Quantcast
Channel: Cyprus Mail
Viewing all 6907 articles
Browse latest View live

All the fun of the Christmas fair in Limassol

0
0

THE first-ever International Christmas Fair in Cyprus begins today in Limassol, in the Yermasoyia tourist area. 

The opening will take place at 7pm, but holiday spirit is expected to ignite by 6.30pm with the lighting up of a 10-metre high Christmas tree. The fair will last 19 days, ending on New Year’s Day and will include dozens of events such as Santa, magicians, zumba, cat and dog shows, and competitions with prizes.

The fair is a result of the cooperation between Russian newspaper Vestnik Kipra and the municipality of Yermasoyia, with the support of the Tourist Board of Limassol. They have spent six months organising the event. 

Andreas Gavrielides, the mayor of Yermasoyia, urged everyone to participate saying it would display Cyprus’ European character by bringing all communities of Cyprus together. 

“It will show our ability to celebrate the biggest Christian holiday even at a time as difficult as the one we are currently going through,” he said.

Limassol Tourist Board manager Maria Stylianou said:  “This event will really make a difference for Limassol locals and for tourists. We support this project and we wish it every success.”

Each of the 19 days of the Christmas Fair will present visitors with exciting things to do and see. As editor in chief of Vestnik Kipra, Natalia Kardash said: “This is a first for a lot of things. First Christmas fair, first dog show, first cat show, first everything”.

Visitors get to participate in competitions such as Christmas tree decorating for which they can register on the fair’s website, www.vkchristmas.com.

Afternoon programmes will include carol singing by children from local schools, magicians and Santa’s arrival by helicopter on December 23d at 3.30pm. Fair activities also include the biggest open zumba class yet with the cooperation of dance schools ‘Louloudi’, ‘Swing Latino’, ‘Informa and ‘Feel Good.

There will also be free food tasting with culinary delights from a variety of countries, which can also be purchased, and many countries will have their own ‘day’ such as  ‘Cypriot Day’, ‘Day of Hungary’, ‘Day of Nordic Countries’, ‘Day of Germany’, among others. “We delayed lighting our Christmas decorations so that all of us will be together during the lighting of the tree for the fair,” said Gavrielides.


Brand of Christmas sweet unfit to eat

0
0

THE HEALTH Ministry yesterday warned the public that a specific type of Greek-produced special Christmas sweets known locally as melomakarona are unfit for consumption. 

According to the ministry’s health services, during tests carried out in the market on seasonal food offered during Christmas, one version of the Christmas honey-soaked sweets produced by LIDL in Greece was found to have mould on the surface. 

The health services were informed by the Greek authorities that this specific product is unfit for human consumption given the mould identified. 

The commercial name of the product is Glykanthi Melomakarona, packaged in red cardboard boxes weighing one kilo each with an expiry date of January 31, 2013 and made in Greece by the company LIDL HELLAS & CO. 

The Cyprus distributor of the product is reportedly aware of the problem and already sent announcements to all retail stores to inform their customers. 

However, given that some products are already in the hands of consumers, the health services decided to issue an announcement warning all consumers to avoid the consumption of the product.

Spending power continues to fall

0
0
Author: 
Peter Stevenson

THE SPENDING power of Cypriots is below the average of their fellow Europeans according to statistics gathered by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union. 

The figure is expressed in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita in terms of each country’s purchasing power standard.

Purchasing power standards is an economic theory and a technique used to determine the relative value of currencies. It estimates the amount of adjustment needed on the exchange rate between countries in order for the exchange to be equivalent to (or on par with) each currency's purchasing power.

Cyprus’ GDP per capita continued its downward trend after hovering at the average  in 2009, falling to 3.0 per cent below in 2010, and to 5.0 per cent lower in 2011.

In 2011 the GDP per capita in Luxembourg was more than two and a half times the average. The Netherlands, Ireland, Austria, Sweden, Denmark and Germany were between around 20 per cent and 30 per cent above the average, while Belgium and Finland were between 10 per cent and 20 per cent above average. 

The United Kingdom and France registered GDP per capita nearly 10 per cent above the average, while Italy and Spain were around the average. 

Malta, Slovenia and the Czech Republic were between 15 per cent and 20 per cent lower than the average. Greece, Portugal and Slovakia were between 20 per cent and 30 per cent below the average, while Estonia, Lithuania, Hungary and Poland were around one third below. 

The high GDP per capita in Luxembourg is partly due to the country's large share of cross-border workers in employment. While contributing to GDP, these workers are not taken into consideration as part of the resident population which is used to calculate GDP per capita. In comparison, Gross National Income per capita in Luxembourg is around 196 per cent of the EU average.

‘Teachers have suffered most from austerity’

0
0

 

MEMBERS of the teachers unions OELMEK, OLTEK and POED protested against austerity measures, at barriers set up by police, some 60m from parliament’s entrance yesterday. 

Although the protest was peaceful, there was a heavy police presence, with metal barricades and members of the police riot squad (MMAD) making sure no-one could get close to the House. 

There have been protests by various groups outside parliament every day this week, forcing police to take extra steps.

The new austerity measures will force teachers to work an extra hour per week but will also see contracted teachers, who have not been made permanent employees of the state, out of a job.

The heads of the three unions met with House President, Yiannakis Omirou who told them that the House accepts complaints about issues that it is not responsible for. “Education is the future of our society, our children and our country and that’s why it should not be affected by the economic crisis,” head of POED, Filios Fylaktou said. 

“We cannot accept that education is being blighted by these measures and as teachers, along with parent associations, we must stand up against the attack on the education of our country,” he added.

Demetris Taliadoros, head of OELMEK, said that teachers in the public sector have suffered the most from the cuts. “Cuts to education limit the development of our place,” he said. He also spoke about how the cuts have left teachers who had been teaching for up to ten years, unemployed.

 

Police block teachers from reaching parliament (Christos Theodorides)

Guilty of nepotism and then promoted

0
0
Author: 
Elias Hazou

INSTEAD of facing sanctions, the two agriculture ministry officers found guilty of nepotism by a Nicosia court have since been promoted.

The offences in question date back to 2009; Makis Antoniades and Giorgos Kyriakides were charged with influencing the hiring of temporary staff at the ministry, specifically the Veterinary Services. During the trial earlier this year, they initially pleaded not guilty, but then changed their plea and were fined €1,000 and €2,000 by the court.

They are the first and only public functionaries to have ever been convicted of nepotism; the relevant law also provides for a maximum jail sentence of one year.

But since then, Antoniades, at the time director of the agriculture minister’s office, has been bumped up to senior officer; and Kyriakides, formerly head of the ministry’s commission for hiring temporary employees, now heads the Veterinary Services.

Daily Politis broke the story. The paper said that agriculture minister Sophocles Aletraris intends to pursue the matter of the promotions; he has asked the Attorney-general’s office to investigate whether the offences of the two civil servants in question involve moral turpitude. In the event the Attorney-general establishes this, he will then ask the Public Services Commission to launch disciplinary proceedings.

The minister confirmed this yesterday in a phone conversation with the Mail. As far as he could recall, the promotions of the two civil servants were approved before the court handed down its verdict, that is, either during the trial or at the very least after the two defendants were charged.

Civil service laws provide for disciplinary offences and/or termination in the event only that a person has been deemed guilty of offences involving moral turpitude. A court conviction does not automatically lead to termination, Aletraris said.

Only the Attorney-general is authorised to deem a public functionary guilty of moral turpitude, following an investigation.

The allegations of nepotism came to light in 2009, when Andreas Demetriou – a senior officer at the ministry – accused then minister Michalis Polynikis of personally meddling in the hiring of temporary staff.

In a letter to Polynikis, made public, Demetriou identified Polynikis as having had a leading role in assigning public service posts based on party loyalty and not merit. Demetriou also described Antoniades, then director of the minister’s office, as Polynikis’ instrument.

“From the time you took office you have, almost on a daily basis, through the director of your office, intervened with the aim of changing exam results,” the whistleblower’s letter to Polynikis read.

Polynikis denied any wrongdoing in public, and internally ordered a disciplinary probe against Demetriou on the grounds that he was disrespectful toward him.

In the ruling by the Nicosia court this year, the judge included a piqued remark about Polynikis’ absence from the charge sheet – particularly since Polynikis’ personal interference in influencing hiring at the ministry was one of the accepted facts in the trial.

What had happened was that Polynikis had cut a deal to testify for the state prosecution, enabling the Attorney-general’s office to seal a conviction.

As it turned out, Polynikis did not have to testify because the defendants meanwhile changed their plea to guilty and were automatically sentenced.

End of the road for Orphanides chain

0
0
Author: 
Elias Hazou

 

ORPHANIDES supermarkets, in the red for over €200m, are to be placed in receivership, the company has announced.

The largest supermarket chain is indebted to banks to the tune of some €140m; additionally it owes suppliers €85m and €10m to other creditors.

The decision for corporate bankruptcy was announced yesterday by Andreas Andronikou, of UK auditing firm UHY Hacker Young.

Andronikou is to be appointed receiver pending approval by the main creditors, Popular Bank and the Bank of Cyprus. The banks will reportedly back the move.

Speaking to suppliers yesterday, Andronikou was blunt: he said the aim was to find a buyer for the company as soon as possible.

The debt was so large it could not be covered even if the company returned to profitability, he said.

The company recorded a loss of €17.7m for the first three quarters of the year, and was already planning to shut down a number of stores.

Andronikou called on suppliers to rally around the company in helping find a buyer, something he said he hoped could be achieved sometime in the next six to eight weeks.

“Should the company be wound up, even the banks, which are guaranteed creditors, might not get their money back, much less you,” he told them.

The shake-up will also see founder and CEO Christos Orphanides step down.

Speaking at the same gathering yesterday, Orphanides took full responsibility for the company’s state of affairs:

“Unfortunately, mistakes have been made, and I assume responsibility,” he said.

According to Orphanides, the company ran into problems more than a year ago, but the situation rapidly deteriorated in recent weeks when a minority of large contractors stopped supplying the chain.

Supermarkets have been left without a number of basic products, he said.

The Cyprus Stock Exchange (CSE) said it was suspending for yesterday the trading of titles of Orphanides Public Company Ltd following news reports that the company was going into receivership.

The Bourse said the decision was taken “to ensure the smooth functioning of the CSE market as to the aforementioned securities and in order to protect the investors.”

The CSE decided also to transfer the shares of the company to the Special Category Market from the Main Market of the CSE, starting from today, Friday 14, 2012.

 

Orphanides going into receivership

Semi-government bodies under pressure to aid broke state

0
0
Author: 
Stefanos Evripidou

UNIONS OF the Cyprus Telecommunications Authority (CyTA) yesterday agreed to call off an indefinite strike until parliament had a chance to examine the government’s request for a €100m loan from the pension fund of the semi-government organisation (SGO). 

Three of the five unions representing around 50 per cent of CyTA workers announced on Wednesday they would go on an indefinite strike after the authority’s board decided to lend the state €100m from the workers’ pension fund. 

The unions argued the decision was “illegal and irregular”, warning they would continue to strike until the board revokes its decision and its members resign. 

The three unions- PASE, ASET and SEP- issued a joint announcement yesterday saying they have decided to postpone strike action until after next Monday when the House Finance Committee will examine the issue. 

The unions also received assurances that the finance committee would send a letter to the CyTA board asking it not to take money from the pension fund until parliament gets a chance to discuss the issue. 

The workers’ representatives called on all CyTA employees to gather outside parliament on Monday in a show of strength during the House Committee’s discussion on the issue.  

PASE head Alecos Tryfonides said the decision was taken after the positive response of parliament to their demands. 

“We love our country, we help our state in many ways,” he said, in reference to an earlier loan to the government of €100m by CyTA. “But from the pension fund, from the struggles of a lifetime, the workers’ safety net, we do not want and will not allow any amount to be taken,” said Tryfonides. 

The two remaining CyTA unions- SEK and PEO- representing the remaining 50 per cent of staff remained on the fence yesterday. 

SEK representative Orestis Vassiliou said the union would not take rash decisions without exhausting dialogue with the government and parliament first.     

SEK boss responsible for all SGOs, Andreas Elias, told the Cyprus Mail that the powerful union believes taking a loan from the workers’ pension fund is wrong. 

“We have asked the finance ministry and parliament to give us a comprehensive overview of their plans for covering the needs of state finances in the coming months,” he said. 

Elias said the finance minister has publicly stated that the immediate financing needs of the state are covered until the end of January. 

Given that the Eurogroup won’t examine Cyprus’ request for a bailout until January 21, what SEK are most keen to find out is what happens if the government doesn’t get the bailout money by March, when the loan has to be paid back? Or what happens to the loan if the government doesn’t get the bailout approved at all? 

“It’s a logical question, the answer to which we must give to the workers,” he said.  

A PEO representative told the state broadcaster that the left-wing union will think very seriously before taking any decision on whether to strike. 

Meanwhile, other profit-making SGOs have found themselves in the crosshairs of the cash-strapped state.   

The Port Authority has announced a loan of €38m to the state, with a view to adding a further €12m if needed.

The Electricity Authority of Cyprus (EAC) will discuss a government request for a loan today. According to reports, the state has asked for a loan between €80m and €100m from the electricity company. 

The EAC union EPOPAI yesterday slammed CyTA chairman Stathis Kittis for calling on all profitable SGOs to throw the state a lifeline so that CyTA did not taken on the burden alone.  

The union said calls for the EAC to also grant a loan from its pension fund “misguided and unfortunate”. 

The EAC pension fund’s management committee will discuss the request today. 

According to sources, the government is considering even more innovative ways to meet its financing needs than a loan.

The government has reportedly reached a preliminary agreement with the EAC and its insurers and reinsurers for an out of court settlement regarding the cost of fixing Vassilikos after the power plant was destroyed by the Mari blast last year. 

The insurers have reportedly agreed to pay €132.5m in full to the EAC to cover the cost of fixing the battered plant, €30m of which has already been paid, leaving €102.5m pending. 

In turn, the government has agreed to pay the insurers €99m in compensation in recognition of its own responsibility for the blast, while at the same time avoiding a costly legal battle with the insurers. 

According to sources, the government plans to give the EAC another €30m instalment from the insurance payout, while temporarily pocketing the remaining €72.5m to cover its own pressing needs, leaving the EAC with another IOU. 

This will be added to any loan from the pension fund, in addition to the €24.5m still owed by the state to the authority to cover the cost of renting mobile generators after the naval base blast. 

DISY bid to axe free healthcare to Turkish Cypriots

0
0
Author: 
George Psyllides

OPPOSITION parties DISY and DIKO yesterday submitted draft legislation that would effectively end free health care for Turkish Cypriots and allowances paid to asylum seekers.

“At a time when the state is cutting social allowances from vulnerable groups of the population, we consider it inconceivable for our Turkish Cypriot fellow citizens or other citizens of third countries, to have free access to health services and collect allowances without making any contribution to the social insurance fund or having submitted a tax return,” said DISY MP Tasos Mitsopoulos.

The bill, submitted on the initiative of DISY leader Nicos Anastasiades, provides that no healthcare card or right to healthcare or public allowance will be afforded to any individual unless they have paid social insurance for at least three years or have filed a tax return for the year preceding the application for a medical card.

The proposal is expected to save the state some €50 million per year.

Speaking in parliament earlier yesterday, DISY deputy chairman Averof Neophytou asked for the proposal to be examined as a matter of urgency and put to the vote right away.

The proposal is expected to be discussed next week after AKEL requested time to study the bill.

Affording free healthcare to Turkish Cypriots was a political decision taken by the Tassos Papadopoulos administration after the opening of access points between the divided communities in 2003.

Imposing on Turkish Cypriots the same income criteria as Greek Cypriots would have meant accepting and effectively recognising documents issued by the breakaway state.

A lot of Greek Cypriots feel bitter about the arrangement, including politicians, who have spoken against it many times.

It has now come under sharper focus, especially after authorities were forced to cut allowances from various groups, including the disabled.

The same goes for the allowances afforded to asylum seekers, which has on many occasions been used against the current administration.

Under the current system, asylum seekers receive the same allowance as Cypriot beneficiaries of state assistance.

Many MPs have repeatedly suggested that asylum seekers are granted too much money and have called for a change in the system.


Our View: AG should not have suspended prosecution in stabbing case

0
0

ATTORNEY-GENERAL Petros Clerides’ decision to suspend prosecution of a Cypriot woman, who was suspected of stabbing her Romanian husband to death, was a big mistake. There may have been compelling reasons to justify his decision, but these were not made public. All that Clerides said was that he suspended prosecution on “the grounds of self-defence.” 

He is not obliged to make his reasons public, but as a consequence, many questions could be asked about the decision. Did the suspect have political protection? Was she let off because she was Cypriot and the victim was a foreigner? Did the AG believe the suspect did what was ‘reasonably necessary’ to defend herself and had resorted to ‘reasonable force’? Did he not consider killing someone ‘unreasonable force’?

These questions will linger and will not show the Attorney-General in a very good light. They will perpetuate the view, which could be wrong, that the law does not view suspected crimes by Cypriots and foreigners in the same way. Would he have suspended prosecution if the suspect was a Romanian woman and the victim a Cypriot man? We doubt it, because he would have been under immense pressure from the victim’s family and the media to prosecute. But nobody would apply pressure over the killing of a Romanian, alleged, wife-beater.

There may have been reasons we do not know that influenced Clerides’ decision, but the Attorney General should also have taken into account how his decision would have been perceived. For instance, if someone cites his decision to claim that Cypriots and foreigners were not treated as equal before the law, what would his response be considering it highly unlikely he would have suspended prosecution if the victim was a Cypriot?

He should not have used his discretionary power to suspend prosecution, even if he thought he would not be able to win the case, because this was bound to give rise to suspicions of discrimination, even if there was none. He should have filed manslaughter charges and allowed a judge to decide whether the suspect was not guilty because of extenuating circumstances. 

In this way, he would have safeguarded the institution of the Attorney-General and underlined the fact that everyone is equal before the law. And the truth is we need an Attorney General who commands everyone’s trust, including foreigners, who currently make up more than a quarter of the island’s population. 

Eurogroup upbeat on Cyprus deal

0
0
Author: 
George Psyllides

THE Eurogroup yesterday appeared confident that an agreement on Cyprus’ bailout programme can be reached soon but not before the new year.

The group discussed Cyprus yesterday though no decision had been expected.

In a written statement issued after the meeting, the Eurogroup said progress had been made towards a possible macro-financial assistance programme and welcomed “that the Cypriot authorities are demonstrating their commitment to such reforms and that the Cypriot parliament has passed a first set of measures that had been agreed.”

“We are confident that agreement on the programme could soon be reached, and we call on the international institutions and Cyprus to finalise negotiations accordingly,” the statement said.

The Eurogroup said it had been assured that Cyprus’ immediate financing needs have been covered.

Parliament on Wednesday passed a raft of austerity measures included in the provisional bailout agreement. Three other bills were already approved last week.

Eurogroup President Jean-Claude Juncker said Cyprus’ problem was serious but it was being tackled in a serious way.

Juncker said private sector involvement with Cyprus had not been discussed and would not commit on a timetable. “I don’t want to lock us into an overly strict timetable. But we will work to find a solution as quickly as possible,” he said.

Earlier yesterday, Juncker said a definitive solution for Cyprus would probably be found in January.

European Commission Vice-President Olli Rehn echoed Juncker in that a decision can be expected next month. Rehn welcomed Cyprus’ move to adopt the measures agreed with international lenders – the troika.

“This is an encouraging sign of Cyprus' determination to do what it takes to ensure fiscal and financial sustainability,” Rehn said. To conclude the deal, the two sides need the final results of the due diligence exercise for the banking sector, expected by mid-January.

“In parallel, the Commission will continue to work intensively to facilitate a decision on a programme, which we envisage can be taken next month,” Rehn said.

Cyprus and international lenders have already earmarked up to €10 billion as aid for the island's banks, but this was subject to outside verification.

Investment company Pimco carried out an asset review of five Cyprus-based banks and a stress test to determine capital needs for each bank. 

It also covered a representative sample of co-operative credit institutions.

The review was submitted to a steering committee comprising potential lenders and Cypriot authorities.

Meanwhile, President Demetris Christofias charged yesterday that Cyprus had been stabbed in the back from various directions in the EU: over alleged money laundering, or supposedly being a paradise for Russian tycoons or allegedly using the loan to rescue Russians.

These “were blows below the belt,” the president said.

“We are small in number but we have dignity and we have proven this. And we will prove it on the way by overcoming the problems – with our sacrifice, our love for our country.”

Eurogroup president Jean-Claude Juncker yesterday

Two sides carry out joint fire drill

0
0

THE FIRE SERVICES of the Cyprus Republic and breakaway regime in the north yesterday held a joint exercise in the area of the UN-controlled Nicosia airport as part of efforts to enhance coordination in fighting fires on the island. 

The exercise came as a result of a previous decision by the bicommunal technical committee on crisis management to work together to combat fires. 

Each fire service sent three big fire trucks and a number of logistics jeeps to the old disused airport to examine the level of interoperability between them, checking access and usability of each others’ hose pipes, water tanks and communications systems.  

In a separate decision taken last September, the environment technical committee embarked upon another confidence-building measure, addressing a natural hazard that knows no boundaries and affects all the inhabitants of the island: wildfires.

Focusing their efforts on the buffer zone, the committee tasked the Cyprus Technical and Scientific Chamber (ETEK) and the Union of Chambers of Cyprus Turkish Engineers and Architects (KTMMOB) to identify areas for inter-communal cooperation on preventing outbreaks of wildfires in the buffer zone. This project is funded by UNDP-ACT, with support from USAID.

‘Cyprus’ presidency was a success’

0
0
Author: 
George Psyllides

 

CYPRUS managed to have a successful EU presidency despite its size and economic problems, President Demetris Christofias said yesterday, following the last European Council under his term.

"Cyprus has shown that despite its small geographical size and despite its economic problems it held a quite successful presidency," Christofias said during a press conference that wrapped up the last European Council of the Cypriot presidency that ends this month. “It was indeed a very difficult task for us, a task however which I think we have carried out with dignity.”

Christofias said the European Council meeting was another step towards the completion of the economic and monetary union, adding that there was still a long way to go and the momentum had to be kept up.

“The decisions that have been made and the directions that have been given will to a large extent define the course of the European Union in the next years,” he said.  “The reform that is taking place with the aim of more effective economic and financial governance also contributes to facing faster the financial crisis that torments the Union.”

The president stressed however that approaches must be balanced and targeted to safeguard social cohesion.

“The economic and financial policies that is, must be formed in such a way that unemployment and poverty are substantially addressed and social exclusion is prevented,” he said.  “It is imperative that the measures for fiscal consolidation are combined with measures that promote social cohesion and the prosperity of European citizens.”

European Commission President Josι Manuel Barroso said there had been some real achievements in the past six months.

“I will not quote all of them, but I think the Single Supervisory Mechanism, Schengen governance, common asylum system are especially important,” Barroso said.

Barroso appeared confident that the EU will overcome the difficulties it was currently facing.

“I have got many questions about "Do you think the euro is going to survive, how long is it going to survive, how do you see the dismantling of the euro." I think that those commentators and those analysts have been shown to be totally wrong. We are tackling the crisis and we have a long term vision for our Union,” the Commission president said.

European Council President Herman Van Rompuy praised Cyprus’ contribution in successfully closing the matter of the European Patent after decades.

“It is the happy end to a 40 year-long Odyssey. And if you allow me to continue that image: even if we do not know for sure on which Mediterranean island the historic Odysseus lived, for Europe, in the patent case, our beloved "Ithaca" clearly is Cyprus.”

 

President Demetris Christofias greets European Council President Herman Van Rompuy and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso after a joint news conference at the EU

Front-row seats to the non-end of the world

0
0

NEXT Friday, December 21 may be seen by some as the day the world will end, but the unconvinced Fakas Institute in Nicosia is organising an event for those who want a front-row seat for the end, or the non-end.

On the night in question – if the world has not already ended earlier in the day – people can visit the institute from 8pm until 10pm to revel in the fact that the doomsayers were proved wrong.

There, members of the astronomical community in Cyprus will be able to discuss the end of the world scenarios with the head of the astronomical society of Cyprus, Yiangos Stylianou, MP Andreas Pitsillides and astrophysicists Stelios Tsangarides and Chrysanthos Fakas. 

Hosting the event will be the astronomical society’s honorary president and owner of the Fakas Institute, Ioannis Fakas. Entrance will be free and visitors are encouraged to bring their own telescopes to witness any astronomical events that may or may not occur – in this case the feeling is that nothing will occur.

“On the night of December 21 you will be able to see the alignment of the earth, sun and centre of the galaxy, and the winter solstice and we will finally be able to put paid to any hoodoo about the Mayan prophecy that the world will end,” Fakas told the Cyprus Mail yesterday. 

According to believers, December 21 is the end-date of 5125 year Mayan countdown that began in 3113BC. which will culminate in various astronomical alignments bringing with it the end of the world. This belief has been rejected by scholars and scientists and even the Mayans themselves who are marking the day with celebrations of a new calendar era as thousands of Americans hide out in specially designed and stocked Apocalypse-proof bunkers.

“We definitely won’t be seeing a planetary synod where all the planets will line up,” Fakas said. “The planet Nibiru or a planet X as some dooms-dayers have called it, will not suddenly appear and head towards earth,” he continued. “There are no comets, meteorites or asteroids approaching earth and there has not been an increase in sun spots as some of these ‘so called prophets’ had predicted,” he concluded.

The Fakas Institute regularly hosts events of astronomical merit. The Institute can be found at 78 Larnaca Avenue in Pallouriotissa in Nicosia. 

Archbishop: unions have to back off

0
0
Author: 
Stefanos Evripidou

ARCHBISHOP CHRYSOSTOMOS II yesterday called on the public to roll up its sleeves and work its way out of the crisis, while warning unions that any strike action now would be “unacceptable”. 

In a clear broadside at the union movement, Chrysostomos, who runs the Cyprus Church and oversees its sizeable business interests on the island, told unions to “get real” and get working so Cyprus can see better days.  

“What I want to say, and I don’t care if I’ll be misunderstood, is that it would be unacceptable to have strikes in this country over the issue of wage increases. We have lived through the invasion, and all workers accepted a 50 per cent wage cut,” he said. 

“We struggled. People will struggle but they won’t go hungry. So I call on unions to get real and not take to the streets seeking increases,” he added. 

The primate said people needed to understand that everyone will see wage reductions as the country tries to overcome the difficult times it’s going through which are the fault of all.

“It is not only the fault of the government and banks. We have all been wasteful. We are obliged to come together, get working and come out on top, because we can,” he said.  

Chrysostomos said he was considering instructing the kitchen of the archbishopric to stick to one meal a day instead of two or three to save money. Any surplus could then be given to those who are hungry. 

“I believe that is how all our people will think. They will economise everywhere and even cut down on food,” he said. 

The archbishop made the comments at an event in Nicosia where he received clothing and footwear from the entrepreneur Andreas Kaisis to distribute among the needy.  

He thanked Kaisis for his contribution and assured him that the donations will reach those who really need it. 

Kaisis said he offered 6,000 items of footwear and 4,000 garments to cover the needs of poor school children. 

 

The Archbishop examines donated clothing yesterday

Fine defaulters to be put on stop list

0
0
Author: 
Peter Stevenson

PEOPLE who owe money to the government will be forced to pay their fines before leaving Cyprus as police step up their efforts to recoup the €135 million owed to the state in unpaid fines.

According to a police spokesman, members of the force will be checking everyone passing through Cyprus’ airports to determine if they have any unpaid fines or if they owe social insurance or income tax.

“These measures have been put in place in attempt to gather the €135 million in uncollected fines or social insurance and income tax payments,” member of the police top brass, Demetris Pitsillides told state broadcaster, Radio Trito. 

“Using computer technology, if someone is identified either from their passport or their ID card to be on the list of people who owe money to the state, an arrangement will be made to pay off the amount owed, either on their return to the island or in instalments,” he added.

Speaking at a press conference, chief of police Michalis Papageorgiou said: “People who owe money to the state and are caught will be made to pay the fine, whoever they are.”

Police will begin their checks in the coming weeks, once all of the relevant information has been placed on the police database, initially for a trial period only. 

The police will also follow the same procedure with people going to police stations for any reason. Their personal information will be checked and if they owe money, they will not be helped until they pay off the money they owe the state.

“It is everyone’s responsibility to pay the amount they owe to the government and if they don’t, then we are within our rights to arrest them and that would certainly mean they would not be allowed to travel,” Papageorgiou said.

Asked how the police will deal with cases where large amounts are owed and whether an arrangement can be made to pay off the debt in instalments, Papageorgiou answered, “Strictly speaking and according to the letter of the law, if the amount of any fine is large then the only person who has the right to make any concessions is the Attorney-general. Neither the police nor the member of police who is at the airport or at a police station can make any concessions.”

“Each case will be dealt with separately and depending on the amount owed and what kind of fine it is, we will act accordingly but we will be reasonable in the way we deal with people,” a member of the police press office said.


Ministry says 13th salaries must be paid

0
0
Author: 
Stefanos Evripidou

THE LABOUR Ministry yesterday issued an announcement, warning employers that failure to pay workers’ 13th salaries was a criminal offence. 

As the end of the year draws near, many private sector workers who avoided redundancy but saw significant wage cuts are asking whether they will get their 13th salary this year. 

According to the ministry, in sectors of employment where the 13th salary is usually paid, the law considers the second salary paid every December as part of the worker’s annual salary, making non-payment a violation of Article 35(I) 2007 of the Wage Protection Law.

Apart from the fact workers are afforded civil rights to seek payment of this 13th salary, non-payment is also a criminal offence for which the employer can be prosecuted.  

A legal amendment passed by parliament on Thursday significantly increases the penalties for such an offence. On conviction, an employer now faces up to six months in jail and/or a €15,000 fine.

Under the same amendment, the court is in a position to award the amounts owed to the employee, said the ministry. 

Speaking to the state broadcaster, head of the Labour Relations Department Andreas Mylonas yesterday clarified that where employers followed the practice of paying a 13th salary, they continued to have an obligation to do so. 

“If it is usually paid, the employer cannot suddenly turn around and say, ‘I can’t pay it’. It is a part of the workers’ salary, this is illegal,” he said.  

PEO union head Pambis Kyritsis said employers had a “legal and moral obligation” to pay the 13th salary as it was part of the workers’ annual salary.

“Whatever the difficulties, whatever the situation, it is logical that employees’ wages have to be paid,” he said. 

Regarding situations where businesses are unable to come up with December’s second salary, Kyritsis said there are provisions in the law stipulating how employers can come to some sort of an arrangement with their employees. 

However, he criticised employers who were reportedly coercing workers into signing a paper saying they agree not to take their 13th salary by effectively giving them no choice. 

“We call on workers not to sign any paper but to go to the unions. There is a labour ministry procedure for workers to secure their rights when an employer operates outside of the law,” he said. 

The Employers and Industrialists’ Federation (OEV) yesterday released a statement clarifying the circumstances for payment of the 13th salary in the private sector. 

According to OEV, paying the 13th salary in the private sector is not mandatory by law, but through practice, custom, collective or individual contracts, many employers have agreed with their employees to pay a 13th salary. 

Where the above commitment is made, employers are obliged to pay the 13th salary before the end of the year, noted OEV.

However, due to the dire economic situation of many businesses, many employers have asked and reached agreement with workers’ representatives or with employees directly either not to pay the 13th salary or to pay it gradually next year. 

These agreements are valid and binding in their content, said the federation. 

OEV calls on members who have problems paying the 13th salary, on the one hand, to make the necessary arrangements with employees or their representatives so they are not in violation of the law, and on the other, “to tackle the ultimate challenge under the circumstances: safeguarding the viability of businesses and jobs”.   

OEV deputy head Kostas Christofides yesterday acknowledged that a 13th salary was part of the annual total owed employees. 

However, he said the federation was aware of businesses that faced “extreme difficulties” meeting their obligations. In such cases where companies are calling on employees to agree to a special arrangement, Christofides said he believed employees were “rational and mature” enough to not demand the 13th salary when their employer has serious problems and the future of the business is at stake.  

 

Cyprus ‘more serious than Greece’ says Juncker

0
0
Author: 
George Psyllides

THE FISCAL situation in Cyprus is “more serious than Greece,” a danger overlooked by markets, Luxembourg Prime Minister and Eurogroup President Jean-Claude Juncker said yesterday.

“My priority in the short-term for 2013 is Cyprus,” Juncker, who is set to step down at the end of this year or the beginning of the next, was quoted as saying by Bloomberg. “It’s a problem one shouldn’t underestimate, because it’s more serious than Greece. This isn’t taken into consideration by the financial markets or the international press.” 

Markets had however given the earliest indication Cyprus was poised for a bailout, after the island was virtually locked out of international capital markets in May-June 2011. 

Then, yields on its benchmark 10 year traded debt – an implied interest rate had the Republic sought international borrowing imminently – exceeded the psychological threshold of 7 per cent.

However, yield highs of 15 per cent on 10 year benchmarks have eased in recent weeks -- yields of around 15 per cent at the end of August have progressively fallen, with a marked fall in implied interest registered from mid-November onwards, when Cyprus announced its preliminary deal with the troika for refinancing. 

Yesterday, the yield on Cyprus’s 10 year benchmark stood at around 10.85 percent, according to data from ThomsonReuters.

Cypriot banks may need about €10 billion in fresh capital while another €6 billion may be needed to refinance state debt and €1.5 billion to cover fiscal deficits. 

That would bring the total to €17.5 billion, almost the size of Cyprus’s €17.9 billion economy. 

The country’s general government gross debt will rise to 89.7 per cent of gross domestic product this year, according to the European Commission. 

That figure does not take into account any aid Cyprus may receive. 

“Cyprus’ debt is extremely high and the money they need makes up basically 100 per cent of their GDP,” Juncker said in an interview. “It’s a very serious situation.” 

Cyprus has an agreement in principle with the so-called troika that oversees euro-area bailouts, and the accord will be signed after the final results of a due diligence exercise for the banking sector, expected by mid-January. 

If the overall figure is deemed too high to sustain, Cyprus may be forced to take additional austerity measures and privatise semi-state organisations like the telecommunications company CyTA.

State needs €400m for December payroll

0
0
Author: 
Stefanos Evripidou

THE GOVERNMENT is walking a fine line between international and domestic lenders, trying to convince both that it pays its debts, in an effort to keep the state afloat until the EU/IMF bailout arrives to quench parched state coffers. 

The state has to come up with approximately €400m this month to meet its payroll obligations, including public workers’ 13th salaries. It expects most of this sum from profitable semi-government organisations (SGOs) in the form of loans. 

The Ports Authority has already pledged €38m to the state, with the offer of a further €12m if needed. 

The Cyprus Telecommunications Authority (CyTA) refused the government’s request for a €120m loan from the company’s pension fund. Instead, despite great opposition from the unions, the CyTA board has agreed on a €100m three-month loan at an interest rate of 5.5 per cent.   

Board chairman Stathis Kittis said it would be a lot easier agreeing to the loan if other profitable SGOs like the Electricity Authority of Cyprus (EAC) also contributed. 

Union representatives have voiced concern about putting workers’ pension money acquired over many years at risk. They also question what will happen to the loan’s short-term repayment if the Eurogroup meeting on January 21 fails to reach a decision on the bailout, or even worse, negotiations with Cyprus collapse completely. 

Unions representing half of the CyTA staff only decided to call off an indefinite strike on Thursday after the House Finance Committee agreed to discuss the issue this Monday. 

The EAC has also been asked to chip in with a reported €100m loan to prop up the flagging state on the same conditions as the CyTA loan. 

The management committee of the EAC fund yesterday met to discuss the request. They called in Finance Ministry’s permanent secretary Christos Patsalides to the meeting to argue the government’s case. 

He evidently failed to convince as the committee postponed any decision on the loan request until Monday, preferring instead to wait until after the House Finance Committee’s discussion on the matter, which its members will attend. 

EAC union EPOPAI yesterday repeated its opposition to the loan. 

“To save one bank, we’re all being destroyed,” said one union representative.

Meanwhile, Finance Minister Vassos Shiarly has been in Brussels telling his colleagues and EU officials that Cyprus will be able to meet its financing needs until the end of January. 

However, this is based on two preconditions: first, that domestic investors- mainly the banks- agree to roll over existing maturing debt; and second, the government secures additional financing to cover the deficit created by lower revenue and higher expenditure in November and December. 

So, if existing investors maintain exposure to Cyprus’ sovereign debt and the government is able to cover its end of year deficit, then Cyprus’ financing needs will be met up until the end of January.

In essence, the government’s efforts to secure additional financing rest on convincing the likes of CyTA and EAC to lend it money. 

As one well-informed source put it: “They should understand that if the government can’t meet its obligations then everyone will be affected.” “It’s not an easy situation but it’s manageable,” he added. 

 

Our View: Government playing risky game with savings of employees

0
0

 

THE GOVERNMENT is now suffering the consequences of the inexcusable stalling tactics it had employed with regard to the bailout. It allowed August and September to pass without engaging in any meaningful exchange with the troika, in October it put together incomplete counter-proposals and it spent most of November negotiating with the troika over the final package, which President Christofias only agreed to when the danger of a banking collapse was on the cards.

The soonest the memorandum of understanding can be approved by the Eurogroup is towards the end of January and it will then have to go through national parliaments. This means that the earliest the government would receive the loan is February which poses a serious problem – where will it find the money to pay public sector salaries in December, which includes the 13th, and January? 

As it cannot borrow money from anywhere it has decided to force semi-governmental organisations to lend it funds from their employees’ pension funds, but this does not look like it will be a straightforward affair. Fifty per cent of CyTA employees called a strike in protest against the board’s decision to give the government a three-month, €100 million loan from the staff’s pension fund. The Ports Authority will give €38 million with a view to adding another €12 million. The EAC unions were due to discuss the government request for €100 million from the staff pension fund yesterday, but put off the decision until after Monday’s House Finance committee meeting.  

We do not know what position the political parties will take on Monday, but one thing is clear – the government is playing a very risky game, taking the savings of employees. What will happen if the memorandum is not approved by March, when the government is supposed to return the funds? Worse still, what if the Eurogroup decided a 30 per cent haircut on the Cyprus government debt to make it viable?  There are too many dangers involved for the unions to be happy with this arrangement.

The government has only one option. It should postpone paying the 13th salaries of public sector employees until March or April, when, hopefully, it will have received the bailout loan. We are sure public employees would agree to this arrangement, rather than put at risk the savings of their colleagues at semi-governmental organisations. And they have a duty to help out the government, which had done all it could in negotiations with the troika to save the 13th salaries.

In retrospect the government would have been better off if it had agreed to the troika’s proposal for suspension of payment of the 13th salaries in 2012, especially as it knew it had no money.

 

 

 

CY returns with begging bowl asking for €73 million

0
0
Author: 
George Psyllides

 

AILING state carrier Cyprus Airways (CY) is asking the state for an additional €73 million as part of a restructuring plan to make the company viable, it emerged yesterday.

This would be over and above some €31 million requested earlier this year, with €15 million already granted.

“I understand the difficult economic conditions we are going through but this company cannot go forward if new capital is not injected to keep it going until the summer and give the time necessary for its restructuring,” CY chairman Stavros Stavrou told reporters.

A viable restructuring plan was a condition set by parliament earlier this year before releasing the second tranche of €31 million requested by the airline.

The plan, prepared by Air France-KLM, was presented to the House Finance Committee yesterday behind closed doors.

Stavrou said the aim was to make the company viable and attractive to foreign investors.

There is interest from investors, Stavrou said, but they also wanted to see the plan and signs that it was being implemented.

The plan calls for cutting personnel by 407 to 623, bringing salaries down to the levels of the competition and introducing working hours to suit the needs of the airline in the current competitive environment.

It also proposed outsourcing the airline’s maintenance, a provision opposed by unions and the management.

“We believe this is one of the biggest assets the company has at the moment,” Stavrou said. 

The CY boss said there was a safety element involved and “we do not negotiate on safety matters. That is why our suggestion is for this department to remain under the CY roof.”

Committee chairman, DIKO MP Nicolas Papadopoulos, said it was the view of its members that an effort should be made to rescue the airline.

Releasing €105 million would involve the agreement of the European Union, Papadopoulos said.

Main opposition DISY said it was ready to support any serious and credible effort but there must be a concrete pledge that the plan must be implemented immediately and without deviation.

“The ultimate objective must be the implementation of government decision to privatise the company,” spokesman Haris Georgiades said. “Only then Cyprus Airways’ viability would be definitively secured.” 

CY has gone through several overhauls in recent years but has been hobbled by stiff competition from cheaper carriers on its most lucrative routes and rising fuel costs. The state controls around 69 per cent of the airline.

 

 

Ailing national carrier needs more money it says
Viewing all 6907 articles
Browse latest View live




Latest Images