Cyprus-Forum.com

[halil]

below article is from:Omphalos Tis Gis .

Why is Downer’s warning being ignored?
The Municipal elections last week, says an editorial in the Cyprus Mail, ensured that next to no media attention was given to the interview of the UN Secretary-General’s special representative, Alexander Downer that was published in Kathimerini last Sunday.

Had it been a slow news day, his views would have sparked dozens of newspaper articles, party announcements and angry statements by politicians. Downer has been the target of concerted attacks for saying much less in the past, which is why the absence of a reaction, this time, came as a surprise.

Perhaps the media took note of the Australian’s complaints about the hostility the UN had always faced from the Greek Cypriot side and decided to show restraint. Downer said: “As I said, we have always been attacked here; not by the Turkish Cypriot side but by the Greek Cypriot. The UN since 1963 has been systematically attacked from certain elements in the Greek Cypriot community and some of the political parties. They continuously attack us. But if we left, if we said we are fed up of your attacks and we are leaving, what would they say?”

His frustration is understandable, given the way he has been treated by the Greek Cypriot politicians and media, which invariably describe his public comments as “provocative and unacceptable”. It was therefore difficult to understand why there had been no reaction to Sunday’s interview, in which he castigated the Greek Cypriot hostility towards the UN, blamed the lack of progress on both sides – not on Turkish intransigence as is the official line – and repeatedly stated that the Greentree meeting in January could be the end of the procedure.

“The Secretary-General sent the message that the window of opportunity for a settlement was closing,” he said adding that if by the time the leaders met Ban Ki-moon in Greentree, “we have not reached the desired result, it could mean the end of the procedure.”

Nobody seems to take his warnings that if the leaders failed to overcome their differences over the next few weeks, the peace process would collapse.

Ban spoke about the end-game, when he last met the two leaders in October, but nobody on the Greek Cypriot side seemed particularly concerned; the government was in denial, going as far as to say that no time-frames had been set.

Is it that nobody believes the UN would ever give up on the Cyprus talks, the paper wonders, or would we be relieved if it packed up and left?

Logically, given the hostility we have towards the UN’s envoys, we should be celebrating if the talks collapsed and Downer packed his bags and returned to Australia. Although we have been ignoring Downer’s warnings, this time, we could get what we wished for.

[humanist]

Thats because you take out resolutions and you do nothing to implement them Mr Downer. How's that for a response to your comments. Turkey and the TC's are holding our Island hostage and the deny us our basic human rights. Can you comment on this. What's the UN done to resolve the issue and restore Cyprus in its pre Turkish invasion status?

[kimon07]

below article is from:Omphalos Tis Gis .

Why is Downer’s warning being ignored?

This is my personal opinion on your question.
1. The "Last Chance" blackmails of the UN, the UK and Turkey are not credible any more.
2. The reason that the Greek side shows such mistrust towards the UN envoys is that they proved time and again that they were not impartial and that the solutions they were tying to promote were contrary to the UN resolutions, the international Law and the EU acquis.
3. The UN, the UK and Turkey will NEVER let go of their efforts to impose a solution i.e., another Annan Plan so as to annul all the benefits of Cyprus deriving from it's EU membership and to legitimize the results of the Turkish invasion, occupation, ethnic cleansing and partition, of Cyprus into three entities i.e., Turkish, UK and ...Cypriot(?) which will be a hostage/protectorate of Turkey and the UK. Such efforts not only will not be abandoned by they will intensify now that Cyprus proves to be rich in resources. Have no doubt about that. Turkey's moves around the CY EEZ are aiming towards exactly that, i.e., to create internationally the impression that A solution (or rather THE solution as they dictate it) MUST be reached soon, as the only way to avoid the territorial turmoil which Turkey advertises that it will cause unless it becomes a partner to the resources of CY.
I am optimistic that their plans will not pass. If we managed to avert the destruction of the RoC in 2004, when we were all alone against the beasts, I believe we can do it again now that we have most of the "Big Boys" on her our side and Turky poses to be exactly what it really is, the territorial bully and trouble maker which is prepared to set the whole of the Middle East on fire.
.
.
AMEN/Genoito.

[Bananiot]

Some people display an amazing ability not to understand the game that is played and the rules that govern it. The United Nations are telling us (GC and TC) to find solutions to our issues through negotiations. Both parties agree with this and furthermore, the UN urge Turkey and Greece to facilitate these talks. The UN does not tell us what will happen if the negotiations do not bear fruit. Downer made a clear insinuation about the UN already spending too much time, money and energy (been here since 1963 - the problem did not start in 1974) and he clearly said that time is running short for every one. If the talks fail, the UN will of course not impose a solution for this is not their job. However, even if they did impose one we would not like it, because it would move along the Annan plan lines. I am not sure the Turkish side would welcome it either. The blame game would then acquire some interest and of course, equal distances will be kept by the UN and further time will get by and the 37 years since the invasion will soon become 50 and by that time the north will be totally Turkified and the RoC, if it still exists, will share a border of 150 km with Turkey. Need I say more ....?

What is to be done to reverse this terrible trend has to be based on realistic aspirations that can be attained by joined efforts of the Greek and Turkish Cypriot patriots who are the only forces capable of saving Cyprus and its cultural heritage. These are my suggestions:

1. At present, the TC leadership of Eroglu does not care about BBF. Eroglu wants and always wanted partition. He probably dictates terms to Turkey on this (and not the other way round as some of us would like to believe) and he, like Papadopoulos, plays the game only to appear as a willing partner in talks, but with a different agenda in his mind.
2. It is up to the TC community to get rid of Eroglu and vote in a leader who aspires a united Cyprus, not a partitioned one.
3. For the TC's to have a realistic chance to succeed, clear signals are needed from the GC community. Signals that would effectively tell the TC's that we "accept you as an equal political partner in a new Cyprus". Fears that TC's may (justifiably) have on their safety can be tackled with good will. We can accept Turkey guaranteeing the TC Federal State for a period of time.
4. The TC's felt betrayed in 2004 and this is understandable. The majority of TC's are Cypriots above anything else. They are worried about the influx of settlers and the appearance of religion schools in the north that endanger their way of life. However, they can do nothing to reverse the trend until they can see and feel a helping hand from us. In effect, by helping the TC's we help ourselves and Cyprus.
5. It is clear that only joined action towards a common goal is the only thing that can save us.
6. The Annan Plan can form the basis and with those modifications that can be accepted by the majority of Cypriots, it can take Cyprus out of the quagmire and towards a new age.
7. With time, when the old generation has passed away and forgotten, the new Cypriots who by definition would be better than us, can work out a better deal that would see a gradual move to a unified Cyprus, if the circumstances permit it.

These are my thoughts as we welcome 2012 and while thinking that all my life has been spent in the shadows of the Cyprob that has itself overshadowed all healthy political life in this island.

[GreekIslandGirl]

Downer has mucked-up too much, even for a UN envoy.

The UN should take up any complaints with the EU! And then, the EU should tell them to 'get lost' and the EU army should step in to regain our territory ...

[Get Real!]

Downer said: “As I said, we have always been attacked here; not by the Turkish Cypriot side but by the Greek Cypriot. The UN since 1963 has been systematically attacked from certain elements in the Greek Cypriot community and some of the political parties. They continuously attack us. But if we left, if we said we are fed up of your attacks and we are leaving, what would they say?”

Downer is not taken seriously because he is a blatant liar and a uneducated clown who hasn't even bothered to browse through the UNFICYP website.

Direct from the UNFICYP website, scroll down to “The 1967 crisis”…

“As the National Guard unit was reinforced on 28 February, Turkish Cypriot fighters moved forward at nearby Ayios Theodhoros, where they also manhandled senior UNFICYP officers. There was severe friction between UNFICYP and Turkish Cypriot fighters in Kophinou, and the situation also deteriorated in the Paphos and Lefka districts.”

http://www.unficyp.org/nqcontent.cfm?a_ ... ic&lang=l1

Previous years also stated on this site that they actually murdered two UN officers (a well documented CyProb fact) but the UN seems to have dropped it out of their article these days!

[Viewpoint]

Some people display an amazing ability not to understand the game that is played and the rules that govern it. The United Nations are telling us (GC and TC) to find solutions to our issues through negotiations. Both parties agree with this and furthermore, the UN urge Turkey and Greece to facilitate these talks. The UN does not tell us what will happen if the negotiations do not bear fruit. Downer made a clear insinuation about the UN already spending too much time, money and energy (been here since 1963 - the problem did not start in 1974) and he clearly said that time is running short for every one. If the talks fail, the UN will of course not impose a solution for this is not their job. However, even if they did impose one we would not like it, because it would move along the Annan plan lines. I am not sure the Turkish side would welcome it either. The blame game would then acquire some interest and of course, equal distances will be kept by the UN and further time will get by and the 37 years since the invasion will soon become 50 and by that time the north will be totally Turkified and the RoC, if it still exists, will share a border of 150 km with Turkey. Need I say more ....?

What is to be done to reverse this terrible trend has to be based on realistic aspirations that can be attained by joined efforts of the Greek and Turkish Cypriot patriots who are the only forces capable of saving Cyprus and its cultural heritage. These are my suggestions:

1. At present, the TC leadership of Eroglu does not care about BBF. Eroglu wants and always wanted partition. He probably dictates terms to Turkey on this (and not the other way round as some of us would like to believe) and he, like Papadopoulos, plays the game only to appear as a willing partner in talks, but with a different agenda in his mind.
2. It is up to the TC community to get rid of Eroglu and vote in a leader who aspires a united Cyprus, not a partitioned one.
3. For the TC's to have a realistic chance to succeed, clear signals are needed from the GC community. Signals that would effectively tell the TC's that we "accept you as an equal political partner in a new Cyprus". Fears that TC's may (justifiably) have on their safety can be tackled with good will. We can accept Turkey guaranteeing the TC Federal State for a period of time.
4. The TC's felt betrayed in 2004 and this is understandable. The majority of TC's are Cypriots above anything else. They are worried about the influx of settlers and the appearance of religion schools in the north that endanger their way of life. However, they can do nothing to reverse the trend until they can see and feel a helping hand from us. In effect, by helping the TC's we help ourselves and Cyprus.
5. It is clear that only joined action towards a common goal is the only thing that can save us.
6. The Annan Plan can form the basis and with those modifications that can be accepted by the majority of Cypriots, it can take Cyprus out of the quagmire and towards a new age.
7. With time, when the old generation has passed away and forgotten, the new Cypriots who by definition would be better than us, can work out a better deal that would see a gradual move to a unified Cyprus, if the circumstances permit it.

These are my thoughts as we welcome 2012 and while thinking that all my life has been spent in the shadows of the Cyprob that has itself overshadowed all healthy political life in this island.

If only you had more support Bananiot.

[Maximus]

7. With time, when the old generation has passed away and forgotten, the new Cypriots who by definition would be better than us, can work out a better deal that would see a gradual move to a unified Cyprus, if the circumstances permit it.

I am one of these future generations of Cypriots who studied the Cyprus problem from books writen and published in the west. I can say with 99% certainty that Future generations of Greek Cypriots will not recognise "political equality".

[Get Real!]

7. With time, when the old generation has passed away and forgotten, the new Cypriots who by definition would be better than us, can work out a better deal that would see a gradual move to a unified Cyprus, if the circumstances permit it.

I am one of these future generations of Cypriots who studied the Cyprus problem from books writen and published in the west. I can say with 99% certainty that Future generations of Greek Cypriots will not recognise "political equality".

Bananiot has never bothered to study the meaning of “Political Equality” so he’s just gone along with the misinterpreted Turkish version!

This one’s for Bananiot…

http://thecyprusproblem.100webspace.net ... icle20.htm

[Get Real!]

Another important issue that Bananiot seems ignorant of is the fact that the label “Turkish Cypriots” is now defunct for they have officially become “Turks of Cyprus” in unison with illegal Turkish settlers, so not even Turkey recognizes such an entity any more!

The CyProb has clearly evolved into a matter of Cyprus Vs Turkey and not a GCs vs TCs as Bananiot still seems to think. These are important issues that cannot be ignored if one is to tackle the CyProb seriously.