Cyprus Mail: News Articles in English, 98-03-24

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

Tuesday, March 24, 1998

CONTENTS

[01] Dams and desalination

[02] US steps up pharmaceutical pressure

[03] Cyta reaping Internet rewards

[04] UN concern at Denktash threat

[05] Ports crisis a cancer on the economy

[06] Airline to reschedule debt

[07] State Fair wants a level playing field

[08] Students shut down institute

[09] Titanic smashes local records

[10] Greens urge government to act against Turkish nuclear plans

[11] D.I.Y. megastores on their way

[12] Children's Museum for the millennium

[13] Championship now a two-horse race

[14] Cordovez optimistic peace process can be salvaged

[15] Father Christoforos resigns

[01] Dams and desalination

MORE dams and more desalination plants are in the pipeline as a solution to the country's growing water shortage, Agriculture Minister Costas Themistocleous promised yesterday.

The use of recycled water and a shift towards less thirsty crops is also being considered, he said.

Heavy rains over the past few days may have created the illusion of an improving situation, but dams remain pitifully empty. Themistocleous said a strategic plan had been drawn up to maximise supply from all sources by the year 2010.

"This plan includes the utilisation of remaining surface water resources with the creation of reservoirs on the Ezousas, Diarizos, Hapotami, Pedieos, Akaki, Peristerona, Karkotis and Marathasa-Tillyria area rivers," the minister said.

As well as adding to the over 100 dams already built, the government plans to build a second desalination plant in the Larnaca area - to supply water for Nicosia - and is studying the possibility of a third plant near the new Vasiliko power station.

Mobile desalination plants might also be drafted in, Themistocleous said, and ways of utilising saline underground waters would also be investigated.

Themistocleous outlined the government's water action plan at the opening of a Water development department seminar in Nicosia yesterday. The one-day seminar, focusing on the island's water crisis, was organised to coincide with world water day.

Concerning agriculture, which uses 75 per cent of water resources, Themistocleous said crops requiring less water would be encouraged and more water recovered from sewage would be used. Recycled water would also be used to replenish groundwater reserves, he said.

The strategic plan had been drawn up and should be approved by the cabinet and House by the end of the year, Themistocleous said.

The minister said the "gravity" of the situation had brought to the fore the need to promote bi-communal water development works.

He did not specify what these projects might be, but said the US and EU were ready to provide funds and technical advice for such projects.

The minister concluded with a plea for water conservation.

"We must all take on board that water, that vital natural commodity, is scarce," Themistocleous said.

[02] US steps up pharmaceutical pressure

U.S. DRUG companies are pilling on the pressure to force the government to approve a tightening-up of Cyprus patent law.

The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) has recommended that Cyprus be put on the US trade department's "watch list" for failing to provide adequate protection for drug patents.

The cabinet is today due to discuss a controversial bill revising patent law. The bill will go to the House on Thursday.

Only swift approval of the bill would persuade PhRMA to change its stance, a Middle East representative of a US firm commented yesterday.

In a recent submission to the US trade department, PhRMA stated there had been "no tangible progress on this issue during the past three years, despite repeated interventions by the EU Commission, US government and international pharmaceutical industry."

"Despite promises to submit a new draft patent law to parliament, the government has delayed doing so in the face of local industry opposition," PhRMA stated.

Cyprus was downgraded from the US trade department's watch list two years ago after promising to reinforce patent law to bring it in line with EU and international trade treaties (in particular the World Trade Organisation's Trade Related Aspects of International Property Rights &#151; TRIPS).

Under its TRIPS obligations, Cyprus must approve changes to patent law by April 4.

The EU has made it clear it wants Cyprus to harmonise its patent laws with Europe's. Attorney-general Alecos Markides has warned that the EU considers such harmonisation a top priority issue.

Jeff Kemprecos, health policy manager for American firm Merc, Sharp &amp; Dome (MSD) Middle East, said US firms were "encouraged by legislation as recommended to the government by the Attorney-general."

The Cyprus Society of Pharmaceutical Importers also support this bill.

"US industry would like to see progress in the next couple of weeks, if new patent law is approved that meets TRIPS and EU obligations I am certain US companies would withdraw their recommendation for an upgrade to watch status," Kemprecos said.

"All we are asking for is a level playing field reflecting existing legislation in Europe and TRIPS," Kemprecos said.

The local industry has been charged with using loop-holes in existing patent law to produce pirate copies of patented foreign medicines. The industry fervently denies these charges.

PhRMA also slammed the Health Ministry, alleging it was making it easy for local firms to produce counterfeit drugs.

"The Ministry of Health follows the dangerous practice of registering generic products for marketing prior to patent expiration, which has led to the entry of numerous unauthorised copies on the Cyprus market," the PhRMA submission stated.

"The current practice of the Ministry of Health also opens the door to the surreptitious export of unauthorised copies which depend on Cypriot marketing registrations in order to obtain marketing approval abroad," PhRMA added.

[03] Cyta reaping Internet rewards

DEMAND for Internet services will practically double the Cyprus Telecommunication Authority's (Cyta) revenue from private cables, the House Finance Committee heard yesterday.

But one Internet provider is bypassing Cyta and using Visat (satellite services) instead. The authority's board has still to decide what to do. Pending a decision, it is "tolerating" an act it believes runs against the law.

These are some of the points to emerge from yesterday's review in the committee of Cyta's budget for 1998. Deputies said they would hold a special meeting to examine a £10 million budgetary provision for satellite services. They asked Cyta to hold back on spending until the issue was discussed.

There were queries too from deputies about the array of fringe benefits enjoyed by Cyta employees &#151; 12 different allowances, to which has been added a 13 for "intense labour".

Edek deputy Doros Theodorou, who raised the issue, said that employees in semi-government employees were in a privileged position compared to their counterparts in the private sector. Trade unions could well demand, but it was wrong for management to give in, he added.

Cyta chairman Michalakis Zivanaris said the extra benefit was for workers with difficult jobs such as going down pits. He and Cyta director Sparis Modestou said most of the fringe benefits were part of collective agreements, and many had been in force for years.

But Zivanaris conceded that employees at semi-government organisations were better off than many of their counterparts.

"No can claim that employees do not have privileged treatment at semi- government organisations," he said.

Zivanaris said Cyta stood to make a surplus of £21.8 million this year, with revenue up by £13.5 million, particularly from the telephone service.

The authority is budgeting £58.9 million on development projects. The main aims are to increase telephone lines per 100 inhabitants from 58.6 to 60.5, to improve quality and service, upgrade the GSM system, improve public phones and lay the Sea-Me-We 3 underwater cable.

Cyta also plans to take on an extra 60 employees and upgrade four positions to cope with expanded services.

On the underwater cable link, Zivanaris said work was moving on schedule, but a proposed Black Sea link was being held back because of financial problems facing some of the other organisations due to take part.

Asked why revenue from the rent of cables was practically doubling from £3.9 million in 1997 to an anticipated £6 million this year, Cyta officials said this reflected Internet providers moves to meet increased demand.

[04] UN concern at Denktash threat

Unficyp spokesman Waldemar Rokoszewski said yesterday it was vital that Unficyp be allowed to carry out its mandate without hindrance.

Speaking after his third meeting with UN envoy Diego Cordovez on Saturday, Denktash told Turkish Cypriot journalists he had warned the envoy he would curb UN activities if his self-declared 'Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus' did not receive international recognition.

Since Unficyp was accredited to the Cyprus government, he said, they were "guests" in the occupied areas.

Unficyp's legal standing is regulated under a statuary agreement signed with the government in 1965. The force arrived on the island in 1964.

[05] Ports crisis a cancer on the economy

Port workers went on strike claiming they were facing the dole queue because business had dried up.

"Some weeks we scrape a living and some weeks we have to sign on and wait for money which doesn't come," said union representative Andreas Spyrou.

He said dockers were sick of the uncertainty surrounding their jobs and wanted definite answers from the government.

"We want the government to spell out the future, either we are going to leave or we are going to stay."

With major container traffic now by-passing Larnaca, port unions are urging the government to act swiftly to stem the port's decline.

"There are no foreign companies here, or containers, nothing... all we have are the potatoes," said Spyrou.

But the unions said they wouldn't disrupt the vital trade in potato exports if further strikes were necessary.

The financial survival of the ports topped the agenda at a meeting between Communications Minister Leontios Ierodiaconou and the Chamber of Commerce (Keve) in Nicosia yesterday.

"The ports have serious problems that I will deal with shortly," Ierodiaconou said afterwards.

Keve chairman Vassilis Rologis said the government would be given time to improve the situation, but was blunt about the task that lay ahead.

"It's time for serious decisions. The ports should be placed under a new footing. And maybe there is a need to close them and then re-open them."

Rologis urged the government not to delay tough decisions that had to be taken, because "the ports are a cancer on the Cypriot economy."

[06] Airline to reschedule debt

The national carrier owes £94.1 million &#151; £75,4 million of which are long-term loans guaranteed by the government. The remainder is in short- term loans, Kyriakides told the House Finance Committee.

Kyriakides was briefing the committee about a request by the government for the House to ratify a £37.5 million foreign loan taken out by Cyprus Airways.

Kyriakides clarified the request did not involve additional borrowing but was a new lower interest loan to pay off an older loan repayable at higher interest. He said the company had been paying off £5 million a year from its debt. The new measure did not increase the carrier's obligations nor the government's guarantees.

Deputies had no objections, saying it was a good move by Cyprus Airways.

[07] State Fair wants a level playing field

They told the House Finance Committee that private companies were increasingly organising specialised exhibitions &#151; in direct competition with the authority. Competition was welcome, but it had to be fair, they added.

"They are taking some of our business. It is not a question of preventing them, but giving the authority the room to be able to face the situation," authority director Takis Kallis told the committee. One example cited was private companies' flexibility to secure investors, while the fair had to resort to the time-consuming process of competitions.

Chairman Demetris Ioannou said the board was looking at the issue and would be coming up with specific proposals.

On the authority's budget for 1998, Ioannou said the State Fair would continue to generate a small surplus, which is ploughed back into improvements.

"Last year was a difficult year for us relatively speaking, with a drop in revenue from the annual international state fair because car importers stayed away. There was also a 10 per cent drop in the number of visitors," Ioannou said.

But he said the authority was confident it would more than make up the lost ground with a specialised motor fair scheduled for November.

Asked how exhibitors rated the fair, Ioannou said that an annual survey has shown 92 per cent were very satisfied.

[08] Students shut down institute

Students took over the HTI building, banning entry to teachers and other staff in a bid to get their qualifications accepted as university degree- equivalent by the government.

Yesterday's start to a 48-hour blockade is part of an orchestrated drive to secure better pay and job security &#151; creating specific public sector posts is one demand &#151; for HTI graduates.

Although the blockade is due to end at midnight today, student representatives are warning the protests could escalate.

Measures being considered include students abandoning the institute altogether and boycotting exams in April.

Union leader Haris Panayiotou said students had demanded a meeting with President Clerides to help resolve the issue.

If there is no response from the government, then the students could impose an indefinite strike and take to the streets of Nicosia to demonstrate, he warned.

Last week, the government said it was reviewing the issue of pay scales, and student protests were therefore unnecessary.

[09] Titanic smashes local records

The hit film, which blends the factual 1912 sinking of the Titanic and a fictional romance, has been seen by more than twice as many Cypriots as saw Bean, the previous record holder. It is estimated that around a fifth of the island's population has now seen the film.

And film distributor Marios Herodotou said yesterday that Titanic was still going strong, playing at screens in Nicosia and Limassol, and preparing for a comeback in Larnaca.

He said he had originally scheduled the film for a three to five week run, but it had now been showing for nine weeks, and shows no sign of running out of steam.

[10] Greens urge government to act against Turkish nuclear plans

International opposition to the proposed uranium-powered plant was growing, but the government was inexplicably silent on the issue, the greens said in an announcement.

Greenpeace international recently launched a campaign to halt the power plant plan and environmentalists in Canada were lobbying to stop Canadian firms supplying Turkey with parts for the plant, the party stated. Turkish environmentalists were also opposing the plant, the greens said.

"We have furnished the Foreign and Agriculture Ministries with all the information we have. The decisive action we anticipated has not yet been taken by the government," the greens said.

They pointed out that the proposed site for the plant, only about 50 miles North of Cyprus, was earthquake prone, and that the risk of an accident springing radioactive leaks was therefore high.

In addition to this, the environmentalists said, the reactor-type that Turkey planned to build was capable of producing weapon-grade plutonium.

[11] D.I.Y. megastores on their way

Under the agreement, the stores will be 51 per cent locally-owned, as approved by the Central Bank on Friday.

Share capital in the venture will start at £200,000 and will later be raised to £1 million.

[12] Children's Museum for the millennium

Angelidou, chairman of the project committee, said the intention was to create a "non-profit, cultural and education" centre, which could supply entertainment, training and education for children and young people.

She said the committee hoped 1999 could be declared Year of the Children's Museum, and that the foundation stone could be laid by January 1, 2000.

The committee is actively seeking participation from local organisations and volunteers. Angelidou added that help was also being sought from similar institutions abroad.

[13] Championship now a two-horse race

THE FIGHT for the championship is fast becoming a two-horse race, after the third title aspirant Apollonas were held to a goalless draw by Ael and saw their difference from the leaders increase to five points.

Omonia returned to the top of the table on goal difference after a hard- fought 5-3 victory in Larnaca over relegation-threatened Alki who at one stage had led by 3-1.

Ethnikos Achna, the other title challengers also lost touch with the leaders on Sunday as they played a 1-1 draw with Apoel in Nicosia.

Omonia will thank their lucky stars for Sunday's victory over Alki. While they were trailing by 3-1 midway through the first half, Alki's Panayi, stupidly, managed to get himself sent off for two bad fouls in the space of a few minutes.

Until then, Panayi was Alki's best player. His sending off, which left his side a man short for an hour, proved the turning point for Omonia, but this was not the only slice of good luck for the visitors.

Omonia levelled the score in the fourth minute of first half injury-time. Things may have been different had Alki gone to the dressing rooms still leading.

Despite completely dominating the second half, Omonia took the lead thanks to a very harsh penalty decision, 10 minutes from time, given for a trip on Malekkos. Rainer Rauffman converted the penalty to complete another hat- trick, taking his tally to 31.

Gitanov had blasted Omonia in front, two minutes after kick-off, only for Alki to equalise four minutes later through a Yiatrou penalty kick.

Delaboutin back-heeled into the net, via the post, in the 12th minute to give Alki the lead. In the 22nd minute Andreou fired in Alki's third goal.

Rauffman opened his account for the afternoon in the 41st minute, before equalising in first half injury time. Gitanov scored Omonia's fifth goal, a minute before the end.

On Saturday night, Apollonas failed for the second time this season to score against city rivals Ael, who owe their point to the heroic of young keeper Leoni.

This was Apollonas' sixth draw in the championship. Too many drawn matches is the reason they have lost touch with the leaders, considering that Apollonas have only lost one game all season.

The absence of a proven goalscorer in the Apollonas squad had been highlighted as a weakness from the start of the season. In a game like Saturday's, when countless scoring chances were created, a good finisher could have settled the match.

Apollonas will now focus on the cup, in which they meet Apop tomorrow in a semi-final, first leg clash.

The same could be said of Ethnikos Achna, who meet Anorthosis in tomorrow's other semi-final. They started their game against Apoel in Nicosia cautiously, but raised the tempo when they fell behind to Ioannou's 55th minute goal.

Mousic headed in the equaliser 15 minutes later, but Achna were still without a win in their last three games.

Apoel, under their third coach this season, Georgiou, used many young players who showed a much more positive attitude than senior players had done in previous games.

[14] Cordovez optimistic peace process can be salvaged

TOP UN envoy Diego Cordovez remains optimistic that the Cyprus peace process can still be salvaged in spite of the current deadlock.

"Whenever there is a difficult situation, there is danger, but also an opportunity," Cordovez said in Athens yesterday after meeting Greek Deputy Foreign Minister Yiannos Kranidiotis.

That danger was bluntly spelled out in Ankara as a Turkish foreign ministry spokesman hinted that the Greek Cypriot military build-up could lead to war.

Earlier, Cordovez had said that the next step in the stalled process would depend on decisions taken by the Security Council; Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktash had called for "new ground" for the negotiations, but this "new ground" had been rejected by President Glafcos Clerides.

Denktash's new ground would include the official recognition of the occupied areas as an autonomous state, something Cordovez said the Security Council would be "reluctant to accept".

The danger of failure was highlighted as Turkey repeated its threats against the deployment of the S-300s. Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman Nectati Utkan told journalists the arrival of the missiles and the use of Paphos airbase by Greek fighter jets would be "a very serious cause for conflict."

Turkey's response to such moves would depend on an evaluation of the threat they posed, Utkan said.

"If the threat is serious, then the counter measures to the threat must be serious," he said.

Government Spokesman Christos Stylianides yesterday repeated that the S- 300s would be deployed unless there were "significant steps" towards demilitarisation or an overall settlement.

He was responding to reports that Greek Foreign Minister Theodoros Pangalos had met with US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright to discuss the possibility of cancelling the missile deal in return for a US-guaranteed no- fly zone over Cyprus.

Foreign Minister Yiannakis Cassoulides said yesterday a flight moratorium would not be enough, as the Turks could not be trusted. Only a total flight exclusion zone would be acceptable.

Stylianides also said the government intended to stand firm on its position that talks to settle the Cyprus problem should be carried out on the basis of UN resolutions.

The government had, he said, conveyed to Cordovez its refusal to accept any change in the procedure of the talks. The National Council will convene next week to discuss the latest developments.

For his part, Denktash has said that the Turkish Cypriots should insist that "the Greek Cypriots cannot represent us anywhere or at any forum."

Commenting on his meetings with Cordovez, he was quoted by Turkish Cypriot papers yesterday as saying the envoy had listened to what he had to say. "Perhaps the Security Council will convene and will want to talk to us."

Denktash will meet UN Secretary General Kofi Annan in Geneva on Friday.

[15] Father Christoforos resigns

FATHER Christoforos, the priest who last week claimed that he had information 14 missing persons were alive, last night submitted his resignation as president of the National Struggle Committee for the Missing.

The committee accepted the resignation after a lengthy meeting.

The Committee will be chaired by its vice-president until elections are held.

Father Christoforos caused controversy last week, when he announced that an "unnamed source" had told him 14 of the missing were alive. The information later proved to be wrong.

His source said the missing had been thrown into the sea to die by the Turks and had been rescued by passing fishermen.

The source was revealed to be Michael Kyprianou, a Cypriot living in Canada, who claims that the story is true, and has alleged to have obtained his information from the intelligence agency of a foreign country.

© Copyright Cyprus Mail 1998

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