Cyprus-Forum.com

[YFred]

This one is for those forumers who are concentrating on the detail and missing the big picture completely. Time to wake up, before it’s too late and all the TCs turn away from unification.

Time to focus on the positive aspects of a solution

GOVERNOR of the Central Bank Athanasios Orphanides’ comment about the ‘tremendous growth potential’ of a unified economy came as a breath of fresh air in the suffocating, negative atmosphere that surrounds the efforts for a settlement. It was about time a respected public official, whose professional standing and integrity cannot be disputed, focused on the positive consequences of re-unification, because until now the doom and gloom merchants have been setting the agenda.

All we have been hearing, so far, is disaster-talk by lawyers obsessed with legal technicalities and calculatingly avoiding the bigger picture. These are the lawyers who have made a profession out of taking proposals submitted at the peace talks and picking holes in them in order to support their settlement-doomsday scenarios and advertise their noble commitment to high ideals of justice. Their message is that re-unification, under the conditions currently being discussed, would be catastrophic.

Orphanides, who does not go with the political flow and has repeatedly proved his independence, in an interview to Reuters this week, said: “I strongly believe that a unified economy gives tremendous growth potential for the island.... It would also create the wealth that could be sorely needed in order to finance the aspects of re-unification that we may face ahead.” He added a proviso – any deal should keep the number of barriers to a unified economy at a minimum. The fewer there were the quicker the economic convergence of the two economies would be.

It was the first time Orphanides, who keeps his public statements to a minimum, had spoken about the positive effects of a solution on the economy. It was a timely intervention, given that a couple of weeks ago, his predecessor, Dr Christodoulos Christodoulou, presented a book he had written in which he argued that Greek Cypriots would become poorer as a result of settlement. Very few people with an understanding of economic would have taken Dr Christodoulou’s simplistic, unrelenting negativity, which often read like propaganda, very seriously, but anti-settlement campaigners have been citing it to further their cause.

At least most people know that Orphanides is significantly, better-qualified to talk about economic matters than Dr Christodoulou, who is not a qualified economist, let alone an authority on the subject. In fairness, the current finance minister Charilaos Stavrakis and his predecessor Michalis Sarris, both respected economists, have also spoken about the big boost re-unification would give the economy. Hopefully they would rejoin the debate soon, because people like Dr Christodoulou, who have an anti-settlement agenda, cannot be left to cultivate unjustified fear.

Orphanides’ comments could prove doubly useful if they were also taken on board by the Turkish Cypriot side which still seems to support the idea of certain economic barriers being in place after a settlement.

Copyright © Cyprus Mail 2009

[Bananiot]

Excellent and timely intervention by Orphanides!

[Malapapa]

This one is for those forumers who are concentrating on the detail and missing the big picture completely. Time to wake up, before it’s too late and all the TCs turn away from unification.

We need to focus on the detail, YFred, because that's where the devil is.

He (Orphanides) added a proviso – any deal should keep the number of barriers to a unified economy at a minimum. The fewer there were the quicker the economic convergence of the two economies would be.

Orphanides’ comments could prove doubly useful if they were also taken on board by the Turkish Cypriot side which still seems to support the idea of certain economic barriers being in place after a settlement.

So, will the TC side (be allowed to) take Orphanides’ comments on board or will they (be forced to) support the idea of placing economic barriers?

[Get Real!]

Time to focus on the positive aspects of a solution

The "positive aspects" of which “solution”? Not surprisingly, it doesn't say...

If this “solution” is not the single, liberated, democratic, one-person one-vote EU republic, then it’s not even worth the paper it’s written on!

Many Cyprus Mail articles these days are like a fart in the wind…

[Piratis]

There are tons of positive aspects in a solution. If that wasn't the case then we wouldn't be trying to achieve a solution and we would have just accepted the partition of Cyprus with something like the Annan plan.

[insan]

Time to focus on the positive aspects of a solution

The "positive aspects" of which “solution”? Not surprisingly, it doesn't say...

If this “solution” is not the single, liberated, democratic, one-person one-vote EU republic, then it’s not even worth the paper it’s written on!

Many Cyprus Mail articles these days are like a fart in the wind…

What u and ur alikes suppose as a solution is a nonstarter. If it was, ur leadership would focus on what u defend instead of UN parameters. What u suppose as a solution is their future dream and that's why they attempt to drag the solution on the basis of a éEuropean Solution". Infact the main motive behind EU membership of so-called RoC is the dream of a "European Solution".

[bill cobbett]

Yes, it really is poor. Practically every report on Cyprob in this CY Mail is heavily laden with political comment putting across its concessionist agenda.

OK, papers will always have their bias, but really, the Mail should try a little harder to confine its over-bearing editorial policy and political comment to its Editorial Page. It's not good journalism that its reporters sneak and promote their widely held capitualist viewpoint, one I fear they all hold, in every article and pass it off as reportage.

Speaks volumes that people in the English-speaking world are more likely to get a balance of opinions, more penetrative analysis and more wide-ranging news reports on CyProb in places like CF and elsewhere on the net.

[YFred]

Yes, it really is poor. Practically every report on Cyprob in this CY Mail is heavily laden with political comment putting across its concessionist agenda.

OK, papers will always have their bias, but really, the Mail should try a little harder to confine its over-bearing editorial policy and political comment to its Editorial Page. It's not good journalism that its reporters sneak and promote their widely held capitualist viewpoint, one I fear they all hold, in every article and pass it off as reportage.

Speaks volumes that people in the English-speaking world are more likely to get a balance of opinions, more penetrative analysis and more wide-ranging news reports on CyProb in places like CF and elsewhere on the net.

You is avin a luf aint you Billy boy. Every time somebody says anything which does not support the disastrous maximalists position, immediately they become the capitalising enemy of roc. How very 3rd world fascistic mentality. And this towards the man who is known for his independent views.
Congradulations you have just passed the test for being the most despotic republic ever. Normally this accolade is reserved for the dictatorships.

[YFred]

This one is for those forumers who are concentrating on the detail and missing the big picture completely. Time to wake up, before it’s too late and all the TCs turn away from unification.

We need to focus on the detail, YFred, because that's where the devil is.

He (Orphanides) added a proviso – any deal should keep the number of barriers to a unified economy at a minimum. The fewer there were the quicker the economic convergence of the two economies would be.

Orphanides’ comments could prove doubly useful if they were also taken on board by the Turkish Cypriot side which still seems to support the idea of certain economic barriers being in place after a settlement.

So, will the TC side (be allowed to) take Orphanides’ comments on board or will they (be forced to) support the idea of placing economic barriers?

Now look here old chap, I am not in search of the devil, it's the 72 virgin angels I am after. What's the chance of that?
You have no hope if you think you can merge the two economies without any protection for the weaker one. Or is it failure you are after in which case you've had it for 35 years, what more do you need.

[Malapapa]

So, will the TC side (be allowed to) take Orphanides’ comments on board or will they (be forced to) support the idea of placing economic barriers?

Now look here old chap, I am not in search of the devil, it's the 72 virgin angels I am after. What's the chance of that?
You have no hope if you think you can merge the two economies without any protection for the weaker one.

Me? You're the one who posted the "positive aspects" of a solution? You mean they're not quite so positive after all?

Or is it failure you are after in which case you've had it for 35 years, what more do you need.

So what are you doing posting this article?

It's focusing on the "positive aspects" of a solution; ie. the merging of the two economies, (Orpanides' proviso is crystal clear) and now you're saying it can't be done. So who's being positive, and who's not?