stephane Dujarric has said.

Dujarric was asked on Friday if as reported by Turkish Cypriot daily “Yeni Duzen”, Colin Stewart, blamed the Greek Cypriots for the impasse in the Cyprus problem and if there is a copy of his statements.

“We’re not in the business of commenting on reported conversations that may have taken place within a private setting. What matters is the secretary general’s opinion, his views on the Cyprus issue. There were two reports that came out in January. His position is clear, in black and white in those reports. That’s the secretariat’s position. We the UN, and that includes Mr. Stewart and the mission in Cyprus work impartially with both sides, in Cyprus. Mr. Stewart has the full backing and confidence of the Secretary-General in his job”.

Invited to comment on the statement of the President of the Republic of Cyprus, Nicos Anastasiades, who said that “if indeed something similar was said, the least that could be said is that we are no longer talking about a representative of the UN, but a representative of those who violate international law” Dujarric said that “our position is unchanged. And I would encourage journalists and observers to look at what the secretary general’s position is, it’s in black and white.”

“It’s Mr. Stewart’s position. He continues with the full support of the Secretary-General, and he will continue to work impartially. And I think it is important to focus on what is said and what is said in official remarks and what is written in official reports rather than hearsay from private conversations,” he added.

The spokesperson also pointed out that “what matters I think is Mr. Stewart’s mind-set, which is laser focused on representing the Secretary-General, on representing the United Nations in the most impartial way possible. And again, He has the Secretary-General’s full support”.

Yeni Duzen’s, Cenk Mutluyakali, said that during a meeting in New York with Scandinavian country representatives of the UN and non-permanent members of the Security Council, Stewart had claimed that “the northern part of Cyprus has now been integrated economically and politically with Turkey. The Greek Cypriot side is the one that needs to act to change the situation. However, all they do is complain, condemn and accuse.”

Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when Turkey invaded and occupied its northern third. Repeated rounds of UN-led peace talks have so far failed to yield results. The latest round of negotiations, in July 2017 at the Swiss resort of Crans-Montana ended inconclusively.

Source: Cyprus News Agency

The Cyprus Ministry of Foreign Affairs has condemned the shooting at a synagogue in Jerusalem which left seven people dead.

Posting on its twitter account the MFA says it is horrified by the heinous shooting on worshippers at a Jerusalem synagogue, causing several fatalities.

“Condemning this act of terror on the eve of Holocaust Remembrance Day. Our condolences to the grieving families and our wishes for full recovery to the ones injured”, the post says.

Source: Cyprus News Agency

“We have taken many steps forward in terms of cultivating a culture of personal data, but there is certainly still scope for actions and for information” Personal Data Protection Commissioner, Irene Loizidou Nikolaidou has told CNA, noting at the same time that at European level “we are also in several areas pioneers in our supervisory role.”

In an interview with the Cyprus News Agency on the occasion of the European Day for the Protection of Personal Data, which is celebrated on January 28, Loizidou said that we ourselves are the bearers of our personal data. Our privacy, she said, concerns us primarily and “we should be aware of them since we use technology every day, but also about any matter related to the collection and processing of personal data.”

The Commissioner described the legislation in place for the protection of personal data as sufficient and added that it is now accepted that the general regulation known as GDPR, which for which there is broad awareness, is a powerful legal tool.

She noted that the consolidation of personal data and its protection is at a very good level, but there are steps to be taken in the right direction. The European regulation has also contributed for this to happen, as it established new rights, strengthened old ones, but also imposed much stricter obligations on all those who collect and process personal data.

Loizidou mentioned that there are a lot of cases and they concern, among other things, allegations of violation of personal data by sending unsolicited messages, known to everyone as spam.

She reminded, furthermore, that in order for there to be no violation there should be express, clear consent from the data subject and at the same time and even though we give our consent, there should be the option to change our mind, via a “stop sms” for telephone messages and “unsubscribe” for emails.

Loizidou noted that it is proven by the questions that are asked daily in the office “that we have taken many steps forward in terms of the culture of personal data. But there is certainly still a lot of scope for actions and for information.” She added that she can say with certainty that at the European level “we are also pioneers in our supervisory role in several issues”.

Furthermore, she referred to the actions carried out by her office throughout the year, adding that on the occasion of the celebration of January 28 “we have decided to focus on the students of our country, both public and private universities.”

Asked if her office has received complaints to with the presidential election campaign the Commissioner reminded that always within the framework of these periods and before the election campaign begins, precise instructions are sent on what the campaign offices and candidates can legally do regarding the issues of sending messages of political content.

Regarding spamming, the Commissioner said that we should be a little suspicious. “We have to think twice whether the person sending us the message precisely to collect our personal data irregularly or illegally is a real person,” she noted.

Concluding, the Commissioner said that January 28, the European Day for the Protection of Personal Data, provides the opportunity to intensify targeted actions in the context of raising awareness and providing information to the public.

Source: Cyprus News Agency

Cyprus Justice Minister, Stephie Drakou, attended the informal Justice and Home Affairs Council in Stockholm, in the framework of EU Swedish Presidency and told her counterparts that collective approach is needed in the fight against organized crime.

A press release says that discussions focused on fighting organized crime in the digital age and the challenges law enforcement faces in tracking down criminals and securing the necessary electronic evidence.

The representatives of the member states and the European institutions agreed on the need of modernizing the legal framework and developing digital tools to deal with the challenges brought by new technologies, such as encryption, which allow criminals to operate invisibly.

They agreed that such action is necessary in a democratic society to ensure citizens’ human right to security.

Drakou said that we need to find ways to balance the right to security with the right in privacy and communication.

Ways to strengthen judicial cooperation for the effective treatment of cross-border organized crime, where Eurojust plays a very important role were also on the agenda.

Cyprus Minister talked about the drafting of a legal text at European level, which will replace the existing procedures and will facilitate the coordination and transfer of criminal cases initiated by one Member State, to another when justice is served.

During the working lunch, the Ministers discussed the possibility of Member States to proceed with criminal prosecutions in their Courts for the international crimes taking place in Ukraine. Drakou told her colleagues that in Cyprus there is a legal framework for prosecuting such crimes, however, there is no relevant experience, since no such prosecutions have been carried out to date.

It is expected, however, that the experience of other States and the assistance of Eurojust will provide valuable guidance when needed.

As the Minister’s tenure comes to an end, she thanked her fellow Ministers of Justice, the European Commissioner, and the representatives of the European institutions for their cooperation and wished them to continue working effectively to strengthen security and the rule of law in the European area.

Source: Cyprus News Agency

President of the Republic, Nicos Anastasiades, is travelling to Athens on Wednesday for meetings with Premier, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, and President of the Republic, Katerina Sakellaropoulou.

He will also lay the foundation of various projects at the area of Mati, Attica region, which was destroyed by the catastrophic fires in 2018.

An announcement by the head of his press office, Andreas Iosif, says that the President will discuss with the Greek Prime Minister and the President of the Greek Republic the Turkish provocations and stance which does not allow for a constructive dialogue for the Cyprus problem to take place.

They are expected to condemn, once again, Turkey’s stance for a two-state solution in Cyprus and to underline that no solution can be accepted if it deviates from the framework the UN resolutions have set or the European acquis.

Education Ministers of Greece and Cyprus will also sign an agreement for the mutual accreditation of academic study titles.

The President will also visit Mati area to lay the foundation of numerous projects for the reconstruction and revamping of the area destroyed by the fires in 2018.

The projects are estimated to cost 12 mln euro of which 11 mln is the donation of the Cyprus government and the rest is from Cyprus citizens.

Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when Turkey invaded and occupied its northern third. Repeated rounds of UN-led peace talks have so far failed to yield results. The latest round of negotiations, in July 2017 at the Swiss resort of Crans-Montana ended inconclusively.

Source: Cyprus News Agency

The Troodos Hospital is one of the major projects related to people’s health, an important necessity said Cyprus President, Nicos Anastasiades, inaugurating the ER Department and the Tuberculosis Clinic of the Kyperounta Hospital, in the Troodos mountains, on Saturday.

He said that such projects and policies by the Government show how much importance should be given to the mountain communities in order to develop the infrastructure and the road network, that will help stop urbanization and bring about growth in these communities, which once were thriving.

The President spoke of the national strategy for tourism, the housing policy, the incentives given to young people to remain in their communities, the efforts to create and support local production, noting that a new path was introduced for the mountain communities.

President Anastasiades also said that the most important of all was the introduction of the health system which provides health services to all citizens adding that the doubling of the budget in relation to the health sector, also demonstrates the Government’s interest in the health sector.

The President also expressed gratitude to everyone who contributed in making the Troodos hospital a reality.

Speaking later at Kyperounta elementary school the President said that the National Strategy for the Development of Mountainous Communities is responding to all the challenges for these areas such as population deforestation, the reduction of economic and commercial activity and limited tourist visits.

He assured that after March 1st, when the new President takes over, he will continue to be interested in public affairs and in everything that concerns his beloved rural residents, regardless of ideological or political approach.

The President said that his government has proved in the past ten years that it fought for progress, development and stability and was mostly interested in restoring the dignity of every citizen.

He said that the strategy for the mountainous areas includes the adoption of 350 development projects by the end of 2030, with a total budget of more than 525 million euros.

The President also said that four projects are included in the “Cyprus – Tomorrow Plan” which will contribute even more significantly to the development of the mountain communities. He referred to plans such as the housing strategy for young couples, the support allowance for residents of mountainous areas, the development of the road infrastructure , the projects for health sector and social welfare and the projects in the fields of education, sports and culture.

The President also said that the government implemented projects related to flood and fire protection.

Source: Cyprus News Agency

The expansion of Cyprus-Greece cooperation to deal with the climate crisis, civil protection and the green transition was discussed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ioannis Kasoulides, with the Minister of Climate Crisis and Civil Protection of Greece, Christos Stylianides, in a meeting held on Saturday morning at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Cyprus.

“Today we had the opportunity to exchange views on a wide range of issues, with an emphasis on the synergies that can be achieved between the governments of Cyprus and Greece, on matters of competence”, said Kasoulides, noting that the Director of the Forestry Department also attended the meeting, along with the head of the forest firefighting pilots of Cyprus.

The Minister noted that the EU should play an essential role in coordinating and guiding the national policies of the member states, regarding these issues, especially after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. In addition, Kasoulides said that they also examined ways of enhanced cooperation at the EU level on climate crisis and civil protection issues, while they evaluated existing European tools.

On dealing with natural disasters, “we agreed on the need to institutionalize a regional cooperation, within the framework of the tripartite mechanisms we have established with states in the region. It is a fact that dealing with natural phenomena, such as fires, floods, earthquakes and other disasters, requires timely and preventive action and requires synergies on a bilateral and multilateral level”, said the Minister, noting that Cyprus-Greece cooperation on climate crisis issues will continue in a mutually beneficial manner.

Christos Stylianides said that the meeting was fruitful and productive, noting that there is a lot to gain from intensifying the efforts of the two governments in matters of climate change, in matters of cooperation within European institutions and in regional cooperation in the Eastern Mediterranean.

He noted that Greece has already started a dialogue with the countries of the region, mentioning that a memorandum of understanding has been signed with Israel, precisely to start this regional cooperation in civil protection, but under the auspices of the European Civil Protection Mechanism and RescEU. “And this is because it primarily offers European coverage, opens up new directions and also offers financing solutions, to be honest”, he said.

In addition, he said that Greece has already become, since last year, the hub of the European Civil Protection Mechanism. He said Greece has accepted two major initiatives, the so-called prepositioning, where European firefighters were in Greece for two months and assisted the Greek firefighters “and that’s why we had the good results that appeared in a difficult fire fighting period”, as well as the provision of aerial means by RescEU and the European Mechanism in Greece to help it as a hub.

“Together, we are trying for next summer, so that Cyprus is also part of this hub, to receive the help of the European Mechanism, which will help it in a difficult, fire-fighting period”, he said.

In closing, the Minister mentioned that on Monday a new agreement will be signed between the Ministry of Climate Crisis and Civil Protection of Greece and the Ministry of Justice and Public Order of Cyprus. The two firefighting services will sign an agreement to strengthen their joint efforts and find more common ground to help each other, he added.

Source: Cyprus News Agency