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Cyprus PIO: News Update in English, 03-12-04
From: The Republic of Cyprus Press and Information Office Server at <http://www.pio.gov.cy/>
[01]Thursday, 04 December 2003 EU Commissioner Verheugen says Annan Plan is
the best foundation for settlement talks
[02] Cyprus sends strong message of compliance with international treaties
on demining
[03] Cyprus Ambassador re-elected to UN human rights expert body
[01] EU Commissioner Verheugen says Annan Plan is the best foundation for
settlement talks
EU Enlargement Commissioner, Mr Gunter Verheugen, has noted that the Annan
Plan was balanced and constituted the best foundation for negotiations for
a solution of the Cyprus problem. He added that the Plan had opened a
window of opportunity and no other proposals or prospects for a settlement
existed. Speaking last Tuesday before the Belgian Senate, within the
framework of hearings on the Cyprus problem organised by the Foreign
Affairs Committee, Commissioner Verheugen said he fully agreed with the UN
Secretary-General's view that the UN should not get re-engaged in the
efforts for a Cyprus settlement until there was credible evidence that
political will existed by both sides. Mr Verheugen pointed out that
President Papadopoulos had been informing all his visitors about his
readiness to resume the negotiations and his pursuit of a solution within
the framework and parameters of the Annan Plan. However, he said he could
not say the same thing for Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktash, who had
clearly declared the Annan Plan 'dead' and stated that no solution could be
found on the basis of the Plan. Regarding the so-called elections in the
Turkish-occupied areas of the island, the German Commissioner noted that
they could possibly have some value if the Turkish Cypriot opposition would
win, as the opposition parties wanted a solution based on the Annan Plan
and EU accession. He further said there were signs that "these elections
will not be like the elections we know, as regards the democratic framework,
but we insisted that Turkey should not interfere with Cyprus issues".
On Turkey, Mr Verheugen said a Cyprus settlement was not a precondition for
Ankara's EU accession, but noted that there was a political relationship
between the two issues. Citing UN Security Council resolutions that the
presence of Turkish troops in Cyprus was contrary to international law, he
stressed that an accession agreement with a country that maintained
occupation forces in another country was incomprehensible.
[02] Cyprus sends strong message of compliance with international treaties
on demining
The Permanent Secretary of the Foreign Affairs Ministry, Mr Sotos Zackheos,
said Cyprus had sent a strong message of compliance with its obligations
under international treaties on demining and commitment to a peaceful
resolution of the Cyprus problem in the framework of the United Nations.
Mr Zackheos was speaking at a press conference concerning a seminar on the
Ottawa Convention, on the demining and destruction of stockpiled anti-
personnel mines, held yesterday at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Present
at the press conference were also Ms Jody Williams, Nobel Peace Prize
Laureate (1997), Ambassador Wolfgang Petritsch, Austria's Permanent
Representative to the UN, and the Canadian Ambassador, Mr Ross Hynes. In
other statements, Mr Zackheos noted the Cyprus Government's decision to
proceed with the demining of the buffer zone, in cooperation with the UN,
despite the Turkish side's negative stance on that matter. "A lot of work
has already been done and we hope that the Turkish Cypriot side will
cooperate in this effort", Mr Zackheos said, adding that the Government was
ready to proceed unilaterally if it had to, something that the President of
the Republic had noted in his speech at the UN General Assembly.
The Foreign Affairs Ministry Permanent Secretary took the opportunity to
express the Government's gratitude to the Canadian government for its
contribution of $330.000 towards the demining of the buffer zone. He
pointed out that the offer would be doubled by an international organisation
in Slovenia.
[03] Cyprus Ambassador re-elected to UN human rights expert body
Ambassador Andreas Mavrommatis was among the top five candidates elected on
26 November 2003 in Geneva to the United Nations human rights expert body
"The Committee against Torture and Other Cruel Inhuman or Degrading
Treatment or Punishment". Following his re-election, it is Mr Mavrommatis'
3rd consecutive term serving in the Committee. The Committee, a UN Geneva-
based body, was established under the Convention against Torture and Other
Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. It is composed of
experts of high moral standing with legal experience and recognised
competence in the field of human rights, who serve in their personal
capacity. 134 countries are parties to the Convention. Cyprus signed the
Convention in 1985 and ratified it in 1991.
The Committee examines reports submitted by state parties on their
implementation of the Convention, carries out investigations in countries
where torture is systematic and also considers individual petitions.
Ambassador Mavrommatis is also the UN Special Rapporteur on the human
rights situation in Iraq.
From the Republic of Cyprus Press and Information Office (PIO) Server at http://www.pio.gov.cy/
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