pantheman wrote:
You are crying because you cannot freely advertise stolen property to the wider public. Hell no, is what I say.
From the above statement it is clear u dont know what u r talking about
Ban on Turkish Cypriot tourism adverts ‘unlawful’
Cyprus Mail, Friday, July 29, 2005
A BAN by Transport for London (TfL) on advertisements for Turkish Cypriot tourism was ruled unlawful and irrational by the UK’s High Court yesterday. Mr Justice Newman, sitting in London, said there had been an “error of law, error of fact and irrationality”.
The decision was a victory for the Turkish Cypriot Tourism Centre in London, which described the ruling as “a victory for common sense”. The Tourism Centre and Paradise Found Travel Company Ltd (PFTC), which specialises in package tours to the north, were both granted judicial review.
Their QC, Michael Beloff, had argued that banning posters advertising tourism in the north on buses, tube trains and other sites was an abuse of power, “animated by legally immaterial political considerations”.It was also a breach of Article 10 of the Human Rights Convention, which protects freedom of expression.
Upholding the challenge, Justice Newman said the decision restricted the Tourism Centre’s “freedom of expression by denying it a vital medium for its advertisements”.The judge formally quashed the advertising ban and refused TfL permission to appeal to the Court of Appeal, although the organisation can still ask the appeal judges directly to hear its case.
The judge also awarded both the Tourism Centre and Paradise Found legal costs unofficially estimated at a total of some £140,000, saying the first £50,000 should be paid out by mid-August, unless the appeal court intervenes.
In his ruling, the judge said the ban stemmed from an advertisement carried on London buses in November 2004, featuring a family strolling along a beach below the Crusader and Venetian fortress at Kyrenia, with the strapline: “Pure Mediterranean... North Cyprus... A sanctuary of unspoilt beauty”.
Last November, TfL refused to accept further advertisements by the Turkish Cypriots after a complaint from Brian Coleman, the chairman of the Greater London Assembly, about the advertisement.TfL said advertisements for northern Cyprus were likely to “cause widespread or serious offence”. The authority later said Ken Livingstone, the mayor of London, had agreed advertisements of this kind would not be acceptable.
The Turkish Cypriot Tourism Centre is funded by the regime in the north. But companies promoting tourism in the north of the island have advertised widely in Britain for more than 20 years. The UK is the Turkish Cypriots’ top tourism market, with holiday business from the country increasing by 40 per cent since last year.
Apart from the fear of competition, many Greek Cypriots oppose the tourism boom in the north because they feel it will further fuel the construction frenzy currently taking place at the expense of Greek Cypriot-owned properties.
The judge said it was not the contents of the advert which had caused complaint, but the website at the address appearing on it which referred to the Tourism Centre as “the UK representative office of the North Cyprus Tourism Ministry”.
The judge said: “I cannot accept that a prospective holidaymaker would read the website and understand it to have stated that TRNC has been recognised by Her Majesty’s Government as a state having power over North Cyprus.”
He said: “No offensive product or service was offered by this advertisement, which merely illustrated the cultural and environmental delights of Northern Cyprus.” The advertisement “carried no political message” and TfL’s decision to introduce the ban was “disproportionate” as it was not justified by any “pressing social need”.
Later Yilmaz Kalfaoglu, director of the Turkish Cypriot Tourism Centre, said: “We always felt that the refusal by Transport for London was a politically motivated decision and an infringement on the rights of a UK-registered company to advertise a holiday destination as part of its legitimate business. We are very pleased that the court agreed with us.”
TfL later acknowledged the clarification of the court on its policy and said it would review its decision in light of the judgement “as soon as reasonably practicable.”
Managing Director of PFTC, Alan Suleyman, said: “This is a triumph for commonsense and a great victory for justice and the human rights not just of Turkish Cypriots, but for all Cypriots seeking a just and peaceful solution to the long standing problems of Cyprus.”
Chairman of the Cyprus Tourism Organisation (CTO), Photis Photiou, had this to say: “I am saddened by the decision. It is unthinkable that an advert by an illegal regime should be permitted because there is no political message in the advert.
“For me, when an illegal regime advertises, it is an illegal advertisement. It is a shame this decision was taken, I don’t know if there are any political undertones in it but we will review the situation with the ministries of Foreign Affairs and Commerce and decide on our next step.”
<----NOT! 
