‘Fear Americans bearing reports’
By Elias Hazou
EDEK boss Yiannakis Omirou has voiced disgust at the latest US State Department human rights report on Cyprus, calling it a display of “boundless gall.”
The socialist leader was being asked to comment in particular on the report’s reference to public education in Greek Cypriot schools.
Under the headline, “Incitement to Acts of Discrimination,” the report notes:
“The government continued to use textbooks at the primary and secondary school levels that included language biased against Turkish Cypriots and Turks or that refrained from mentioning the Turkish-Cypriot community altogether. This was a particularly serious concern with history textbooks. Anecdotal evidence indicated that teachers used handouts and held discussions that included inflammatory language in the classroom.”
The report goes on to note that a special government committee was set up last year to look at issues of education reform, including updating history textbooks. It says that the education minister distributed a circular to all state schools that called for "the cultivation of a culture of peaceful coexistence, mutual respect, and cooperation between Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots.
“However, some teachers, politicians, and religious leaders criticized the circular,” the report notes.
Omirou was none too impressed.
“Fear Americans bearing reports,” he quipped, in what was a pun on the classic line from Homer’s Iliad.
The EDEK boss wondered who “authorised the Americans to issue reports and judge everyone else except themselves.
“And because there are certain quarters in Cyprus who have extreme views and who see eye to eye with the Americans in this bid to forge our history, I would like to dedicate this report to these quarters…” he added.
While pointing out that the government generally respected the human rights of its citizens, the State Department report added “there were problems in some areas”, including police abuse and degrading treatment of persons in police custody and of asylum seekers, violence against women, discrimination against members of minority ethnic and national groups and trafficking of women to the island, particularly for sexual exploitation.
On freedom of speech and press, the report said the government imposed significant restrictions on Turkish [as opposed to Turkish Cypriot] journalists crossing the green line to cover news events in the government-controlled area, without explaining the reasons behind the government action.
It criticised the government for continuing to “exert political pressure” on universities to refrain from any contact with universities in the Turkish Cypriot community because the government considered universities in the Turkish Cypriot community “illegal.”
And under the headline “Government Corruption and Transparency, the report refers to the escape of double murderer and rapist Antonis Procopiou Kitas on December 12 which prompted a series of investigations into possible corruption of police and other government officials.
It quoted the Attorney-general as saying the case "smacked of corruption, negligence, and indifference.”
OMG! R there still violence against women in modern, ultra-democratic GC comunity? Corruption in police organization? OMG, it's unbelievable! A double murderer and a rapist managed to escape from the prison in highly modernized "free areas". 
It seems hatred towards Turks is something government approved since Turkish journalists were imposed significant restrictions crossing to South. So does it mean if u r a Turk u have no freedom of speech? OMG! I thought there was a perfect democracy and no human rights violations in "free areas". It seems it is only free for Greek descendents.
“Incitement to Acts of Discrimination,”
Discrimination in 21st century in highly modernized and democratized GC community?
Unbelievable! Teachers provoke young brains against Turks and TCs with a biased history and inflammatory language? OMG! Teachers feed racism into young GC brains? In 21st century?
GR and Oracle; this report dedicated to u and ur alikes by EDEK boss. U should feel ashamed of the image u created for ur beloved "free areas".
