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Cyprus PIO: News Update in English, 03-01-31
From: The Republic of Cyprus Press and Information Office Server at <http://www.pio.gov.cy/>
[01]Friday, 31 January 2003 De Soto: Talks procedure remains unchanged
[02] Preliminary resolution on enclaved by PACE Committee condemns Turkey
of human rights violations
[01] De Soto: Talks procedure remains unchanged
The UN Secretary-General's Special Adviser on Cyprus, Mr. Alvaro de Soto,
said that the procedure of the ongoing direct peace talks would not change
and that the two leaders would continue to meet three times a week, but in
the mornings rather than in the afternoon. Speaking after a meeting with
the President of the Republic Mr. Glafcos Clerides yesterday, Mr. de Soto
noted that the United Nations was waiting to see what would come out of the
direct talks. Invited to say how possible the submission of a new revised
plan was, the UN diplomat replied, "That is another matter. We hope that
they [the two leaders] will agree to changes, if changes are needed."
Mr. de Soto refused to reveal what he and Mr. Tayyip Erdogan, the leader of
Turkey's ruling Justice and Development Party, had discussed during his
visit to Ankara last Tuesday. Asked if there was progress at the talks, he
said, "Ask me that question in about a month."
[02] Preliminary resolution on enclaved by PACE Committee condemns Turkey
of human rights violations
The Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights of the Parliamentary
Committee of the Council of Europe (PACE) has adopted the draft resolution
and the report by its Rapporteur Mr. Dick Marty (Swedish MP) on the Rights
and Fundamental Freedoms of Greek Cypriots and Maronites Living in the
Northern Part of Cyprus. In the draft resolution, the Parliamentary
Assembly of the CoE expresses its "serious concern" over the island's
arbitrary division and the continuation of that division for more than
thirty years, without any improvement. Moreover, the Assembly states its
full agreement with the opinion expressed by the European Court of Human
Rights in its judgment of 10 May 2001 in the case of Cyprus v. Turkey,
finding Turkey responsible for 14 violations of the European Convention of
Human Rights (ECHR). It also expresses "extreme" concern by the status
imposed upon the Greek Cypriot and Maronite communities that have remained
north of the demarcation line and by the resulting violations of human
rights note, as established by the Court in Strasburg.
The Assembly, says the resolution, insists that the Turkish Cypriot
"administration" in the occupied areas, and Turkey, ought to cease all
humiliation of the Greek and Maronite enclaved communities and put an end
to the climate of intimidation that exists there. In his speech before the
Committee, the Rapporteur, Mr. Dick Marty, underlined that the draft
resolution should be adopted by the CoE Parliamentary Assembly immediately,
since the human rights of the enclaved were still being violated by the
illegal regime, something that he had verified, Mr. Marty claimed, during
his working visit to the island. The resolution concludes by saying that,
as history had shown, the communities of the island "are perfectly capable
of living together in peace and harmony".
The draft resolution on the enclaved is expected to be adopted by the
Parliamentary Assembly during the 2nd part of its 2003 Summit in Strasburg,
next April.
From the Republic of Cyprus Press and Information Office (PIO) Server at http://www.pio.gov.cy/
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