Cyprus Mail: Press Review in English, 99-10-21

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From: The Cyprus Mail at <http://www.cynews.com/>

Thursday, October 21, 1999

Denktash puts on 'show' for Moses

TURKISH Cypriot leader Rauf Denktash's meeting with US presidential envoy Alfred Moses and State Department Co-Ordinator Thomas Weston was one of yesterday's lead stories.

Politis

said that "a well-directed show was awaiting the US envoys in occupied Nicosia". Denktash had organised a "warm welcome", which included not only his advisors and the party leaders but also the representatives of 23 clubs and organisations who gave Moses letters which were "a repetition of the propaganda of the occupation regime leader".

The organisations included the Association of Retired Army Officers and the Union of Women of the University. In their letters, these groups fully backed Denktash's stance, expressing their opposition to the resumption of talks without the prior recognition of the occupation regime. They also said they had no desire to live with the Greek Cypriots.

Alithia

reported that Denktash's welcoming committee had provoked the displeasure of the US diplomats. The 'show' was terminated when Denktash realised that the US envoys were not prepared to become a party to the "comedy". Denktash's decision not to allow Greek Cypriot journalists to cover the meeting did not go down well with the Americans either.

Denktash had arranged for the representatives of these groups to be outside his office, as a reaction to a letter from 23 Turkish Cypriot organisations calling for a federal settlement. The letter, in which these organisations criticised Denktash's unwillingness to negotiate and accused him of forcing Turkish Cypriots to emigrate, had been given to Moses via the US embassy.

Phileleftheros

said that the Minister of Justice, Nicos Koshis, with the approval of President Clerides, would go ahead with a major re-organisation of the police force in an attempt to eliminate corruption. His plan involved changing all the personnel at police departments which "were most vulnerable to corruption" because of the nature of their work. The Crime Prevention Squad and the Aliens and Immigration Department were in this category.

Koshis also said that a squad of "incorruptibles" would be set up to investigate corruption with the police force. Further changes would be discussed today at a meeting at the presidential palace which will also be attended by the Minister of Interior.

Machi

said that the key to the case involving the Chief Immigration Officer Christodoulos Nicolaides was the Syrian who had been arrested on Tuesday. The Syrian man, who had been given Cypriot nationality, had allegedly been arranging visas for his fellow countrymen by bribing Nicolaides.

Money did not exchange hands, but the Syrian allegedly did construction work, for which he was not paid, for Nicolaides and members of his family.

Simerini

reported that Cypriot investors were up in arms, openly attacking public companies, stockbrokers, the Stock Exchange Council and the Capital Markets Commission. The Pancyprian Organisation of Investors is furious because thousands of investors have still to receive certificates for the shares they had bought.

Their biggest complaint is that no-one will tell them when they will be sent their certificates so that they could feel secure about their property.

Haravghi

said the members of the House Defence Committee had strongly protested against the decision of the government not to let them inspect the sites of the TOR-M1 missiles. This refusal reinforced suspicions that the missiles were not actually in Cyprus, it said. Press reports had claimed that the missiles had been brought to Cyprus for the October 1 parade and were then returned to Greece.

© Copyright Cyprus Mail 1999

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