THE CHRISTMAS lights are on, though in less abundance than last year, and the streets are crowded, but fewer and fewer people are willing to spend their money, yet some shopkeepers remain hopeful for today and tomorrow. 

Colourful window displays may create a warm and cosy atmosphere as they try to lure in custom, but it is the shops which have lowered their prices which obviously have the best chance of making sales. 

Nicosia’s Ledra Street has been packed all week – the numbers bumped up considerably yesterday with lengthy traffic jams snaking through the municipal market area at Ochi roundabout – but other than for food an bargains, people weren’t buying.

“It might look like Christmas, but it certainly doesn’t feel like it,” said Christina 36 who did not receive a 13th salary. “I haven’t even put up the tree yet. It’s going to look a bit stupid with hardly anything under it.”

Few on the street yesterday were carrying bags, and those who were, were those with children. Most were just looking around or shopping for the basics, especially after Debenhams announced a last-minute 50 per cent sale on clothes and homewares. "Now that we've advertised the sales, we've had more people coming in," said a Debenhams sales assistant yesterday.

One middle-aged shopper there yesterday said that she was lured in because of the sales. "It goes without saying that we've been shopping less," she said.

Even those who have now received their 13th salaries - for all too many people this year the Christmas bonus will never arrive – were being careful.

"I'm only shopping for what's necessary, and that for my children and grandchildren," housewife Toula Constantinou said. Her husband got his 13th salary, so she finally got some shopping done for her two sons and three grandsons, she added. But many walked out of Debenhams with shopping from the food hall rather than with bagfuls of clothes or gifts yesterday. One woman was carrying only one bag and some wrapping paper. "I'm mostly just looking around," she said, adding that she did get some gifts "but only for my family".

Aside from Debenhams, only Mavros toy shop was teeming, with many shoppers saying they would only be buying gifts for their children. “Christmas is about them anyway,” said Maria, 26. 

‘Bata’ shoe shop sales person Mzia had a similar view: “People are going to spend their 13th salaries on Christmas dinners and children’s gifts. We expect purchases to be fewer around this time because people always wait for the sales. We hardly sell during this period.”

On the other hand, the special offers and lower prices in some shops was helping. Olga, sales person at the ‘People’ clothing shop said: “Sales are maybe better than last year.” ‘People’ has been offering discounts of between 30 per cent and 70 per cent for weeks.

Sotiris, 24 said there was no way he could have done any shopping without his 13th salary.  “There’s was no other way,” he said.

Miranda, an unemployed 28-year-old said “The situation is horrible. I will shop at some point but I will wait for lower prices.”

Andria, a 25-year-old student said “I already did my shopping in Thessaloniki. Prices are cheaper there and it is more convenient for me. I made fewer purchases than last year though.” 

While toys and bargain seemed to be doing well, some of the smaller shops on Ledra Street were pessimistic.

 “It seems like every year is worse than the previous one,” said Angela who owns a boutique.

“The lucky ones that are going to be shopping this year are the ones that have jobs and bonuses to expect.”

Costas, the owner of another shop nearby, fears Ledra Street is about to change. “After the holidays I fear the street will fill up even with restaurants offering cheap and good food, or small coffee shops, seeing as people seem to be forced to buy just the bare necessities in clothing,” he said. 

Shopkeepers on the more ‘upmarket’ Stassicratous Street were also disappointed with  low sales. A sales manager at ‘Marina Rinaldi’ said: I personally will not be buying Christmas gifts this year. I will only buy things I need, like medicine and food.” 

Simoni, manager of ‘Max&Co.’ Said: “Sales are nothing like last year. People do come in, but they come in to look around, not to buy anything.” When asked about her personal Christmas shopping, she said “I got my 13th salary but I haven’t shopped. And all the shopping I do is going to be for my children.”

Small shopkeepers union POVEK official Stefanos Koursaris however was hopeful for a small turnaround given that there are still two more shopping days.

He said the fact that most – who were going to get it - had by now received their 13th salaries by now would boost sales somewhat. 

"Up until [Friday] sales were indeed disappointing as shoppers are more cautious," Koursaris told the Sunday Mail. But he said he was hopeful that local authorities' efforts to encourage people to shop, along with the fact that shop owners had been forced to drop their prices, would help them recover the losses of the  past few weeks.

"Cypriots are - at any rate - last-minute shoppers," Koursaris said, adding that they expected market movement to increase on a daily basis over the holiday period.

Over the past four years, sales have been dropping, "but we shouldn't present the situation as being all doom and gloom," he said.

One shopper was pragmatic in his approach this year. He said he had started shopping weeks ago. "I calculated what I could afford to buy for those close to me and have been doing a little bit of shopping over the last couple of weeks to try and fool myself into thinking I'm not spending that much," he said. 

Andreas who roasts and sells chestnuts on small cart on Ledra Street was philosophical about slow sales: “At least we have our health,’ he said.

(Additional reporting by Daphne Vrahimi

People still want to have fun 

By Daphne Vrahimi and Chloe Hashemi 

EVEN the Christmas funfairs, or Winter Wonderlands, in Limassol and Nicosia have lost some of their sparkle this year as parents count the cost of an evening’s entertainment for their children.

A typical night at the Nicosia fair this week saw plenty of teenagers wandering around, but the rides were mostly far from full. Harun and his wife, meanwhile, were busy bargaining with their children as to how many rides they would go on. 

“If you’re not careful you may spend €50 in 15 minutes,” he said.

“It’s hard to convince a child how many times to go on which ride, but it is our fault as well,” said Constantia, a mother from Limassol. “We need to teach them to be more careful, since our visits to this type of place are going to be fewer because of the current economic situation.”

But there is some hope for the kids. Both Nicosia and Limassol municipalities are organising free events with performers on stilts, balloon-making clowns, children’s face painting and theatrical magic tricks at their respective Christmas Wonderlands, hoping to brighten up these gloomy holidays.

When asked if number of customers have either increased or decreased this year, Tonia Georgiou, Manager of the Nicosia fair said: “No major difference, but we have had to close quite often due to the rain.” 

She added, “It has not been a great year. It has not been busy during the week, only on the weekends, and the weather hasn’t helped.”

Friday was a bit busier as it was the last day of school and the park had opened during the daytime. Also, several schools had organised group outings, leaving Georgiou run off her feet, she said, as children arrived by the busload.

Ledra Street: full of people but not much buying

Funfair helps lift Christmas gloom

A 30-YEAR-OLD MAN was mugged as he was heading home on foot with a backpack containing deposits from Western Union where he was working, on Sunday night in central Nicosia.

The 30-year-old Pakistani had closed shop at 9.30pm and started walking home with a backpack containing around €7,000. Between Florinis St. and Themistocles Dervis St. two strangers punched him in the face, seized his backpack and ran off.

Police have not found the attackers.

AN ADDITIONAL 2,500 people entered Cyprus’ labour force in the third quarter (Q3) of the year, the latest data from statistical services show.

The labour force amounted to 442,483 in Q3 versus 439,954 in Q2 this year.

The majority – 73.7 per cent – were aged between 15 and 64.

A total of 389,046 people were employed in Q3, a reduction of over 5,000 people from the equivalent period from last year (Q3 2011) when 395,958 people were employed. 

Women account for less than half of the labour force, comprising 47.3 per cent of all those employed in Q3. 

Some 70 per cent of the active labour force is aged between 20 and 64. 

Almost 38,000 people are employed part-time that accounts for 7.2 per cent of all men employed and 12.6 per cent of all women currently working. 

Almost 327,000 or 84 per cent of those employed work for someone else. 

On average, people working full-time put in 41.4 hours per week, with women working for 40.6 hours per week and men putting in 42.2 hours per week. Those working part time put in on average 21.9 hours a week. 

Unemployment in Q3 came to 12.1 per cent of the labour force, or 53,473, whereas in Q2 it came to 11.3 per cent or 49,792 people.

The jobless rate is the highest among those aged between 15 and 24 with 26.4 per cent, an increase from Q2 when 25.9 per cent of that age group were unemployed. 

Almost a third or 32.2 per cent of the unemployed have been looking for a job for at least a year, and 44.7 per cent of all unemployed have been actively job searching for fewer than six months, cystat said.

THE CYPRUS Football Association (CFA) has announced, after marathon talks that it has put futsal’s first division on hold until further notice. 

This comes after police sent the CFA a report informing them that of the five stadiums that futsal matches are played, only two are safe enough to host matches. The move by the CFA and the police has brought widespread derision amongst those in the futsal community in Cyprus.

The decision to put the championship on hiatus has brought with it the resignation of the head of the futsal committee, Giorgos Mihanikos. “I handed in my resignation because I had to take responsibility as the head of the committee for futsal after the unfortunate suspension of the championship,” he told Super Sport FM. “In my humble opinion the police reports were hasty, wrong and invalid,” he added. “There is no severe reason for this painful measure which has been taken. The stadiums’ unsuitability has nothing to do with the buildings or the pitches or anything else,” he concluded.

The clubs are equally distressed by the decision made by the board of the CFA. “What gives them the right, halfway through the season, to decide that our stadiums are not suitable?” Ararat Futsal Club’s team manager Barrett Costantian asked. “At the start of the season and according to the CFA regulations, our stadium was seen as fit to host matches, what exactly has changed?” he added.

Although futsal is not seen as a major sport in Cyprus, this year has seen an influx of fans something which is directly related to the island’s football rivalries. Last season the first division of futsal had two big names from the world of football, Omonoia and AEL, but this year after the promotion of AEK Larnaca and Enosis Neon Paralimniou along with APOEL’s co-operation with already existing club City, that number has more than doubled. Popularity in the sport has risen but so have the number of incidents between rival fans, something the police have had to deal with.

According to police, after an increase in fans and incidents they were forced to visit all of the stadiums that host first-division matches and decide whether they were safe enough. Unfortunately for the sport, only Eleftheria Stadium, home to Omonoia and Nicos Solomonides Stadium, home to AEL were deemed suitable. Safety is the main issue for the police and the changes they have asked the teams to make to their stadiums is to prevent any contact whatsoever between fans and players.

On Wednesday, during a meeting at the CFA, the board of directors attempted to find a solution to the problem to allow the championship to continue. One suggestion was that matches could take place with no fans until the necessary safety measures were installed but the police did not accept the measures.

“According to legislation, the stadiums of all first division teams of any sport must have safety certificates otherwise it is illegal for matches to take place,” a police spokesman said.

“Five teams in Nicosia are hosted by two stadiums that have now suddenly been deemed unsuitable, so what will the CFA do? Will they continue the championship without us if we can’t fix our stadiums?” Costanian asked again. “We built our stadium on our own, with no funding or help from the government and now the state is telling us we need to fix it,” he added. “At the start of the season our stadium was given the green light, so if the CFA or the Cyprus Sports Organisation want to give us the money to make it ‘suitable’ then we would be more than willing to fix it,” he concluded.

According to sources inside the CFA, attempts were made to find a compromise to the solution but so far some of the clubs have been unwilling to fully co-operate and make the necessary changes the police demanded.

THE GOVERNMENT has again been put on the defensive after a senior EU economist accused Cyprus of stalling the signing of a bailout deal.

Thomas Wieser, chairman of the Economic and Financial Committee of the European Union and head of the Eurogroup Working Group, suggested the island was dragging its feet in the false hope that it would be included in a rescue package along with Greece.

“Cyprus believed it could be incorporated in a single package with Greece and, despite our warnings, it was delaying,” Wieser said in an interview with Greek paper Kathimerini over the weekend.

“Now, it has missed the train,” the Austrian economist said, referring to Cyprus’ bid to have an aid package approved before the end of the year.

Nevertheless, Wieser went on to predict that Cyprus would sign a memorandum of understanding with international lenders by February 12 – before the general elections here.

But in the same interview he sounded the alarm over the sustainability of the national debt:

“The question of sustainability could be solved in part through broad privatisations, but again the Cyprus government did not agree,” he said.

The island will not be eligible for a bailout in the event the national debt reaches 120 per cent of GDP, making it unsustainable according to IMF standards because the borrower is not expected to be able to meet interest payments on a loan.

Wieser’s warning come hot on the heels of reports last week about foreign quarters expressing concern over the sustainability of Cyprus’ debt.

Drawing on Wieser’s remarks, main opposition DISY said they corroborated suspicions that it is the administration’s “inaction, indecision and fear of taking responsibility that have dealt the final blow to the Cypriot economy and a serious shrinking of our people’s standard of living.

“Instead of realising the crime they have perpetrated against the citizens and the economy,” the statement added, “instead of apologising that Cyprus has missed the train, they have the nerve to accuse them [the EU], evidently confusing responsibility with blackmail.”

A similar reaction came from DIKO: the economy would not now be on the verge of bankruptcy had the government implemented cost-saving measures earlier, the party said.

Dismissing the criticism, government spokesman Stefanos Stefanou said Wieser’s comments were “arbitrary and groundless” and that they did not stand up to logical scrutiny.

Stefanou wondered how the government could be blamed for delaying when everyone – including the EU – was still awaiting the findings of a due diligence report that will determine the size of the bailout for the banks.

“As long as this issue is open, the memorandum cannot be completed,” the spokesman added. “In order for Cyprus to agree to everything it needs to know the amount of the loan and any additional terms,” he said.

Last week German newspaper Suddeutsche Zeitung claimed the IMF supported a haircut of the government debt, on the grounds that Cyprus would be unable to pay the interest on the loan, even after the memorandum provisions were implemented.

A member of the European Central Bank later confirmed this point: “It is already foreseeable that after the final data, the financing need will be so high that the debt level will be very high and unsustainable,” Joerg Asmussen told Reuters. In such a case, he added, lenders would then have to look at measures to achieve a budget surplus and privatisations.

Politis on Sunday ran a story claiming President Demetris Christofias torpedoed last-ditch efforts undertaken by his finance minister to avoid a bailout.

The paper said that on April 17, former Central Bank governor Athanasios Orphanides arranged for Finance Minister Vasos Shiarly to meet ECB officials in Frankfurt. At the meeting, Shiarly promised to push through measures slashing Cyprus’ deficit to 2.5 per cent by the end of the year; in exchange, the ECB said it would allow Cypriot government bonds to be used as collateral for the banks, even though the island’s sovereign rating had by then reached ‘junk’ status and Cyprus was shut out of the markets.

But according to Politis, Shiarly’s efforts at reforming the cost of living allowance were dashed by the Presidential Palace; a meeting scheduled between Shiarly and trade unions to discuss CoLA was cancelled, apparently at the behest of the President.

And at a news conference in early June, Christofias effectively bypassed his finance minister, saying there was ample time to bring the deficit down to 2.5 per cent and that no immediate measures were needed.

As a result, Shiarly did not meet the May 31, deadline agreed with the ECB to push through cost-saving measures. This in turn meant the government could not borrow to prop up the banks, which needed to recapitalise by June 30. When that deadline also passed, the government was forced to apply to the troika for a bailout.

AS THE weekend before Christmas brought on a mad rush to the shops while parents island-wide whipped out the children’s ‘wish lists,’ one has to wonder if the true meaning of the festive season holds any importance to kids today amidst their requests for the latest i-Pad mini and X-box 360. 

 “I think it falls into two groups,” points out Father John Tyrell of St Paul’s Church in Nicosia. “There are those who have a church affiliation and those who don’t. For those who have lost touch of the religious meanings behind Christmas, it becomes just another secular holiday where presents and Santa become most important.” 

Father Tyrell remains convinced that it all comes down to the way children are raised. “What kids know usually depends on what has been predominantly passed on to them by parents and schooling. If Christmas is associated with a time of worship then they will be inclined to remember the real reasons why we celebrate it.”

“Christmas has become highly commercialized, I doubt most kids today recognise the true meaning behind the day,” reflects Rick Dugan, Pastor of the Nicosia International Church. “I wish that people would remember that it’s really about the birth of Christ- the flesh and son of God. This truly dwarfs any play station game that kids might get.” 

But this doesn’t mean that giving gifts has to have negative connotations. “Of course, it’s a happy occasion and I always give gifts to my kids. I’m not against that; after all it’s a time of giving and a symbol of what God has given to us. There’s a symbolic meaning behind the tradition. I’m 46-year-old now and things haven’t changed that much- as a kid I was always just really excited to get presents.”

While religious education is included in the school curriculum here in Cyprus, state schools place a focus on Greek Orthodox religion while private schools are more inclined to teach religious studies that encompass all religious beliefs. And despite concerns that children may be losing track of tradition, it turns out that the i-Pad generation give more importance to the meaning behind Christmas that we may give them credit for. 

 “I definitely look forward to Christmas as a holiday but I also remember religion because we go to Church with my dad on the morning of the 25th,” says the 12-year-old Greek Cypriot Stavros. “I do think of Jesus too because Christouenna (Christmas) in Greek literally means the birth of Christ.” 

Sixteen-year-old Stephanie also spends time at church during the build up to the big day, explaining that it has always been a family tradition. “My family is very religious and we also even go to church for Epiphany. I also fast the week before Christmas and in my house we really place a big emphasis on the birth of Christ.” 

Seeming to embrace the churchgoing experience because of family habits, Stephanie is also rather excited about the fact that Christmas always gives her the chance to get together with cousins and other family members she may not have seen for a while. “Sometimes we’ve gone through bad patches with family members and I think that this time of year somehow makes us bond. We play games, we eat, and we sing carols. I do really like it.”

Others simply rejoice in the fact that they don’t have to go to school and can spend more time with their friends while some don’t go to church but still feel that Christmas is a time of appreciation and sharing. 

“I’m not really religious,” admits George, an 18-year-old American Cypriot. “But I do think that Christmas is a time when people should come together. It’s a warm feeling of having people you love around you and a cheerful atmosphere in general.”  One 16-year-old boy named Paris is a slightly more cynical in his approach the holiday season. “It’s a time of year when we all celebrate mass consumerism in an orgy of spending and shopping.” And does he enjoy it? “Well, theoretically I shouldn’t but it’s a guilty pleasure. I do expect to get presents.” 

Whether kids today are religious or not, there is still a basic general knowledge about the basis of Christmas and the story of the birth of Jesus, with almost all of the teenagers in question aware of the basics including how Mary found out she was pregnant, why her and Joseph had to sleep in a stable in Bethlehem, and the role of King Herod.  

Overall ignorance however seems to prevail when the children are asked about what three gifts the wise men took along to baby Jesus. “Silver, silk and I’m just not sure of the other one,” replies Stavros hesitantly. “I think it was some sort of perfume,” says his friend Vasilis. “I used to know the answer when I was young but I really have no idea right now,” admits a slightly embarrassed Tania. Perhaps when it comes to gifts, kids these days can’t really see past the allure of today’s glossy gadgets after all. 

ONE man was yesterday left in critical condition, and two more were in custody, after a dramatic car chase and shootout with police 

One of the alleged perpetrators, a Greek Cypriot, was seriously wounded in an exchange of fire that took place in the community of Marki, outside Nicosia. He was rushed to Nicosia general hospital where he underwent surgery; his condition is described as critical.

The two other men, Greek Pontians, have been arrested and are being questioned. They are set to appear before a court today for their remand hearing.

It all began when police patrols, investigating a burglary an at electronics store in Latsia in the morning, flagged down a car with fake license plates near the scene of the crime.

The three men aboard refused to stop, and sped away, with police patrols and motorcycles giving chase. They were joined by squads from the riot squad and the Crime Prevention Unit.

The perpetrators sped across Tseri Avenue and continued onto the village of Marki, near Latsia.

At one point a police car managed to cut off the suspects, with the two vehicles colliding. The perpetrators fired at the car with a shotgun and managed to escape.

During the pursuit – which ended at the village of Marki – the perpetrators were seen tossing out of the car computers and other electronic devices.

The perpetrators were forced to pull over after police had managed to shoot out their tyres. A shootout ensued on the spot, during which one of the suspects was wounded in the abdomen. The bleeding Greek Cypriot was apprehended shortly after inside the car and was rushed to hospital for surgery.

Cornered, his two accomplices exited the vehicle and took to the fields, with police officers giving chase on foot and eventually capturing them.

The two Greek Pontians had hurriedly disassembled the shotgun and thrown it away while fleeing in the fields.

Two officers sustained light arm injuries.

Police said the suspects’ haul is worth an estimated €50,000.

The three men were said to hail from Paphos and to have had run-ins with the law previously.

ALTHOUGH there is probably a significant number of people in Cyprus who have been left untouched by the economic crisis, the vast majority have felt it in one way or another but this has not stopped an overwhelming mobilisation in all districts to help those less fortunate.

A few years ago before Demetris Grinchofias began to re-make families here into a 21st century image of The Waltons – a close-knit American TV family struggling through the Great Depression - Christmas was a time of indulgence and materialism with little thought for those less fortunate.

There wasn’t much need to. The number of those needing help was smaller and easier for charities and the Church to handle. Poverty was not in your face. Now it is, and the response to lessening it for others has been tremendous. 

This Christmas hundreds of needy families have been given the chance to have some kind of Christmas thanks to the hard work by municipalities, communities, volunteers, the Church, and ordinary members of the public, who even if they cannot afford to give money themselves, have gone out of their way to buy a few extra items at the supermarket to donate.

It’s funny how the less people have, the more they seem inclined to give.  

A study in the US in 2010 found that those on the lower-income levels are more likely to give and be charitable than their higher paid counterparts. The reasoning was empathy. Those who are feeling the pinch themselves can sympathise more easily with others in the same boat, and this is more pronounced during times like Christmas – traditionally a time of giving.

But the price paid for this re-found ‘Christmas spirit’ has been unacceptably high – poverty lines, soup kitchens, joblessness, hungry children – while the society of ‘social justice’ Christofias pledged to create is nowhere to be found while he’s sitting pretty wanting for nothing this Christmas. 

We can only hope that by this time next year, our new government will have put us back on the road to recovery somewhat at least, and that Christmas 2013 will be a slightly better one for those families depending on charity this year just to get by.

In the meantime we wish all our readers, if not a prosperous Christmas, then at least one where we can be thankful for what we do have. Instead of counting presents under the tree, we might do better to count our blessings, even if the Grinch has stolen Christmas. Because no matter how badly off we are, or think we are, there is always someone out there who is worse off.

IN PAPHOS, which has been hardest hit by the wave of unemployment, authorities, businesses and the general public have joined forces to ensure needy families won’t be left hungry, especially during the Christmas period.

A Paphos municipality social welfare committee programme to help began in April with 150 families receiving some sort of food support. That number has now grown to more than 500.

President of the Paphos municipality social welfare committee Maria Zavrou said the response from individuals, businesses, supermarkets and associations wanting to help, was overwhelming.

“At the beginning of the week we handed out special Christmas food parcels to about 550 needy families in Paphos,” she said.

According to the social welfare fund, the size of the family and the numbers of children denoted whether food parcels were double or even triple the size of the regular boxes, as there will be no further grocery boxes given again until January 7.

 “The Christmas parcels included all the usual staple products such as cooking oil, pasta sugar, flour, long life milk, rice, pulses and coffee, as well as extra groceries such as fruit and chickens which were donated by the Paphos municipality,” said Zavrou.

In addition, the families were given coupons for meat for Christmas dinner. “We have stamped vouchers for €10 and €20 worth of meat as an extra,” she added

A basic package contains food worth €35-€40 and around 65 families receive weekly help with the rest being given parcels either once or twice a month.

According to the social welfare fund around €30,000 worth of goods has been given away in the last month. Individuals, schools, businesses and associations wanting to help out, have also been making cash donations to the fund on an almost daily basis

Zavrou said she had been touched by the generosity of the general public: “Only this morning a Norwegian man and his wife, both residents of Paphos, bought in a cash donation of €2,500, which will be put towards buying groceries for the families in need,” she said.

“We can only thank everyone for pulling together to help each other through these difficult times.”

The Paphos municipality has re assigned some municipal cash to the social welfare fund by cancelling a number of events, in order to offer assistance to families who have been worst hit by the economic crisis.

The mayor of Yeroskipou said that for the first time families in his municipality were now in need of food assistance.

Michael Pavlides told the Cyprus Mail: “We have now implemented an assistance programme called ‘food with love’- and this week we handed out money, food, clothing and toys to 70 needy families in Yeroskipou.”

Pavlides added that the municipality was aiming to continue the programme on a regular basis and offer support to the families which are facing huge financial difficulties.

“Many people have lost their jobs and this programme is something new for us in Yeroskipou. We are all doing what we can to help. “As well as businesses and supermarkets, many individuals have been so kind as well.”

Peyia Municipality collected donations of food as part of a programme which ran from last Wednesday. Donations included pasta, beans, rice, children’s food, sugar, biscuits, oil, flour, nuts, cereal, canned goods, milk and conserves.

The municipality is hoping to provide both food and financial assistance to these people even after the Christmas period.

Mayor of Polis Chrysochous, Angelos Georgiou said that close to 50 families there were in need of food assistance.

He said: ”In co operation with a number of different organisations, we will be giving out coupons for food as well as money on December 27 and 28.”

“We will also be asking members of the public if they can donate groceries and bring them to the municipality.”

The Pupils’ Choir from The International School of Paphos (ISOP), accompanied by the School’s management brought the spirit of Christmas to citizens in need.

THOUSANDS of needy families across Cyprus have received help for the holidays over as the public rallied behind a growing mobilisation of in all districts to help those less fortunate.

Local authorities, charities, schools,  colleges, companies, volunteers, and the Church joined forces to ensure as few people as possible go without for Christmas, as unemployment continues to soar, and those who are working face a huge drop in their standard of living.

All districts report an overwhelming response to pleas for help, and the public has responded with time, money or donations of foodstuff and clothing.

In Limassol, over 240 families have received packages through the municipality's community market scheme, which collects donated dried and canned food, household items and clothes.

The packages are bigger this time of year than they normally are, because of the large number of people and companies who have responded to calls for help, the head of Limassol municipality's social welfare department, Evie Tsolaki, said.

"We have been able to offer bigger quantities of goods," she said adding that a number of events throughout December have helped raise awareness among the people. 

Groups have formed spontaneously, as people have responded "very warmly" to requests for assistance, she said. There have been cyclists touring the city, and "a group of friends playing guitar and collecting food for the community market," she said. 

Companies, schools and universities, as well as individuals have all been pitching in, she added. On Boxing Day, the 240 families who are being helped will all gather for a festive meal, Tsolaki said.

The Limassol Bishopric's Stavros Olympios, who runs the Church’s soup kitchen as well as the pancyprian volunteerism coordinative council, also reported an increased willingness to help at this time of year. 

"It is touching how many people come and bring food to equip our volunteers' centres," he said, referring to a recent initiative to set up centres in each town where people can help the needy directly and with minimal fuss. 

"Now, because of the holidays but also because of the [financial] situation, more people are helping on the level of councils, the Church, everywhere," Olympios said.

"If they can't afford to give money, they contribute in kind, also many are giving toys for children," he said.

"We hope this is not seasonal but continues throughout the year so these centres can function and we can help people," Olympios said.

The soup kitchen now offers lunch on a daily basis for 600 people, already an increase of 100 since the last time the Cyprus Mail checked in with them back in November. 

In Nicosia, an estimated 2,500 people were helped as part of an initiative launched by Archbishop Chrysostomos II, who opened a food market in May. 

Parish priests inform the archbishopric of their flock’s needs, and the list is ever-growing.

And Nicosia municipality has cancelled New Year’s celebrations and – in conjunction with help from Athienitis supermarkets, has helped 320 primary school students and their families each get a €50 voucher for Christmas, Nicosia mayor Constantinos Yiorkadjis said.

The Nicosia multifunctional centre has also been fundraising to help needy and vulnerable families, Yiorkadjis said.

In Larnaca too, more and more people are in need of help, with the recently set up community market now providing weekly food parcels for over 200 families, community councillor Elias Elia said. In November, it was 150 families that were the recipients, he said.

But for Christmas, the municipality plans to help an additional 150 to 200 people who  applied for assistance, but the municipality was not currently able to help on a regular basis as of now.

"All of us - but especially the mayor, Andreas Lourdoudjiadis have been putting in tremendous efforts," he said.

Though Elia also said that people were being more generous in the holiday season, he added the municipality was being careful to ensure that there was enough left for after the holidays.

"It would be a shame if we did not have anything to give to these families in the New Year, and the times that are coming ahead are hard," he said.

How you can help:

The Larnaca community market’s Famagusta co-operative bank account: 0344004770-2 

Call the bank at 24-203300, for any questions or assistance.

Contributions to the Pancyprian Volunteerism Coordinative Council can be made to following bank accounts: Bank of Cyprus 357005889524; Popular Bank 005-31-039544; Hellenic Bank 105-11-137244-01; Alpha Bank 202-105-024772-7 and the Co-operative Central Bank 1001050008387

Limassol municipality asks that people call at 25 884 300 to find out how to help.

Your local parish priest in Nicosia is your point of contact in Nicosia. 

Call the Cyprus Red Cross Society at 22666955 or else email admin@redcross.org.cy

Alkionides charity has a warehouse in Dali, where people can donate clothes, furniture and dried food to be handed out to people in need. To donate, contact Alkionides on 22 361295 from 8am to 1pm, Monday to Friday

Anyone interested in donating to the Future Worlds Centre, please  call 22-873820.

The recent ‘outpouring of love’ at Engomi municipality in Nicosia

AFTER MONTHS of wrangling over the economic woes of the country, the government and opposition yesterday joined forces to reject Turkish reports of a UN proposal to hold a four-party conference on the Cyprus problem. 

The realignment of stars was brief however as the various factions within the Cypriot political system soon turned on each other to blame their opponents for giving Turkey the chance to push for a four-party conference through their alleged playmaker, UN special adviser on Cyprus Alexander Downer.  

According to Turkish press reports, Turkey’s EU Minister Egemen Bagis raised the prospect of a multilateral conference attended by Greece, Turkey, the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot leadership after next February’s presidential elections. 

Bagis referred specifically to an alleged proposal by Downer to have Turkish Cypriot leader Dervis Eroglu meet with Greek prime minister Antonis Samaras and the next Cypriot president with Turkish PM Tayyip Erdogan. 

Bagis described this proposal as “incomplete”, saying the UN should take it a step further and arrange a four-party conference.  

Government spokesman Stefanos Stefanou on Wednesday rejected the notion of holding four-party talks, accusing Turkey of attempting to deviate from the current negotiating process based on the relevant UN resolutions.

Regarding a multilateral conference on the Cyprus problem, Stefanou said: “This is a procedure that we reject. It was emphatically rejected by the President of the Republic when Turkey attempted to promote a meeting between Mr (Mehmet Ali) Talat (the former leader of the Turkish Cypriot community) and the Greek Premier, following the president’s desire to meet with the Turkish leadership to explain his vision for a Cyprus solution,” the spokesman said.

Stefanou also took pot shots at presidential contenders, DISY leader Nicos Anastasiades and EDEK-backed Giorgos Lillikas, accusing both of sending the wrong messages to Turkey. 

Anastasiades’ proposal to broaden the peace talks to include Turkey at the negotiating table was helping the latter promote its four-party conference, claimed Stefanou. 

Meanwhile, Lillikas’ proposal to start negotiations from scratch would lead to making void the UN resolutions on Cyprus thereby freeing Turkey to pursue its policy of upgrading the breakaway regime in the north, he added.  

All parties yesterday voiced their opposition to Bagis’ suggestion, including DISY which wants to see a change to the current format. DISY’s election partner DIKO went as far as to point the finger at Downer, accusing him of working behind the scenes to let Turkey off the hook. 

According to a source with knowledge on the negotiation process, Downer has raised the issue of getting the next Cypriot president to meet with Erdogan as well as Eroglu with Samaras, though the focus appears to be on the former as Greece is no longer considered to have a very influential role in the negotiations.

He has floated a number of ideas to see how the peace talks could restart after the February elections.  

There is talk about finding ways to get the EU and Turkey more involved this time, though first Downer will have to find a way to overcome the obstacle placed by the Turkish Cypriots.

Eroglu has set as a precondition to returning to the table the imposition of a timetable. 

The UN is aware that any fixed timetable could simply hand Eroglu an invitation to “wait it out” until the timeframe expires and then pursue wholeheartedly independence for the breakaway regime. 

Instead, Downer will have to find a way to address the issue of timeframes in a more creative manner so that Eroglu will agree to come to the table but will not be allowed to sit idly on it once he gets there. 

One report in Kibris Postasi suggested the UN plans to initiate cross-community meetings, followed by five-party talks, including Greece and Turkey with the UN Secretary-General present in an effort to bang out a result on all pending chapters in the talks, taking a head-on approach, as opposed to going through the talks chapter by chapter. 

Meanwhile, Bagis continued his tactic of stimulating debate in yesterday’s Kibris newspaper, describing as a great embarrassment for the EU the bankruptcy of the country holding the EU presidency. 

He cheekily suggested Cyprus request a loan from the Turkish Cypriots “just as it gets its electricity and water when it needs it”, despite the fact that the ‘TRNC’ is itself surviving almost entirely on Turkish handouts.

GANGS of animal rustlers are targeting livestock in areas close to the UN-controlled  buffer zone  according to police. 

Most recently, livestock from the areas of Dali, Lympia, Potamia and Athienou have been stolen. 

“The police are looking into the case and the possibility that the gangs cross over from the north although nothing has been confirmed,” police spokesman Andreas Angelides said.

The most recent incident, according to police, involved five young people, between the ages of 20 and 22 who stole around 40 sheep at gunpoint in the village of Athienou at 9pm on Christmas Day. 

The 74-year-old owner of the sheep and his 69-year-old wife reported to police they were tied up while the robbers loaded the sheep on their truck before stealing his mobile phone, his car keys and slashing his car’s tyres. The value of the sheep is estimated to be around €4,000. 

Farmers from the affected areas have demanded that police take measures to protect their property. In response, the police have increased their patrols along the buffer zone. They are calling on people who see anything suspicious on their land or property to inform them but to avoid attempting to resolve the problem themselves as gangs are often armed.

SAVVAS Xenophontos, the Greek-Cypriot man who was involved in a car chase and shootout with the police on Christmas Eve, was killed by a bullet from a firearm according to state pathologist Eleni Antoniou.

Xenophontos was in a car with two Greek Pontians that had failed to stop at the police’s insistence in the early hours of December 24. 

The culprits sped away and were followed by police patrols and motorcycles that were later joined by members of the anti-riot squad and crime prevention unit. They were chased across Tseri Avenue into the village of Marki where police managed to cut them off. A gun battle between the police and the three perpetrators ensued, culminating in Xenophontos injury. Despite being rushed to hospital and being operated on, he did not survive.

State pathologist Eleni Antoniou in the presence of state-pathologist Nicholas Charalambous and private pathologist Marios Matsakis, on behalf of the family, carried out a post-mortem on Wednesday morning. According to Antoniou, the victim was shot in the back from a distance and the bullet passed through his body.

“Nicholas Charalambous and I will be taking a closer look at the victim’s clothes, the car the three men were driving and the police vehicles involved in the chase to determine exactly what happened,” Matsakis told the Cyprus Mail.

“All of the evidence will be gathered by police and handed over to the Attorney-general, Petros Clerides as soon as possible,” police spokesman Andreas Angelides said.

A 62-YEAR-OLD former policeman is due to stand trial for the premeditated murder of his wife, aged 56, who was found dead in the couple’s living room in early December.

Larnaca district court has referred the 62-year-old to criminal court where he is due to appear on February 14, facing premeditated murder charges.

On December 10, the man’s next-door neighbour in the Larnaca district called the police after the 62-year-old knocked on his door at about 10:30pm to tell him he had found his wife shot dead in the living room, Larnaca police spokesman Christos Andreou told the Cyprus Mail.

The 62-year-old then fainted, but later told the police that he was in the bathroom when he heard a gunshot and went in the living room to find his wife dead on their sofa, Andreou said.

The man claimed that his wife killed herself, but police investigators ruled out suicide. The court ordered that the 62-year-old be held in custody until trial starts.

THE 26-year-old drunk driver who hit and killed a domestic worker while she was sweeping the pavement outside her workplace last Saturday will be charged on three counts, said police yesterday. 

The 28-year-old Filipino domestic worker was killed at around 6.40am on December 22 in Limassol when she was sweeping the pavement in between two parked cars after a drunk driver hit one of the cars, throwing her onto the other vehicle. 

The driver, a 26-year-old Cypriot man, was three times over the alcohol consumption limit, with a final breathalyser test showing 72 microgrammes of alcohol per 100 millilitres, although the legal limit is 22 microgrammes, police said.

The domestic worker was taken by ambulance to Limassol hospital, where the doctor on duty announced her dead on arrival.

The 26-year-old was remanded in custody for two days after which he was released pending charges that will be filed in court. 

According to police sources, the driver was remanded in custody for two days because that was all the time needed by police to complete their investigations. They are now in the process of preparing a charge sheet which will include the following three charges: causing death by negligence; driving under the influence impeding his ability to drive safely and driving over the legal limit. 

The maximum jail sentence for the following charges is four years in jail, said the police source.

WHEN PRESIDENT Demetris Christofias leaves office next February, he will do so confident that history will vindicate his decisions, despite feeling bitterness for the “harsh and unfair” criticism levelled against him in the last five years, he told Haravghi newspaper in a two-part interview. 

The first part was published on Christmas Day, where Christofias bemoaned the “harsh and unfair attacks” he had to endure during his tenure. 

“The class, ideological, factional and social hatred of the president was so great that it reached the point where some were calling the president a murderer,” Christofias told Haravghi. 

Asked how he feels about handing over the reins of state next March, the president said he had “mixed feelings”. 

“On the one hand I’m leaving with bitterness because I was subject to harsh and unfair attacks, that no other president had to endure. Some may think that with these harsh attacks they were undermining and humiliating the president. What they succeeded in doing was to undermine and humiliate the institution of the president’s office. There is nothing worse in a democracy than undermining the institutions. Unfortunately this happened continuously,” he said. 

Despite facing a barrage of criticism for his handling of the economy, Christofias maintained that the government did a good job under extreme conditions. 

“We were unlucky because during our presidency we had to deal with capitalism’s worst crisis. I am confident though that history will vindicate us, because we have done a lot of work and innovatively in various sectors. For this work, I am satisfied,” he said. 

Asked to comment on criticism that Cyprus requested support from the European Stability Mechanism because the government failed to take adequate measures, he replied that Cyprus was forced to apply for a bailout only because of the banks’ exposure to the Greek economy. 

“The whole of Europe acknowledges this, the Greek prime minister boldly said it, and yet the opposition in Cyprus insists on blaming the government for everything”.

He argued that when Cyprus was shut out of the international markets in April 2011, public debt was at 60.8 per cent and the public deficit at 5.3 per cent while the corresponding average for the Eurozone was 85.1 per cent and 6.0 per cent respectively. 

When Cyprus requested a bailout, the public debt reached 74 per cent and public deficit 5.8 per cent, figures that were still favourable when compared to Europe, he said. 

Christofias argued that any objective person could see that Cyprus did not request a bailout because of the country’s fiscal situation. 

“If that was the reason then the markets would have closed for the majority of member states in the Eurozone long before they did for Cyprus and many countries would seek recourse to the (European stability) mechanism,” he said. 

In the second part of the interview published yesterday, Christofias highlighted the “glaring contradictions” in the positions of two presidential candidates, Nicos Anastasiades and Giorgos Lillikas, on the Cyprus problem. 

The outgoing president questioned how DIKO could collaborate with DISY when the latter’s candidate, Anastasiades, insists on including Turkey directly in the peace negotiations in an effort to achieve a loose, decentralised federation. 

He also questioned how Anastasiades can claim to want to withdraw all proposals submitted by Christofias in the peace talks when they constitute improvements on provisions that the DISY leader had previously accepted. 

In a broadside at Lillikas’ proposal to start peace negotiations from scratch, Christofias questioned how anyone could believe that the deadlock could be broken by essentially going after a unitary state solution when the opposing side refuses to accept the current model of a bicommunal, bizonal federation. 

“The fatal result would be to lose our support base and lead to a final partition,” he said. 

Christofias voiced his support to AKEL-backed candidate Stavros Malas, noting that he was the only candidate appealing to the Turkish Cypriots, thereby showing an understanding of how important they were to reaching a fair and functional solution.

THE CENTRAL BANK is today expected to announce the name of the consultancy selected to verify a due diligence of Cypriot banks carried out by investment company Pimco.

Pimco has already released an interim review; its full report is scheduled to be delivered by January 15, six days before the next meeting of euro-area finance ministers. The interim report was submitted to a steering committee comprising potential lenders and Cypriot authorities.

In the meantime the Central Bank, a member of the steering committee, asked that a consultancy review and verify the methodology used by Pimco.

Following a tender selection process, the name of the consultancy is expected to be revealed today. It’s understood the firm will deliver its verdict before January 15, the date on which Pimco is expected to disclose its full report.

Central Bank sources said yesterday the consultancy has been hired to offer assistance on “highly technical data” within the Pimco report.

“We wanted to double-check that the diligence is accurate…leaving no room for doubt as to the [capital] needs of the banks,” the same sources said.

This, they stressed, did not involve checking Pimco’s method of calculating banks’ non-performing loans (NPLs); that issue has long been settled.

The banks’ recapitalisation needs will determine the size of bailout required by Cyprus.

Meanwhile yesterday, the island’s second largest lender Popular Bank announced a voluntary exit plan for its some 3,000 employees in Greece, offering packages of up to €120,000.

According to reports, those under the age of 45 will be offered four-tenths of their salary for every year of service; employees aged 45 to 55 will receive 100 per cent of their salary for each year of service; and those aged 55 and above will get 1.25 salaries for every year of service.

A similar plan was made available to staff in Cyprus, with about 100 employees opting to take early retirement.

Amid mounting capital losses, Popular has called an extraordinary general meeting for February 13. The group sustained losses of €1.7 billion during the first three quarters of the year due to increased risk and goodwill write-offs.

Having acquired €1.8 billion worth of shares in Popular in May, the state passed a directive aimed at downsizing the group’s operations as part of a cost-cutting drive. Under the directive, the group’s payroll must be additionally reduced by at least 8 per cent within 2013.

And the Bank of Cyprus (BoC) announced yesterday, that the group’s results after tax and before the impairment of Greek government bonds for the financial year ending December 31 2012 are expected to have a significant negative deviation compared to the 2011 results.

The deviation is mainly due to increased provisions for impairment of loans (due to the continuing deteriorating economic conditions and the adoption of stricter assumptions in the context of the Pimco review) as well as reduced operating income, the bank said.

The revised profit results would impact the group’s capital adequacy ratio; the bank forecast that, as of December 31 2012, its Core Tier 1 capital ratio could go under 5 per cent.

“On the basis of the above expectations…the bank is in contact with the relevant supervisory authorities and troika, aiming at finding the best possible solution for all parties involved,” the statement said.

RUSSIA does not intend to grant Cyprus an interstate loan because the associated risks are too great to be assumed by any single creditor, Russia’s deputy finance minister has said.

“We have no specific plans or instructions to do so,” Sergei Storchak said in a December 24 interview with news agency Bloomberg in Moscow.

“It’s obvious that no single creditor can work with Cyprus alone,” he added. “Anyone who steps up on an individual basis to finance that country’s government or to help recapitalise its banks would be taking an enormous risk.”

Earlier, Russian President Vladimir Putin had said his country would consider giving financial assistance to Cyprus as a part of an international rescue package after the euro area takes a unified stance on aiding the island.

Expanding on this, Storchak said Russia does not rule out taking part in a bailout, though not as “major creditors.”

If a group of lenders were formed to help Cyprus, it would be based on Cyprus’ membership in the European Union, he said.

Last year Cyprus borrowed €2.5 billion from Russia to help the government stabilise its finances; that loan matures in 2016.

And earlier this year, it emerged that the administration was seeking an additional €5 billion from Russia; the lion’s share of a new loan would have gone towards propping up the banks and thus avoid resorting to the EU support mechanism.

Cyprus’ two largest lenders currently need a combined €2.3 billion to recapitalise. The government’s inability to borrow from markets – given the sovereign junk bond rating – to bolster the banks forced it to request EU assistance back in June.

Cyprus may need as much as €17.5 billion, almost the size of its economy, to pay its bills and recapitalize banks, Finance Minister Vassos Shiarly has said.

The island’s public debt is forecast to exceed 89 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) this year – not counting the banks’ capital needs.

Back in May, the state pledged to underwrite Popular Bank’s attempt to raise €1.8 billion in equity, after private demand for shares in Popular’s rights issue was minimal.

There is growing speculation that the country’s debt to GDP ratio – a key indicator of the health of an economy – could reach 120 per cent, the level deemed unsustainable by the International Monetary Fund.

IF THERE’S one thing Turkish politicians are not short of, it’s chutzpah.

Turkey’s minister for Europe, Egeman Bagis, sparked off an internal row on the Greek Cypriot side yesterday by raising the issue of a four-party conference on the Cyprus problem but that in itself – and the parties’ reactions - are nothing new. They need something else to focus on as election fever heats up.

But it was Bagis’ comments on Cyprus’ financial crisis that provided a bit of light relief. Turkish press quoted him as saying that the economic situation in Cyprus did not make Turkey happy and that to ‘hit a country when it was down’ has no place in Turkish culture.  

Then he went ahead and did just that. 

"It is really thought-provoking that a country that possesses the bloc’s rotating presidency is in a position to declare its bankruptcy in terms of the European Union’s founding philosophy," said Bagis.

It got even better when he said that the ‘improving’ state of northern Cyprus was ready to ‘help the south’. "The Greek Cypriot administration could get a loan from the north just like they receive electricity and water when they need it," he said.

He added that if President Demetris Christofias was anxious over the economic crisis and wanted to apply to ‘Turkish Cyprus’ ‘we are ready to lend a hand to Greek Cypriots as their neighbour’.  The economic crisis was a result of ‘non-logical obstinacy of Greek Cypriots’ he said, ‘God help them’.

To outsiders, Bagis’ offer might sound generous, apart from the blatant untruths he came out with. 

Firstly, Greek Cypriots do not receive electricity and water from the north. Where electricity is concerned, it’s been quite the reverse for decades.  Electricity was temporarily bought from the north during the Mari crisis, for an amount running into the millions.

But Bagis’ biggest porky was suggesting the ‘TRNC’ could loan money to the Cyprus government when the regime in the north is totally reliant on handouts from Turkey, and almost as broke in relative terms as we are.

Only yesterday, binmen in the north were out protesting because they have not been paid for three months, and they’re just one sector of the north’s economy facing austerity imposed by Ankara.

Bagis’ version of ‘lending a hand’ to Greek Cypriots would also come with the strings of recognition for the "TRNC". Of course he knew such an offer could not and would not ever be accepted, yet he didn’t want to ‘hit a country when it was down’ although that’s exactly what he did. 

The Turkish side is always clamouring for a share in the island’s oil and gas wealth yet their generous offer, a la Bagis, unsurprisingly doesn’t  stretch as far as sharing our debt. And this man is Turkey’s minister for Europe?  God help everyone.