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

Historic visit by Russian warships

0
0
Author: 
Peter Stevenson

THREE warships from Russia’s Pacific Fleet entered Mediterranean waters for the first time in decades, docking in Limassol port yesterday.
“The task force has successfully passed through the Suez Channel and entered the Mediterranean. It is the first time in decades that Pacific Fleet warships enter this region,” Captain First Rank Roman Martov told Russian news agency RIA Novosti.
The fleet, including the destroyer Admiral Panteleyev, the amphibious warfare ships Peresvet and Admiral Nevelskoi, the tanker Pechenga and the tugboat Fotiy Krylov left the port of Vladivostok on March 19 to join Russia’s Mediterranean task force.
Cypriot Defence Minister Fotis Fotiou is due to visit the warships today after receiving an invitation from the Russian ambassador to Cyprus.
Sigmalive reported yesterday that it is likely the Ambassador would ask for permission from the Cyprus government to allow other ships from Russia’s Mediterranean task force to dock in Limassol. It was reported that the 300 sailors from the vessels currently docked there, would receive permits to visit the coastal town. The ships are expected to set sail from Limassol around noon on Monday after being refuelled.
Last year, two warships from Russia’s Black Sea Fleet docked at Limassol as tensions rose in Syria. That was the first time in at least ten years that any Russian warship had docked in Cyprus. The arrival of the Pacific Fleet is a new first.
"The continued presence of Russian warships close to Syria demonstrates the Kremlin's desire to keep up the Russian navy colours in the area to indicate that Russia stands by its attitude that the Syrian crisis should be resolved within the country by the country's existing political forces," Igor Korotchenko, editor in chief of the Russian monthly journal National Defence said in an interview.
He added that he did not foresee the vessels taking part in any evacuation of the many Russian citizens in Syria.
The Russian foreign ministry has been talking about the possibility of such an evacuation. At the end of January, a contingent of 77 people, mostly women and children, were evacuated from Syria via Beirut by two Russian emergency flights.
"Should such a need arise," Korotchenko said, Russian citizens would be evacuated by plane.
Russian’s wider Mediterranean task force includes the large anti-submarine ship Severomorsk, the frigate Yaroslav Mudry, the salvage/rescue tugs Altai and SB-921 and the tanker Lena from the Northern and Baltic Fleets, as well as the Ropucha-II Class landing ship Azov from the Black Sea Fleet.
The task force may be enlarged to include nuclear submarines, Navy Commander Admiral Viktor Chirkov said last Sunday.
The Russian defence ministry said in April that Moscow had begun setting up a naval task force in the Mediterranean. Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said in March a permanent naval task force in the Mediterranean was needed to defend Russia’s interests in the region.
A senior defence ministry official said the Mediterranean task force's command and control agencies would be based either in Novorossiysk, Russia, or in Sevastopol, Ukraine.
Admiral Vladimir Komoyedov, head of Russia’s parliamentary defence committee, previously told RIA Novosti that the Mediterranean task force should be comprised of ten warships and support vessels as part of several tactical groups tasked with attack, antisubmarine warfare and minesweeping.
The Soviet Union maintained its fifth Mediterranean Squadron from 1967 until 1992. It was formed to counter the US Navy's sixth Fleet during the Cold War, and consisted of 30-50 warships and auxiliary vessels.

Ramp is put in place for disembarking
The warships entered Mediterranean waters for the first time in decades (CNA)

Capital controls relaxed further

0
0


THE TWELFTH decree on capital controls was released yesterday with two new relaxations.
These include the increase in amount of non-cash payment or money transfer from €10,000 to €15,000 per month per natural person in each credit institution regardless of the purpose. And an increase from €50,000 to €75,000 per month per legal person in each credit institution regardless of the purpose.
It is now prohibited to terminate fixed term deposits prior to their maturity unless the funds are used to repay a loan and/or overdraft and/or credit card within the same credit institution.
The finance ministry also released the third decree on foreign bank exemptions which included the names of four new banks. These are BLOM Bank SAL, Lebanon and Gulf Bank SAL, OJSC Promsvyazbank, Russian Commercial Bank (Cyprus) Ltd.
Originally Bank of Beirut SAL, Banque BEMO SAL, Banque SBA, Barclays Bank PLC, BBAC SAL, Credit Libanais SAL, Jordan Ahli Bank plc, Privatbank Commercial Bank had been exempt from capital controls.

Cost cutting pays off in first quarter

0
0
Author: 
Peter Stevenson

PUBLIC FINANCES recorded a surplus of €44.2m during the first quarter of 2013 due to a reduction of government expenditure by 17.2 per cent.
Despite a reduction of 7.6 per cent in income, cost-cutting measures by the government led to a surplus of €44.2m according to the Statistical Services which had reported a deficit of €148m during the first three months of 2012.
The surplus was mainly due to a decrease of 6.9 per cent in civil servant salaries, a decrease of 23 per cent in social benefits and a 21.8 per cent decrease in government operating expenses.
State revenue during the first three months of 2013 came to €1.6 billion which is 7.6 per cent less than the corresponding period in 2012, while state expenditure, which came to €1.56 billion, decreased by 17.2 per cent since the first quarter of last year.
The main sources of state revenue during the period between January and March of 2013 were taxes on production and imports, which came to €451 million, 25.1 per cent less than during the same period in 2012. The government also received €244 million from VAT which was 28.5 per cent less than in 2012 and €411 million from income tax which was also 22.8 per cent less than last year.
Revenue from state services came to €270 million which is 147 per cent higher than during the corresponding period of 2012.
The main areas of state expenditure during the first quarter of 2013 were employee salaries, including civil servant pensions, which came to €609 million, a 6.9 per cent decrease from 2012. Social benefits were down 23 per cent, reaching €449 million while operating costs came to €156 million which was 21.8 per cent less than the first three months of last year.
During the fourth quarter of 2012 there was a deficit of €538.5 million, compared to a deficit of €592.4 million during the corresponding period of 2011. Total revenue increased by 7.7 per cent from the same period of 2011, while total expenditure had increased by 3.7 per cent.
In 2012 public finances recorded a deficit of €1.1 billion, which corresponds to 6.3 per cent Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
Overall, last year, expenditure rose by 0.1 per cent compared to 2011, while revenue also increased marginally by 0.2 per cent in comparison to the previous year.
 

Orphanides: they trashed the banks to win votes

0
0
Author: 
Stefanos Evripidou

FORMER CENTRAL Bank Governor Athanasios Orphanides yesterday accused his successor and the previous government of launching an assault on the banking system to win votes in the presidential elections at the cost of the destruction of the economy.
In a live link-up from America with a conference on the euro organised by the Tassos Papadopoulos Centre for Studies yesterday in Nicosia, Orphanides was scathing about the responsibility of the Demetris Christofias government and current central bank governor Panicos Demetriades for today’s economic mess.
He argued that the economic consequences of the past five years were so severe that during that time, real GDP per person fell cumulatively by more than 10 per cent. Following the latest damage to the economy, the decline in GDP is projected to continue.
“In five-short years, Cyprus had become a case study on how destructive economic populism can be,” said Orphanides.
He quoted German economist Rudi Dornbusch who said: “Populism always ends in tears.”
Despite being at the helm of the central bank from May 2007 to May 2012, Orphanides maintained the bulk of the blame for today’s crisis rests mostly with the Christofias government, though he also had a dig at his successor for allegedly undermining the independence of the central bank by following the AKEL party line.
In his live address to the conference, the former governor noted that when Cyprus joined the eurozone in 2008, it had the respect of its peers.
“Five years later, the economy is in shambles. For two whole years, Cyprus has a government with no access to markets. Euro deposits in Cyprus are unequal to euro deposits elsewhere. How could this happen?” he asked.
Orphanides, who now teaches at MIT in the US, noted that unlike other southern European countries that ran into trouble and applied for a bailout in recent years, when the Cypriot government ran into problems in May 2011 when it was shut out of international markets, it refused to follow the rules.
Instead of seeking help immediately, it waited a full year to request a bailout, on the same day in fact that Spain asked for financial assistance.
However, unlike other EU countries in trouble, the Cyprus government “refused to finalise an MoU”.
In contrast, Spain completed its agreement on July 20, 2012, three weeks after it had asked for help.
“The inaction by the government had severe economic consequences,” said the former governor.
When financial markets raised red flags, the government had a choice to fix the problem, regain credibility and restore sustainability or make the problem worse.
“Faced with this choice, the government assaulted the banking sector that was already weakened by the global crisis. By the time the five-year term of this government had ended, it had also succeeded in destroying the economic model of the country,” he said.
Orphanides presented in a slide show a letter dated May 18, 2010, from the central bank when he was at the helm to the government, warning of the looming economic and banking crisis.
The central bank warned “that unless there is a change in direction with meaningful fiscal consolidation, primarily on the expenditure side, the consequences for the Cypriot economy will be catastrophic”.
By the end of 2010, the presidential palace received another “emphatic” warning, this time from the European Central Bank (ECB) on the “disastrous” possibility of experiencing “negative feedback loops between the financial sector and public debt”.
The letter stressed the need for prompt corrective action, said Orphanides.
“Unfortunately for the Cypriot public, the government dismissed all these warnings. Not heeding the ECB warnings was particularly costly,” he said, noting that the ECB had shown a willingness to support ailing European economies through the purchasing of Greek, Irish, Portuguese, Italian and Spanish debt.
“Cyprus had the government that chose to dismiss all warnings. Unsurprisingly, the ECB made no purchases of Cypriot bonds.”
The former governor argued that in 2011 while everyone else was taking note of the widening fiscal problems and credit downgrades in Cyprus along with the deteriorating situation in Greece, the government imposed a levy on banks to raise more revenue and continue spending.
“By May, the situation had deteriorated but the Ministry of Finance denied it. There was a reason for the denials. The ministry of finance was trying to avoid disclosing the deterioration of the country's finances prior to the parliamentary elections in late May.”
He added: “The government's plan was successful. The communist party gained one seat on the 22 May 2011 parliamentary elections. However, the country was to pay a huge cost. The government had lost control of its financing.”
Orphanides argued that anyone with access to market data “could see the tsunami coming”.
He further noted that the regulatory authority under his leadership had been providing information to stakeholders on the worsening situation. Instead of taking urgent action, the government and ruling party focused on “winning an extra seat in parliament”. 
And unlike, Greece, Ireland and Portugal who when in a similar situation had requested financial assistance from the EU and the IMF, and despite the catastrophic consequences of the Mari explosion, Cyprus waited another year to seek help.
When the economy was in a critical condition comparable to that in 1974, and action was imperative to avoid the worst, the government did nothing again, he said.
In a likely dig at his successor, Orphanides added: “Advisers, including academics based abroad, were drafted to criticise those calling for action and argue that what was needed was more spending. The country was falling apart.”
Orphanides further argued that the island’s two biggest banks were capable of handling a haircut of Greek bonds of up to 21 per cent but the Eurogroup’s decision to revise that amount upwards was “a huge blow to the banking system in Europe” and cost Cypriot banks the equivalent of 25 per cent of Cypriot GDP.
“Remarkably, the government agreed to this decision while the exposure of Cypriot banks and associated cost to them were public information,” he said.
“With the economy tanking and no access to markets the sovereign faced default,” but instead of requesting EU/IMF assistance, Christofias sought a bilateral loan from Russia worth about 15 per cent of Cypriot GDP.
“Once again, the government chose to delay taking corrective measures and make the problem worse.”
Orphanides accused the previous government of attempting to delay everything beyond the February 2013 elections. A plan which might have worked, had it kept its sovereign ratings at investment-grade or at least, its credibility.
One last chance to save the country presented itself in April 2012 when Orphanides arranged for then finance minister Vassos Shiarly to hold talks with the ECB in Frankfurt about adopting measures similar to what an MoU would have demanded and in this manner avoid a formal support mechanism.
“Unfortunately, his plan was deemed too politically costly for the communist party and resoundingly rejected. The president's public dismissal on June 1, 2012 pushed Cyprus over the cliff. Shortly after, government bonds no longer met the ECB eligibility criteria.
“Cyprus became the first country in history whose central bank refused to accept its bonds for monetary policy purposes for many months.”
When the government finally asked for help on June 25, 2012, “it chose not to complete the MoU” while “simultaneously, it intensified its assault on the banking system as a platform for the (presidential) election”.
Orphanides then charged AKEL with effectively securing control of the central bank by replacing him with Demetriades, so that “the government and central bank could engage in a coordinated campaign against the banks as part of the February 2013 presidential election campaign”.
He proceeded to list the ways in which his successor contributed to this process, noting the removal of chairmen and CEOs from the two largest banks; launching investigations against banks “with selective defamatory leaks to press”; characterising banking in Cyprus as “casino banking”, and exaggerating the capital needs of the banking system.
On the latter, he said: “For every euro that these numbers were exaggerated meant that a depositor lost money.”
“The goal was to create a negative image that could be used to claim that the only reason the government had to seek EU/IMF assistance was problems with the banks,” he said.
The campaign was so successful that it created the image the only way to recapitalise the banks without burdening the public debt was through a ‘bail-in’, he argued.
Also speaking at the event, University of Cyprus (UCY) professor Stavros Zenios said it was difficult to find who holds most of the blame in Cyprus; the banks or the government.
In Greece, it was clearly the state. In Ireland and Iceland, it was the banks. But in Cyprus, “it seems to be 50/50 between the two”. 
Another UCY academic Alexander Michaelides said the methodology of PIMCO’s assessment of the recapitalisation needs of Cypriot banks will become a focus of study among doctorate students, particularly when compared to what Blackrock, another firm, did when carrying out the same exercise in Greece and Ireland.
Michaelides highlighted the need for better corporate governance in Cyprus.
Former finance minister Michalis Sarris, who was equally scathing of the previous government during his testimony before the committee of inquiry set up to look into the economic disaster, warned that unemployment was going to be a big challenge for a long time to come.
He said Cyprus needed to avoid having “underskilled but overqualified” workers. 

Former central bank boss Athanasios Orphanides

Shiarly: no excuse for spending money you do not have

0
0
Author: 
Poly Pantelides

THERE is no excuse for spending money you do not have and creating huge fiscal deficits, especially when excluded by international markets, former Finance Minister Vassos Shiarly said yesterday.
Shiarly was summoned for the second time to the committee of inquiry that is probing the circumstances leading to the country’s banking crisis culminating in a haircut of the deposits and the winding down of island’s the second-biggest bank Laiki, and the restructuring of the biggest, Bank of Cyprus.
Asked whether he agreed that Cyprus’ finances kept deteriorating in the run-up to a bailout agreement in March, Shiarly said there was “a systematic collapse of the economy, partly because of the international financial situation consequently making something of the sort expectable”. But he added there was “no excuse for creating huge fiscal deficits and spending money you do not have, especially when you realise that international markets have already excluded you”.
Shiarly – the third and last finance minister in the Demetris Christofias’ administration - took over from Kikis Kazamias in March 2012, almost a year after Cyprus was no longer able to borrow from international markets because its sovereign rating level reached “junk” level.
Cyprus secured a €2.5 billion loan from Russia to get by, a move which Michalis Sarris, former finance minister who negotiated the March bailout, said was a mistake because it allowed the government to continue spending more than it was earning and avoid implementing structural changes.
Asked yesterday if he agreed, Shiarly said the loan “was a small part of actions that were necessary to keep the state going”. But he said Cyprus’ problems could only have been solved by an EU bailout. Every month during his ministerial term that ended in February loomed under the threat the government would not meet its obligations, he said. It was only in February that he could confirm the state could survive until the end of May, Shiarly added.
But the European Commission had been warning the government since 2010, he said. “We would have seen better results if we heeded those warnings but it was the Greek sovereign debt write-down in May 2011 that broke the camel’s back,” he said.
“With the benefit of hindsight I conclude that I saw no substantial evaluation of the consequences of the write-down being done by either the Central Bank or the finance ministry,” Shiarly added.
At that point, the government should have immediately applied for EU support but instead opted for the intermediary solution of a Russian loan that could not act as a solution, he said.
Shiarly also defended the decision to continue supporting the former Laiki bank landing it with billions in emergency liquidity assistance, equivalent to over half of the country’s economic output. It was not political expediency in light of a change of government in February, he said. Laiki needed to be supported because if it was allowed to collapse, the state would be unable to cover insured depositors.


Former finance minister Vassos Shiarly

Our View: Government needs to get its priorities straight

0
0

IT IS DIFFICULT not to share the anger of deputies over the government’s decision not to open the four regional ambulance stations that are ready for operations, because of the freeze on new recruitments in the public sector. The 49 paramedics, who received a year’s training at a cost of €500,000 to the taxpayer, in order to man the four stations, will not be hired because of the recruitment freeze, which has been blamed on the troika.
Blaming everything on the troika is convenient for the government, but the fact is that while the troika may set state spending targets, it does not decide what the spending priorities should be. This is decided by the ministry officials and minister. For instance, the troika did not stop the government funding the Medical School of the Cyprus University, a vanity project that would cost tens of millions of euros to operate. Why had the troika not applied the recruitment freeze to the Medical School, the payroll of which would be several millions of euro but prevented the opening of four ambulance centres the operation of which would cost about €500,000?
It is obvious that this misguided decision had been taken by the government, presumably because the opening of the Medical School was an election promise of President Anastasiades. But we fear the government has got its priorities wrong. Ambulance stations manned by paramedics would save lives and as such should take precedence. A medical school is not a priority, by any stretch of the imagination –we survived without one for decades – at a time of economic depression and an acute shortage of state funds.
Admittedly, it is not a case of one or the other because amount is not comparable – the operation of the ambulance stations would cost a small fraction of what the Medical School would need – but the government needs to get its priorities right and it needs to take all steps to ensure a quick  and effective response time of the ambulance service to all parts of the island. There are countries in which the guaranteed, ambulance response time is 12 to 15 minutes, because saving lives is considered very important.
Obviously the technocrats of the finance ministry and government politicians do not subscribe to this view, but because they are embarrassed to admit it they blame the troika for their shameful decision. As for the health minister, who should have been championing the right of all people to a prompt ambulance service, he was more concerned about giving assurances that the Medical School would go ahead. For the government, the saving of lives can wait until the economic recovery arrives.    

 

Downer in the dog house over dinner diplomacy

0
0
Author: 
Stefanos Evripidou

PRESIDENT NICOS Anastasiades yesterday accused UN Special Adviser Alexander Downer and his team of undermining the president’s credibility and the prospects of resuming peace talks in a letter sent to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.
Anastasiades threatened to pull out of the UN-planned dinner between himself and Turkish Cypriot leader Dervis Eroglu on May 29, unless the UN chief could provide personal assurances that it would be a “social event” only. 
The two-page letter, revealed by state broadcaster CyBC last night, is dated May 17, 2013. In the letter, Anastasiades assures the UN chief of his commitment to the peace process.
He refers to the message sent to Ban via Foreign Minister Ioannis Kasoulides recently in New York, regarding the need to postpone the resumption of peace talks until autumn so Anastasiades could focus on the pressing economic crisis.
The president further reminds Ban in the letter that it was the Turkish Cypriot side that had abandoned the peace talks in March 2012, using Cyprus’ EU presidency as an excuse, despite the readiness of then president Demetris Christofias to continue the talks.
Getting to the crux of the matter, Anastasiades then refers to Downer’s invitation to himself and Eroglu to attend a dinner hosted by the UN, which he argues, was clearly presented as a social event.
According to CyBC, the president writes to Ban: “I regret to express my disappointment with the handling of this issue by your special adviser who with actions and words creates expectations of a meeting of high political importance.”
Additionally, in an effort to achieve this goal, Downer’s associates are “giving inaccurate information which serves to undermine my credibility and the prospects of resuming peace talks”.
Anastasiades concludes the letter warning that he would  seriously reconsider his presence at the dinner unless he receives explicit assurances from Ban, not his special adviser, about the social nature of the dinner.
Invited to comment on reports of the letter, Stylianides said the government wanted to stress that the May 29 dinner meeting between Anastasiades and Eroglu would be a social function.
“This is the type of meeting which has been agreed on,” he said.
The letter comes a day after the government confirmed it had received a 77-page document from the UN containing the convergences achieved between the two sides during the period 2008-2012, when Christofias was in power.
Ruling DISY leader Averof Neophytou yesterday told reporters that it was becoming clearer day by day that the UN has begun preparations on the Cyprus problem talks.
Neophytou said it appeared other countries interested in playing a role in the Cyprus problem were making the same preparations, adding: “I believe the government, the president, will take the necessary measures and steps so as not to be surprised.”
He confirmed reports circulating earlier in the day that efforts were underway to transform the planned dinner between the two community leaders from a social meeting to one with substantial political content.
DIKO leader Marios Garoyian said he had recently observed a flurry of activity from various players in the international community led by Downer to speed up the peace process.
He said the codification and presentation of past convergences was a clear attempt to lock in those convergences, despite the fact polls have shown Greek Cypriots are against a number of provisions in the document. 
EVROKO leader Demetris Syllouris said Downer must go, or else a solution would never be found in Cyprus, adding that he would put pressure on the president to pursue this option.
EDEK leader and House President Yiannakis Omirou said Anastasiades needs to make clear that he doesn’t accept the convergences document as an interim agreement or basis to continue talks.

Unpopular at the moment: UN special envoy Alexander Downer

A forlorn Polis campsite opens for the season

0
0
Author: 
Bejay Browne

THE campsite at Polis in Paphos is starting the summer season without any of the long-promised upgrades to ageing facilities and a new forestry programme under which around 60 of the trademark eucalyptus trees have been severely cut back. Some have been felled completely.
The popular beachside camping spot presents a forlorn picture, with one whole section of the campsite now without the welcome shade the eucalyptus trees provide during the summer, and many of the trees in the main camping area cut back to their main trunks.
Site manager, Lakis Matteou, said most of the trees had not been completely felled but instead have been cut “about half way up” and most have already started to grow.
“The tree cutting is part of an ongoing plan implemented by the forestry department to ensure that the trees don’t pose a hazard and that they will keep growing in a healthy manner,” he said.
Senior forestry officer Andreas Christou said the cutting was part of the forestry department’s decade-long plan to ‘upgrade’ the trees.
The campsite which has the capacity for around 200 tents, is set in a small forest of eucalyptus trees, and is popular with young campers in particular.
According to Christou, the eucalyptus plantation has trees which are about 60 to 80 years old. He said the trees are very large and have become dangerous as the braches sometimes break and could cause damage to cars or even to people who are camping. Although the officer is unaware of any such incidents so far, he stressed that this could happen at any time.
“Every year we see fallen braches on the ground, especially after strong winds.”
The forestry officer said that as part of the management plan for the area, this year 50 or 60 of the trees will be cut or managed.
“We do this by cutting the top of the trees; new branches will regrow in some months. In one or two years the new branches will be strong and vigorous. This is a recognised method of forestry management where only the top of the tree is cut. We have been using it in Nicosia for some years,” he said.
According to Christou only one or two eucalyptus trees whose roots were not strong enough have been completely removed.
“This is to give better space to enable other trees to grow and to provide good shade.”
But regular visitors to the site have been shocked by the stripping of the camping site.
“I’ve been coming here for more than 20 years,” said 50-year-old Sarah Theodorou. ”The Polis campsite is unique primarily because of the eucalyptus trees. It’s a beautiful place. I can understand that trees need to be managed, but the campsite looks so empty now. No way will they grow sufficiently to provide enough shade this summer.”
Theodorou added that it appeared to her that far more than a few eucalyptus had been completely felled.
Christou said other sections of the forest will be treated in the same way next year and that the management plan of the trees will take ten years to complete.
The severe tree surgery has taken place just as another camping season opens with no sign of long-promised upgrades to the facilities at the site.
Matteou, who has managed the campsite for the past 12 years, said that nothing has been done by the municipality - which leases the site from the forestry department - to improve the campsite which opened nearly 30 years ago. “The upgrades are really needed here and they will enhance the camping experience and will not affect the surrounding nature,” he said.
The mayor of Polis, Angelos Georgiou had previously hoped that upgrading would take place at the end of last year. But, due to a lack of funding, he confirmed that nothing has yet been done.
“I hope that we will be able to start the upgrading work next year. We are waiting for the licence to be able to go ahead with the changes,” Georgiou said. “We are hoping to secure some of the funding from an EU programme and I hope to be able to have some good news on the matter in the coming weeks.”
The proposed master plan includes significant upgrades to the toilet and shower facilities and water and electricity supplies, as well as creating roads.
Dutch-born Nicosia resident, Margot Kendal, has also been a regular visitor to Polis campsite over the years and says the need for proper infrastructure and the preservation of the trees is paramount.
“Times have changed and the minimal facilities at the camping site are no longer enough. There are always promises that the site will be upgraded to European standards, but nothing has happened yet and each year the existing facilities, in particular the toilets and bathroom blocks, are unable to cope with the demand,” she said.
But she echoed Theodorou’s concern over the eucalyptus trees. “All of the trees must be preserved and protected; they are what make the area so special. The campsite does look rather sad at the moment,” she said.
Christou from the forestry department said visitors should not worry. “Our purpose is to protect the trees and improve the structure so that all of the trees are safe and strong and provide good shade for visitors to enjoy. People mustn’t worry. The trees are already beginning to grow back,” he said.

The trademark eucalyptus trees at Polis campsite have been severely cut back

Helping small businesses beat the crisis

0
0
Author: 
Poly Pantelides

ENTREPRENEURS will tell you time and time again that crisis yields opportunity. Cyprus’ ongoing crisis - expected to get far worse before it gets any better - has been shaking some people into action, including one team bringing to Cyprus the notion of office sharing, and desk renting.
Office sharing is already a successful model elsewhere, such as in Athens where coLab (www.colabworkspace.com) has been catering to businesses needing anything from meeting rooms to office space. The idea is to take away the worry and risk of high rental prices, electricity bills, paying for a secretary, all often overwhelming concerns, especially during a debt crisis. How about internet connectivity, 24/7 desk space, a receptionist, and the panacea for all ills, an unlimited coffee supply, from about €230 a month?  
“The last few weeks have been a nightmare,” entrepreneur Hector Kolonas said in late April on his website www2.OnThisIsland.com - a contributor-driven online magazine promoting events to English-speaking communities in Cyprus. “They’ve been horrendous for almost everyone involved with our island, and its businesses.”
Kolonas decided to respond to the horror by launching www.RentADeskCyprus.com to provide a new service for businesses, consultants and freelancers looking to work in the country but feeling deterred by the high costs involved with setting up an office.
Speaking of the harsh Cyprus bailout, Kolonas said that though much has been said about how the country came to agree to a bailout that has seen its second biggest bank forced to wind down and its biggest undergo a restructuring, not much been said about recovery, rebuilding, “or the entrepreneurial spirit our islanders are known for”.
RentADeskCyprus.com is an intermediary service between the businesses with space to rent and the freelancers and entrepreneurs looking for affordable options. Businesses can pay a small fee to advertise their space on the website and RentADesk will list them as long as they meet the criteria (connectivity, facilities, etc.). Businesses with available space rent out desks directly to entrepreneurs, helping them cover their costs, Kolonas said. So the project serves a dual purpose, he said. On the one hand it helps small businesses enabling them to grow by getting them set up with a working environment minus the high costs, but on the other hand it also helps businesses with empty desk space cover their expenses.
The hope is that “the more small businesses that grow during these tough times, the more people they will be able to hire in the near future,” Kolonas said.
Space is already available in Limassol’s Spyros Kyprianou Avenue, which includes wireless broadband, Mac or PC office computers to rent, reasonable use of printing, photocopying and scanning, a free library of business books and magazines. Renting a single desk costs €150 a month and making use of a receptionist costs €80 per month. Services vary depending on people’s needs, from a pay as you go fee of €30 a day or use of a conference/presentation room for €30 per hour.
But is there a market out there for this sort of model? Cyprus may boast a highly-educated workforce but it is not yet teeming with freelancers or even start-ups, ventures that are often focused on high technology and innovation and may potentially be interested in RentADesk.
“The notion of entrepreneurship is new in Cyprus (but) Cypriots have always been entrepreneurial… there’s no reason we can’t do that in Cyprus,” Kolonas said.
And the crisis and the Cyprus bailout that has made the old model of Cyprus as an international business centre obsolete may just be the opportunity entrepreneurs need.
“The crisis changes the model of going to university, graduating and getting a job,” Kolonas said.
Even before the bailout, there have been people preaching that Cyprus needs to create growth through new ventures, start-ups and entrepreneurship.
The Cyprus Enterprise Link has been organising networking events and has helped projects find that elusive source of funding. Environmental scientist Alexandros Charalambides has spearheaded ENERMAP, an award winning concept to map online the energy consumption of buildings across the EU. Charalambides is also one of the people who have set up Chrysalis LEAP, an accelerator platform aiming to nourish new start-ups, guiding them and helping them get funding. Cyprus has also recently participated in NASA’s Space Apps Challenge, a two-day technology development event while last year’s Hackathon brought computer programmers, software developers and designers together from ten different countries. And Open Coffee Cyprus has been arranging meet-ups, with one coming up next week in Nicosia to specifically address how those interested in start-ups can pitch ideas and get funding with on the spot pitch training.
Kolonas said that RentADeskCyprus is part of a bigger plan geared at contributing towards growth and recovery. But for now, the idea is to help in some concrete way.
“We don’t know where (the project) is going to go because it’s a very turbulent time right now, the idea is to help both (established businesses, and entrepreneurs and freelancers),” he said.

Renting office and conference space will help keep business costs down

UNHCR concerned over Kurdish families

0
0

THE UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) has said it was greatly concerned over deteriorating conditions of asylum seekers in Cyprus, offered to support the government and called for accelerating actions on contingency planning.
In a statement, the UNHCR mentioned the instance of more than 100 Kurdish men, women and children of Syrian origin who have “remained for over two weeks without shelter in the streets of Nicosia at the doorsteps of the ministry of interior,” said Nasr Ishak, UNHCR Representative for Cyprus.
“We have examined those cases and conveyed to the competent Cypriot authorities our recommendations for corrective actions in accordance with the Cyprus refugee law.”
The UNHCR said it had no doubt that the economic crisis and the drastic measures that have followed were bound to have widespread impact on society and affect a segment of the Cypriot population.
“However, our concern is that asylum seekers and refugees being among the most vulnerable people in Cyprus have been enormously affected to the extent of destitution,” said the UNHCR statement.
“The need to preserve the human dignity of those innocent people is an international obligation and UNHCR in Cyprus has responded immediately from its own resources to requests for support from the Cypriot authorities.”
It said at the same time, Cyprus, as an EU member state experiencing serious financial difficulties was now entitled to receive 95 per cent of the cost of providing appropriate reception facilities for asylum seekers from EU Refugee Funds.
“But our efforts to support the Republic of Cyprus do not stop merely at providing humanitarian assistance to people of concern to UNHCR,” said Ishak.
“We know that we must fully take into account the multiple challenges facing Cyprus and proceed in a constructive and solutions-oriented manner; in close consultation with government counterparts at various levels.”
A delegation from UNHCR’s Europe Bureau in Brussels and its Headquarters in Geneva visited Nicosia last month to review the potential impact on Cyprus of the Syrian crisis. The delegation met at the ministry of foreign affairs with the permanent secretary, Andreas Mavroyiannis and officials from the ministry of interior, the asylum service, the crisis management department, Schengen and consular division, and the civil protection department.
With the number of Syrian refugees in neighboring countries already exceeding 1.4 million and rapidly rising, the UNHCR urged the government to accelerate its contingency planning efforts in order to ensure preparedness for possible increased arrivals of people fleeing Syria.
“The UNHCR considers that those civilians fleeing from Syria require international protection and has called upon all states to ensure that their borders remain open to receive them and ensure that their human rights are respected,” the UNHCR said.
It said Mavroyiannis assured them that the government remained committed to upholding its obligations but it also counted on measures of solidarity with small and overtaxed countries like Cyprus.

 

Kurds demonstrating in Nicosia this week

Anastasiades calms concerns over UN document

0
0
Author: 
Poly Pantelides

PRESIDENT Nicos Anastasiades yesterday tried to allay concerns over a United Nations document on the Cyprus problem that has been interpreted by some political parties as an effort to force Greek Cypriots into unacceptable concessions.
The government this week confirmed receipt of a lengthy document from the UN on the convergences and divergences between Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots on the Cyprus problem between 2008 and 2012.
Parties interpreted the report as an attempt to lock in convergences. But Anastasiades said yesterday in a written statement that it was he who had requested to see the report “not, of course, to use it as a basis of restarting negotiations from where they were left but so the Greek Cypriot side can be able to know… in a substantiated and serious way how it can withdraw any proposals the majority of the people and political leaders find unacceptable”.
Anastasiades said although he was keen to re-launch peace talks as soon as possible, the government was now focused on tackling “the problems the present economic crisis has accumulated”. Everyone involved, including the United Nations, understands that, Anastasiades said.
“At the same time I consider confrontations to be unnecessary and pointless since a new national council meeting has been set for June 15,” he said. Matters that have been pigeonholed for discussion during the meeting include deciding on a negotiator and coming up with a framework for proposals as well as deciding on the format of a new round of talks, Anastasiades said.
DIKO leader and coalition partner Marios Garoyian said yesterday the UN document cannot serve as a foundation for peace talks. “It is merely an informal departmental document by the UN team on the Cyprus problem, no more,” he said. But he expressed concern the report gave the impression of “a complete solution plan”. That may be a sneaky way of presenting a ready-made drafted solution for discussion during peace talks in an effort to limit them in only the divergences, risking “trapping our side in as many possible ‘convergences’ made between 2008-2012,” Garoyian said.
House President and EDEK leader Yiannakis Omirou repeated yesterday his view that Greek Cypriots should not accept the UN document as “an interim agreement in the context of continuing Cyprus problem negotiations”.
But former ruling party AKEL that was in power during the time referenced in the document warned via its spokesman George Loucaides that a clean slate endangered a “significant risk” for Anastasiades who would be tasked with accomplishing something better. The UN document is not a solution proposal, Loucaides said. “Nothing is considered to be agreed on unless everything is agreed,” he added.

Anastasiades said the government's focus is not on restarting peace talks

Elena Ambrosiadou wins legal battle

0
0

A COUPLE whose relationship ''turned toxic'' after they were involved in the creation of a successful investment management business have been criticised by a High Court judge in London following a legal row.
Mathematician Martin Coward and his estranged wife Elena Ambrosiadou became embroiled in a High Court dispute over the ownership of intellectual property rights to software used in their IKOS investment business.
Mrs Justice Asplin ruled on Friday against Dr Coward following a trial at the High Court in London in March.
In a written ruling handed down at a hearing in London, the judge was critical of both parties and said their approach to giving evidence was tainted by their "obvious and deep animosity".
The judge said she had not found either to be an "entirely satisfactory witness".
"It was quite clear that they are both highly intelligent and astute individuals," said Mrs Justice Asplin.
The judge said Dr Coward's approach to giving evidence was at times "cavalier", and she found him to be evasive when questioned about various agreements.
She added: "I found Ms Ambrosiadou to be to be extremely evasive and prone to making lengthy speeches in order to avoid answering questions which did not suit her, in what often appeared to be an attempt to obfuscate and confuse."
Mrs Justice Asplin said Dr Coward was a mathematician and computer programmer who had graduated from Cambridge University.
She said Ambrosiadou was a chemical engineering graduate who had worked for British Petroleum.
Ambrosiadou and Dr Coward married in 1983 and founded IKOS in the early 1990s.
The judge heard that the venture was hugely successful and generated a ''fortune''.
But the couple became estranged after their relationship ''turned toxic'', the judge was told.
Ambrosiadou filed for divorce in 2009, said the judge.
Dr Coward resigned as chairman of IKOS in the same year – Ambrosiadou was chief executive.
The judge said in the proceedings before her, Dr Coward claimed that he wrote a substantial part of the software used by IKOS and that he owned the copyright on that software.
IKOS bosses contended that rights had either passed to IKOS or that Dr Coward had written software when an employee of IKOS.
Mrs Justice Asplin ruled against Dr Coward after analysing ownership and authorship issues at different periods of time.
“Our investors will be very pleased with this result because it secures the future of their investments with IKOS. In addition to confirming ownership of the IP, this ruling vindicates IKOS’ stringent defence of its lawful rights to its IP and strengthens the case for an overhaul of the European laws regarding protection of Intellectual Property,” Ambrosiadou said after the court case.

 

State provides €4m for student grants

0
0
Author: 
Peter Stevenson

THE EDUCATION ministry has announced it would be granting €4 million in student grants for those studying at state-run and private universities for the current academic year.
Speaking on behalf of the absent Education Minister, Kyriacos Kenevezos was head of higher education at the ministry, Despina Martidou, who revealed prospective students could receive up to €1,800 in housing benefits. The amount of food allowance students could receive would be €1,092, and they could receive up to €300 for new books and equipment and up to €500 to purchase or upgrade their existing computer. Martidou revealed that a total of 5,108 students from the University of Cyprus, Cyprus University of Technology (TEPAK), Frederick, European University of Cyprus, University of Nicosia, Neapolis University and the Hotel Institute and Forestry College would be able to receive benefits.
Students planning on studying abroad, whose families are experiencing financial hardships, will be entitled to €1,000 from the government, after a cabinet decision. The State Scholarship Foundation (SSF) is accepting applications from students currently studying abroad with their family’s financial situation being the only criteria being taken into consideration.
“The Cabinet recognises that the creation and strengthening of the infrastructure and student welfare institutions in higher education in Cyprus are prerequisites for strengthening the social dimensions on the island, based on European and international standards,” Martidou said.
According to a statement from the foundation, those overseas students who meet the criteria will receive a lump sum of €1,000. To qualify for the aid, applicants need to be undergraduate students who are Cypriot citizens, possessing a leaving certificate from either a public or private school which is recognised by the ministry.
There are also a number of income criteria conditions to be met related to a family’s gross income.
To determine the per capita annual gross income, the foundation takes the total gross family income and divides it by the number of dependent family members.
The students are also required by the foundation to submit certified documents from the university or institute of higher learning which they are attending and confirmation which indicates they will be allowed to continue at that institute in the next academic year.
Students who have already received financial aid or a scholarship from the foundation will not be entitled to this new deal as well as those who should have completed their studies already. In its statement, the foundation explained that the board of the SSF will look at individual cases of students who were forced to leave their studies prematurely, due to financial problems in an attempt to give the green light to handing the financial aid.
The applications can be found at www.cyscholarships.gov.cy

'Why did ministers not blame bankers?'

0
0

CYPRUS’ current predicament was caused by greedy bankers maximising their profits irrespective of risk, former finance Kikis Kazamias said yesterday.
“It must finally be understood that the operative cause in creating the problem (leading to Cyprus’ bailout) has been bankers’ unbridled desire to maximise their profits, (and) to a large extent turning those organisations from banks to investing bodies, concentrating a great risk, (and) buying dangerous products as the Greek bonds were at the time.”
Speaking of his two consecutive successors, Kazamias said he was surprised by their “diligence in their assessments of not referring to the bankers’ actions during the time in question”.
Kazamias was referring to Vassos Shiarly, who took over from him in March 2012, and Michalis Sarris, who was appointed by new President Nicos Anastasiades, negotiating Cyprus’ bailout this March and stepping down soon afterwards. Sarris said he wanted to facilitate investigations into the bailout.
Kazamias said Sarris and Shiarly were aware that the Bank of Cyprus and Laiki (Popular) bank, which incurred losses in the write-down, had not previously expressed concerns to the finance ministry. As part of the bailout terms by Cyprus’ international lenders, Laiki has been forced to wind down and the Bank of Cyprus is under restructuring.

 

Tales from the Coffeeshop: Hallelujah, the Cyprob makes a welcome return

0
0

REJOICE, rejoice and hallelujah, the Cyprob is back. Everyone’s favourite problem has returned to our sun-kissed shores, putting the smile back on our politicians’ faces after some very difficult months, giving our freedom-fighters a reason to get out of bed in the morning and setting off the flow of the sexual juices of our journalists.
I thought I would never say this but, like everyone else, I missed it and for a while I was anxious that it would never come back. Existence was empty and meaningless in the last 12 months, the Cyprob had disappeared from our lives replaced by the all-destroying economic problems and the malicious presence of the troikans, compared to whom Big Bad Al is a cuddly teddy-bear.
The Eurogroup meetings, the troika, Delia and Dijsselbloem made us appreciate the benign nature of the Cyprob and its kindly protagonists that never punished our heroic defiance, public posturing, delaying tactics, legalistic hair-splitting and resounding ‘nos’ to everything like our nasty EU partners had done.
The Cyprob is the game we all love to play because we always win – we always achieve our objective of no deal – and that is the reason we want to keep playing. It is no wonder that after the crushing defeats and humiliations we suffered in the last couple of months, the return of our number one national problem was welcomed like manna from heaven by everyone.

FOR A WHILE we thought that it would never arrive. Big Bad Al visited, had meetings with the two leaders, travelled to Greece and Turkey, arranged a dinner for May 29 (more below), made some statements but failed to spark any interest.
This was followed by finance minister Ioannis Kasoulides’ visit to the US where he met the UN chief and American Secretary of State, John Kerry, whom he supposedly persuaded to treat the Cyprob, our economic woes and natural gas as three separate issues; it is what the CyBC correspondent triumphantly reported.
The problem still failed to take centre stage despite the zealous efforts of its salesmen in the media who were warning about foreign efforts to link the three issues and ultimately force ‘the speedy closure of the problem’. Nothing, apart from AKEL, inspires as much stupidity as the Cyprob.
The warnings did not spark any hysteria and neither did Wednesday’s six-hour National Council circus, which discussed the prob as well as the economy and featured a special guest appearance by comrade Gaaaros, not as an economics expert but as an achaparos former president.
A white lie told by the current president, tricky Nicky, to the party bosses paved the way for the triumphant return of the Cyprob to our lives. He told them that there was nothing to report, an innocent lie, considering he was in possession of Al’s 70-page document with the convergences achieved in the talks.

UNFORTUNATELY, on Thursday, a loser Turkish Cypriot politician, who acts like an AKEL mascot and is in charge of a mickey-mouse party in the north called United Kibris, spilled the fasoulia.
After a meeting with his commie comrade Andros, Izzet Izdjan revealed that the UN had handed over a ‘document work-plan’ to Dervis Eroglu and it was being translated. Explanations were demanded by the Akelites and the government spokesman said the government had only received the document on that day, which was a bit of a lie.
The document had been handed over by Al a while ago but there had been an agreement with tricky Nicky not to make its existence public. After all, there was nothing in it that was not known but our president had to have an official UN document recording the convergences reached in the talks by his predecessor.
However, the fact that he kept it a secret made a mega-boring matter – could anything be more boring than a 70-page document with the convergences of the talks – sexy for our politicians, hacks and TV bosses. Their love-juices started to flow again as they now had a compelling reason to put our beloved problem on centre stage.
The doom and gloom was lifted as our opinion formers were gripped by sweet-natured paranoia and suspicion once again. AKEL asked why Eroglu had received the document many days before our side and why Nik had not mentioned the existence of it at the National Council meeting. Would he have announced its receipt if Izdjan had said nothing about it?
The fuss did not amount to a hill of fasoulia but was enough get the Cyprob’s homecoming party going.

ON FRIDAY morning all radio shows had upbeat politicians moaning about the latest outrage by the UN and Big Bad Al, while Phil’s banner headline spoke about the ‘Downer document bomb’.
In the evening, the CyBC’s main TV news reported that the document ‘provoked turmoil.’ But ‘even bigger turmoil’ was caused by the letter sent by tricky Nicky to Ban Ki-moon complaining about Al’s attempt to turn the May 29 dinner into a political meeting and threatening not attending.
Even Nik wanted to play the Cyprob game. He had never in the past publicly attacked Al but now decided to join in the fun. Had he been advised to write the letter by his partners, the DIKO Downer destroyers? How was the Aussie trying to turn the dinner from a social to a political dinner? Was he going to force Nik to sign an unfair settlement while he was waiting for his dessert?
I suspect, although he did not mention in it in his letter to Ban, Nik was upset by the release of the UN document, which made him look a liar, as Al had agreed to keep its existence out of the public domain. But was it the Aussie’s fault that AKEL’s Turkish Cypriot mascot found out about the document and informed his commie masters?

BASH-PATRIOTS took the president’s letter as a cue to renew their old calls for the immediate replacement of Big Bad Al who had proved beyond any doubt that he was a dyed-in-the-wool Turk-lover scheming to politicise a social event. Even Lillikas added his voice to the calls for the Al’s axing.
The Cyprob is back with a vengeance. It made you wonder where all these brave freedom fighters were hiding when the IMF’s deleterious Delia was imposing terms guaranteed to wreck our economy for years. I do not recall hearing any of them publicly demanding the IMF immediately replace her and send someone less nasty to negotiate the bailout, which caused much more harm to the country than Al’s boring document ever would.
This is why we love our Cyprob so much. It allows our politicians to show how brave they really are.

ANOTHER good reason for being angry with Al and the UN was their choice of date for the Nik-Derv dinner. It was May 29, the date of the fall of Constantinople to the Turks in 1453.
The 560th anniversary of the fall of Byzantium’s capital to the bloodthirsty Turkish hordes was a provocatively insensitive date, as the Lazaros Patriotic show reminded its listeners every day in the last week, insisting that this was no day to have dinner with Eroglu.
His rants worked, the presidential palace asking for a re-scheduling of the dinner. Although the Turks initially refused, we hear that the dinner has been moved to May 30. Don’t be surprised if Eroglu asks for another date because it is the 100th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of London, officially ending the First Balkan War in which Turkey was resoundingly defeated by Greece and Serbia.

APART from spilling the fasoulia, Izdjan also took a direct swipe at Nik attacking the government’s bill that would deprive Turkish Cypriots of free healthcare in our hospitals. Greek Cypriot circles were promoting ‘fanatical, nationalistic, chauvinistic positions that placed obstacles to the efforts for a settlement,’ said the Turkish Cypriot loser.
The TC sense of entitlement is even more advanced than ours. The loser has a nerve, urging Nik not to pass the bill because saving the €5 million cost of treating TCs in our hospitals would not help us exit from the recession. Call me a fanatical, nationalistic, chauvinist but I am with Nik on this one. If Izdjan wants free healthcare, AKEL could send him to a hospital in Cuba.

IS FORMER finance minister Michalis Sarris eyeing the post of Central Bank Governor? If not, what was the reason for his damning view of the banking sector uttered when he appeared before the Committee of Inquiry into the virtual collapse of the economy?
According to reports, on Wednesday Sarris told the panel: “The only euros you have which are equal to German euros are the ones in your pockets. All the rest are in doubt.” It appears that Professor Panicos has set a trend – if you do not engage in bashing banks and shattering public confidence in them you are not eligible to for the post of Central Bank Governor.

DURING his appearance before the panel Sarris also explained how Professor Panicos had sacked him from the post of Chairman of Laiki. The professor, acting like an AKEL apparatchik, wrote to Sarris telling him the bank’s new shareholder, the state, wanted to see a change in leadership.
In his letter, Panicos informed Sarris that his comments about the need for a change in the government’s economic policy were damaging to Cyprus. In contrast, Panicos’ daily bank-bashing, slamming of bankers, exaggeration of the banking sector’s capital needs, calls for downsizing of the banks were beneficial to Cyprus.

THE COPS at the Ledra Street checkpoint confiscated an allegedly fake designer bag from a woman as she was crossing into the Republic on the suspicion that she had bought it in the north. The woman had a row with the cops, who said they would be sending the bag to the official representative of the manufacturer to establish whether it was an authentic product or an imitation.
Reading about this I started wondering whether this new campaign by the police was aimed at all cheap, imitation designer products or just those purchased in the north? I would not be able to live with the humiliation of being stopped in the street by a cop and told to remove my imitation Ralph Lauren polo shirt, purchased in Thailand, so he could send it to the official representative to establish its authenticity as part of the crackdown on fake designer products.

THE CRUSADER for fair prices for prostitutes, Bambos Vasilas, Phil’s Kokkinochoria and Larnaca correspondent two weeks ago carried out an investigation at the park next to Larnaca’s central post office where Asian women, reportedly, go to sell sex. His story in Phil was headlined ‘Sex at humiliating prices.’
The liberal Vasilas has no problem with the Vietnamese and Filippina women who go there to earn some cash on their day off but with the Cypriot grandfathers who boast that they could buy sex for five to 10 euros. “They buy sex for five euros, the equivalent of a pitta of souvlakia, and if they are feeling extravagant they may buy their victim a soft drink,” wrote the dejected Vasilas.
Some of the randy old boys do not even pay cash for sex. The reporter revealed that some “lure their victim with wilted celery, crumpled spinach and lettuce and old oranges that can only be used to make juice.”

THE RECESSION had obviously pushed sex rates down since the last time Vasilas wrote about the problem. In July 2012, he reported that in the Kokkinochoria after the end of the potato-picking season jobless women from the EU were offering sex starting from 10 euro plus dinner. The dinner, he reported, consisted of a pitta of souvlakia and a couple of beers, which took the total price for sex services to about €18.

TURKISH Cypriots are more generous according to a report in the Star Kibris newspaper, which reported on Tuesday that many Filippinas who work in the Republic cross north on their days off to sell sexual services. The price they charge is usually €20, the paper reported, which might be higher than the Larnaca market but is still very competitive. Whoever would have thought there would come a day when vice girls would get higher prices for sex in the north?
Now that the TCs are richer than us, shouldn’t Izdjan be offering GCs free health care in the hospital’s of the north?
T

 

Welcome back - Big Bad Al has already inspired Tricky Nicky's ire

Our View: Politics remains the art of the unattainable

0
0

VACUOUS rhetoric and conspiracy theories have been constant features of our political life. The politicians may change but the tradition of churning out empty and usually irrational slogans and unearthing imaginary plots against Cyprus are always preserved. Nothing can temper the passion for meaningless sloganeering, cynically calculated to caress the ears of the electorate and keep politicians free of any responsibility for the problems facing the country. Not even the devastating shock our economy has suffered has persuaded them to change their ways and abandon this immature political behaviour.
Quite the contrary, the empty rhetoric has been stepped up as have the foreign plots against the country. In the last few weeks, a new slogan has been launched and it has been collectively embraced by the political parties – the need to ‘disengage from the memorandum and the loan agreement’ - all of which have been repeating it. Once a slogan becomes fashionable all parties take it up, because they do not want to be accused of not wanting to ‘disengage from the memorandum’.
Even the government spokesman joined in the fun on Wednesday, declaring after the National Council meeting that “the battle for the exit from the memorandum will take place within the eurozone.” This was a direct response to AKEL’s call for disengagement from the memorandum by leaving the euro, which is certain to lead to a disengagement from the EU as well. AKEL’s idea may have been rejected by the rest of the parties, but the desire for disengagement from the memorandum remains undimmed. How this will be achieved nobody has said because nobody knows. It suffices that it sounds good and everyone supports it like they support the return of all refugees to their homes, because, in Cyprus, politics has always been the art of the unattainable.
Disengagement would also quash the schemes of the troika and our EU partners to get their hands on Cyprus’ hydrocarbon resources. This is fast becoming a semi-official conspiracy theory with many of our politicians certain that the troika wants to steal our natural gas. Yet if we are to be honest the country would have a better chance of enjoying the eventual benefits from the commercial exploitation of natural gas if the whole enterprise was being overseen by the troika or the EU. There would be less scope for corruption and a guarantee that rational decisions were taken, decisions that would benefit the country rather than a few individuals, parties and companies. We had not yet extracted one cubic foot of natural gas and the previous government had already set up companies to manage the resource and distributed highly-paid jobs to the boys.
The natural gas and meltdown of the economy have also been combined with the Cyprus problem to give rise to another slogan – the three issues should be kept separate and never combined. Another meaningless slogan, embraced by all the political parties, and diplomatically set out by the Foreign Minister Ioannis Kasoulides when he met US Secretary of State John Kerry 10 days ago. According to the prevailing political wisdom the three issues needed to be kept separate because there was a big danger foreigners would exploit our economic woes to impose an unfair solution to the Cyprus problem and thus take control of our hydrocarbons.
How the three issues could be kept separate, again, nobody has told us. Our weak economic position cannot be kept separate from anything because it now defines Cyprus. And is anyone under the illusion that natural gas would not feature in settlement talks if and when they start? Gas is the reason there would be another push for a settlement. Or perhaps we think that we can exploit the hydrocarbons without reaching some understanding with Turkey? The NATO General-Secretary Rasmussen recently suggested that Cyprus should start drilling for hydrocarbons only after there was a settlement, but we impulsively declared his view as unacceptable, rather than allow it to enter our political thinking.
But this would require our politicians to have their feet firmly on the ground and think rationally. Instead Rasmussen’s comments were used as a cue for more vacuous rhetoric and patriotic breast-beating. Perhaps things would have to get worse, as they will, before politicians finally get to grips with the harsh realities of today. They may even understand that uttering empty slogans, advancing conspiracy theories and promoting wishful thinking are no way to deal with the daunting challenges facing Cyprus. What the country needs now are rational thinkers and problem solvers if it is ever to emerge from the mess it is in.        

 

Further raid on BoC possible

0
0
Author: 
Elias Hazou

THE Bank of Cyprus, touted pillar of the economy, may yet stay afloat - but at what cost? If the lender’s consolidated balance sheet - released this week - is anything to go by, it’s likely going to take many more billions to recapitalise the bank to a degree that’s satisfactory to regulators. And given that for the moment a raid on deposits or ‘bail-in’ is virtually the bank’s only way to raise capital, big savers can expect a much larger haircut. A crew cut, more like it, say some.
It’s plausible that the haircut on uninsured deposits - so far 37.5 per cent - could shoot up to 60 per cent, speculates one leading economist.
“The bank’s capital needs will depend on several things, but a key factor will be the clients’ - businesses as well as households - progressive difficulty in repaying loans. Another is the falling price of real estate held as collateral,” said Simeon Matsis, who was a member of the BoC’s previous board of directors.
Hardly anyone disputes that the bank’s non-performing loans are bound for an upward trajectory in the midst of a protracted economic slump.
And the lender’s consolidated balance sheet, though provisional, appears to bear out these concerns.
The posting of the bank’s numbers on Thursday was a small stride forward in the long path towards the bank’s normalisation. Up until then, the main problem delaying the lender’s restructuring had been the regulator’s failure to confirm the balance sheet of Laiki so the Bank of Cyprus would know what it would be getting in terms of assets and liabilities.
Determining the final haircut, the conversion of deposits to equity, and thus the new shareholder base of BoC is a key step towards returning the lender to normalcy.
According to the BoC consolidated balance sheet - which factored in the 37.5 per cent haircut on uninsured deposits and also the absorbing of Laiki’s assets and liabilities - the bank boasts a core tier 1 capital ratio of 13 per cent - well above the 9 per cent safety net stipulated by the Basel III accounting rules.
Why did the Central Bank overreach the capital adequacy target by four percentage points? Even the memorandum of understanding with the troika of April 2013 called for the conventional 9 per cent buffer for tier 1 capital.
But the same document went on to say that “...if required, an additional conversion of uninsured deposits into class A shares will be undertaken to ensure that the core tier one target of 9 per cent under stress by end-programme can be met.”
“Under stress” being the operative phrase here. It’s a safe bet that both the troika and Central Bank assume the BoC’s capital adequacy will drop by the time the dust settles. And by the dust settling one means how much equity the bank will be left with after a re-evaluation of its risk-weighted assets.
Backing up a little, tier 1 capital, also known as the capital adequacy ratio, is a core measure of a bank's financial strength. It’s defined as the ratio of a bank's core equity capital to its total risk-weighted assets (RWAs).
By way of example, a bank with €2 of equity receives a client deposit of €10 and lends out all €10. Assuming that the loan, now a €10 asset on the bank's balance sheet, carries a risk weighting of 90 per cent, the bank now holds risk-weighted assets of €9 (€10 x 90 per cent). Using the original equity of €2, the bank's tier 1 ratio is calculated to be €2/€9 or 22 per cent.
All other things being equal, the higher the RWAs, the lower the capital adequacy ratio.
In their report, bean counters posted a sanguine 13 per cent tier 1 capital ratio; but a closer look at the BoC’s numbers brings pause.
According to the Central Bank data, prior to the haircut BoC’s tier 1 capital stood at -€785m. In short, it had negative tier 1 capital. The bank raised €3.186bn through a 37.5 per cent trim on deposits, bringing its consolidated tier 1 capital up to €2.401bn. To this were added €703m in transferred assets of the ‘good’ Laiki for a consolidated total of €3.104bn in tier 1 capital.The RWAs come to €24.001bn; dividing the equity (€3.104bn) by the RWAs (€24.001bn) yields a 12.9 per cent value for tier 1 capital.

The bank’s total consolidated assets stand at €38.343bn, liabilities at €34.730bn. But the equity capital amounts to a mere €3.613bn, and this for the island’s once largest lender.
This poor showing is mainly due to the fact that, along with everything else, the BoC has been saddled with €9.103bn of Laiki’s Emergency Liquidity Assistance (liabilities), another reason being that Laiki bequeathed to BoC a meagre €700m in equity capital.
To sum up: BoC has risk-weighted assets totalling €24.001bn, liabilities of €34.730bn, and equity capital of €3.613bn. Or, the bank has 6.6 times as much RWAs as it has equity capital.
And as people struggle to keep up with their loans, the risk-weighted assets on the ledger could get worse - far worse.
If and when it does, the only way to beef up the capital adequacy might be a further raid on deposits. The bank’s consolidated customer deposits amount to €23.104bn.
Matsis cites another issue. In early 2011, Laiki and BoC together had assets of some €80bn. In late 2012, BoC alone held around €40bn in assets. Now, combined, BoC and the ‘good’ Laiki have a little over €38bn.
Although the economist does espouse the mainstream current of thought - the need to quickly appoint a CEO to the bank so as to end the state of administration - he stresses that something else has been grossly overlooked: reducing the bank’s operating costs.
Since the ‘merger’ of BoC and Laiki, Matsis says, the ‘new’ BoC employs a combined 6,000 people. Not one has been made redundant to date and, as far as the BoC goes, a mulled 20 to 25 per cent cut in salaries has failed to materialise.
What worries MP Prodromos Prodromou - who makes no secret of his dislike for the Central Bank governor - is that he can’t figure out the regulator’s agenda.
The DISY deputy is among the loudest advocates calling for an end to the state of administration at BoC so the bank can be allowed to run its own affairs.
He charges the Central Bank of handling BoC “as if the bank is under resolution, not restructuring.”
According to Prodromou, back in March, Central Bank chief Panicos Demetriades had reassured members of the House Finance Committee that the status of BoC would be “sorted out in 24 to 48 hours.”
“That was two months ago, and BoC is still being run by the Central Bank,” Prodromou said.
At the same session, Demetriades - under pressure from politicians enquiring on the bank’s fate - revealed that the Central Bank’s target for BoC was actually to raise its core tier 1 capital ratio to 18 per cent, not 13 per cent.
“When I then asked how much cash would need to be raised through a haircut, neither the governor nor other Central Bank officials present there could say, citing technical complexities.”
Quizzed by the Sunday Mail as to whether at the time he asked Demetriades what was the reason for 18 per cent in tier 1 capital, Prodromou conceded he did not pose the question.
But, he says, the 18 per cent capital target, if true, begs an explanation: “Is it because they have little confidence in the bank recapitalising on its own? We just don’t know what they’re thinking.”
A former BoC executive, who requested anonymity, said the cloud of uncertainty hanging over the bank is “killing it.”
“They must appoint a CEO as soon as possible, someone who will make the tough decisions and get the bank going again,” the banker said.
It’s equally important that the new CEO be appointed on a long-term basis, for one to two years. And this should be done now, said the source, even before the new bank board are elected by shareholders - something expected to happen in late August or September once the deposit haircut is finalised.
“Otherwise, what incentive would the CEO have to get the job done, if he knows he’ll be replaced a few months down the line,” the source said.

The cloud of uncertainty over the Bank of Cyprus is killing it

CyTA boss says outside interest in loan proposal

0
0
Author: 
Poly Pantelides

THREE institutions from abroad have displayed an interest in a proposal by semi-state companies (SGOs) to secure a €1.4 billion loan in order to avoid being privatised as part of Cyprus’ €10 billion bailout, the telecommunications company (CyTA) chairman said yesterday.
Stathis Kittis previously proposed that CyTA, the Electricity Authority (EAC), and the Ports Authority (CPA) could mortgage the SGOs’ property and come up with the same amount the troika said could be raised through privatisations.
Kittis told state broadcaster CyBC yesterday that three bodies – two hailing from the UK and one from the US – were interested in mulling the proposal. He did not name them and could not be reached to comment.
Kittis said impacted SGO boards would be meeting soon to evaluate the interest stemming from the foreign organisations “with the aim of turning this initial idea into action”.
“It would be unfair to sell off a valuable part of the country’s economy. If the state so wishes, it can be patient and proceed with privatisations when conditions are more favourable,” Kittis told CyBC.
According to the deal struck with international lenders, Cyprus should collect €1.4 billion from privatisations, €1.0 billion as a first step and another €400 million by 2018 at the latest.
One of the reasons Cyprus is expected to initiate a privatisation plan is “to improve economic efficiency through enhanced competition,” according to the deal laid out in a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU).
The MoU states that “this plan should consider the privatisation prospects of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and semi-governmental organisations (SGOs), including, inter alia, CyTA (telecom), EAC (electricity), CPA (ports authority), as well as real estate/land assets.”
Kittis previously proposed to his peers that an entity could be set up for participating SGOs to cover €1.2 billion through immovable property and infrastructure of the EAC and CyTA and the remainder via loans by international organisations. He said this could come mostly from Chinese banks but also from HSBC, BOA/Merrill Lynch, and others which have shown great interest to lend money to credible organisations.
Critics seen the proposal as a way for bloated SGOs to continue operating the way they have been for decades with high salaries and perks for their staff.

New parole board sworn in

0
0
Author: 
Poly Pantelides

THE MEMBERS of a new parole board were sworn in yesterday, 11 months after the previous board’s tenure expired, leaving dozens of convicts hanging because there was nobody to examine their applications.
Chairman and former judge Philippos Charalambous, and members Giorgos Demetriades, Evaggelos Anastasiou, Giorgos Mavrolefteros and Marios Argyrou were sworn in at the Presidential Palace in the presence of President Nicos Anastasiades.
“I can definitely say that this is a very delicate (task) because approving or rejecting any application for parole entails many social consequences not just for the imprisoned applicant and his family, but specifically (and) to a larger extent for our small society,” Charalambous said.
Back in November the justice ministry was forced to inform parliament they could find no replacements for the parole board whose previous members, citing other obligations, passed on another term.
The new board’s task will be to start reviewing dozens of pending applications, made before and after the dissolution of the previous – and first –  board and including six lifers who have been waiting for their case to be reviewed.
 “It is the state’s moral obligation in protecting human rights to adopt and implement the institution of the parole board,” Anastasiades said yesterday.
“(The parole board) is the only institution providing for the periodic examination of convicts’ long-term imprisonment, particularly that of lifers,” Anastasiades said. It aims to re-integrate convicts in society, preparing them to be active members of society, he added.
Convicted persons serving a life imprisonment in Cyprus are jailed for the remainder of their lives. The parole board was set up in 2010 to offer convicts a chance of early release after a lifer challenged the system at the European Court of Human Rights.
Until then, only the attorney-general or the President of the Republic could authorise early release of prisoners.
To qualify, convicts who have been given more than two years to serve, need to have completed half their sentence. Lifers need to serve at least 12 years, and those serving successive sentences need to complete 25 years.
Supported by parole officers supervising released convicts, the parole board may set a number of conditions to authorise early release, including banning parolees from leaving the country, and having them regularly report to police.  The board also takes into account the crime committed, the convict’s behaviour and court comments.

President Nicos Anastasiades speaks at the podium during the swearing-in of the new board pictured on the right

Police gear up for cup final

0
0
Author: 
Peter Stevenson

TWO POLICE vehicles and a shop window were damaged in Nicosia by APOEL fans on Saturday after the Anorthosis vs. APOEL match, police said.
According to reports, at around 7.20pm on Limassol Avenue in Nicosia, 30 APOEL fans with covered faces attacked officers by throwing rocks, firecrackers and Molotov cocktails at them while they were on duty in the area.
Two APOEL fans then allegedly threw a rock, breaking the windscreen of a patrol car and then threw an object which they had lit, into the car, setting it on fire.
The Fire Service was called to the scene but not before the car had been completely destroyed by the fire. The windscreen of a police bus and the glass door of a nearby shop were also damaged in the stone throwing.
Police spokesman Andreas Angelides said the police would be fully investigating the incidents and would take all of the appropriate measures to ensure the football cup final at the Tsirion Stadium in Limassol tomorrow night would go smoothly and without incident.
Speaking to reporters after a lengthy meeting with the top brass, Police Chief Michalis Papageorgiou said the force was ready to take all necessary measures to minimise possible trouble. “The stadium’s layout will make it difficult to implement safety measures but we will work with professionalism and determination,” he said.
“We hope the best team wins but above all that everyone enjoys the day responsibly,” he added.
Papageorgiou visited the stadium ahead of the Cup Final between Apollon and AEL to make sure sufficient safety measures were being taken.
“We will inspect the stadium and then we will meet at police headquarters to evaluate our findings and to take decisions on what measures to take for the final,” police spokesman Andreas Angelides told state radio yesterday.
According to the state broadcaster, the Chief was joined by other high-ranking police officials as they examined the stadium layout and discussed the possible positioning of officers outside and inside.
“Fans wishing to enter the stadium will be checked before they reach the entrance to ensure that illegal objects will not be brought in,” Papageorgiou told reporters. “Officers will patrol outside the stadium throughout the duration of the match to avoid any incidents similar to previous weeks when fans have been passed illegal items from outside the stadium,” he added.
A total of 380 police men and women will be present, including members from the rapid response unit to help prevent any troubles. The police helicopter will also be available if it is required on the day of the match.
“The clubhouse of the team that loses in the final will remain shut and will be patrolled by members of the force while the winning team’s clubhouse will be open but under constant police surveillance,” Papageorgiou said.
Angelides added that police efforts would be intensified during the match and emphasised the need for cooperation from the clubs and organised supporters.
The police spokesman explained the goal of police measures was to prevent incidents both before during and after the end of the match when celebrations will take place.

Viewing all 6907 articles
Browse latest View live




Latest Images