This week in North Cyprus > 14-21 March 2005
TRNC advertising banned by London Transport authority
Both the British Government and the TRNC governments have reacted angrily to the ban by the Transport for London Authority (TFL) against Tourism advertising for the TRNC.
Namik Korhan the TRNC's London representative said the decision followed complaints and lobbying by a councillor from the London borough of Barnet, commenting on the ban Mr Korhan said the authority claimed the advertisements caused "serious offence" to Greek Cypriots, but forgot to consider the 200,000 Turkish Cypriots currently living in London .
"Who will be offended by this ban?" he asked.
The TRNC government immediately retaliated with a two-week campaign to display the same ads on 300 billboards around London .
The advertisements depict picturesque scenes of Northern Cyprus and bear slogans such as " North Cyprus - A sanctuary of unspoilt beauty" and "Pure Mediterranean".
The Mayor of London Ken Livingstone, who recently refused to apologise to a British reporter after making a racist remark to him during an interview, heads the TFL.
The British government reacted to the Transport authority's decision by issuing a statement saying, "the UK government remains committed to ending the isolation of the Turkish Cypriots and will continue to support efforts to this end". The spokesperson from the British High Commission explained that the Transport for London authority reports directly to the Greater London Authority and not to the government.
A PR adviser to the TRNC commented that the TFL has not expected a row and said that lawyers for the TRNC in London were challenging the legality of the ban and demanding that it be lifted, if not the issue could end up in the courts.
Tourism leaders in the TRNC said the ban smacked of Greek Cypriot resentment over the increase in popularity North Cyprus has gained recently. The number of British Tourists was up by 39 percent compared to last year.
Property VAT (KDV) back to 5%.
In an announcement made via the 'Tak' news agency, the government performed a u-turn on its controversial KDV increase for foreign buyers.
Interior Minister Özkan Murat declared that all foreign house buyers would now pay the tax at a rate of 5%, reversing the increase to 15% implemented on January 01st. The minister had already announced that foreign purchaser agreeing to buy before January 01 st would be eligible to pay KDV at the previous rate of 5%.
The government increased the KDV rate in an attempt to recuperate some of the revenue lost after KDV was scrapped on basic foodstuffs, medical equipment and school textbooks, a move that angered estate agents, builders and purchasers.
Work to begin soon on long awaited bypass
The long planned Girne-Alsancak bypass route is to be marked out this week and construction is due to begin in just over a month.
The 8.49YTL project is expected to take 2 years to complete.
The contract for the 12km road was awarded three months ago to Turkish firm Tisan Ltd, the same contractor that built the Girne to Esentepe road.
The bypass will ease the increasing flow of traffic from Girne through the village of Karaoglanoglu to Alsancak.
Few details of the project are known and Isma il Altan the head of the TRNC highways department said one of the reasons for this were that slight alterations might yet be made to the project.
Since 1998 development of major highways in the TRNC have been dealt with by Turkish authorities a decision originally made by a TRNC ministry.
Coalition government wins parliament vote of confidence.
The renewed coalition between the Republic Turkish party CTP and the Democratic Party (DP) won the vote of confidence in parliament after a reading of its government programme.
During the same parliamentary session, proposed constitutional amendments were also approved. Prime Minister Mehmet Ali Talat thanked MP's for the support given to the transitional coalition, which is to remain in office until after the forthcoming presidential elections set to take place on the 17 th April.
Tourism article in UK press sings TRNC's praises.
An article published last week in the UK 's 'Sun' newspaper highlighted the beauty and delights that North Cyprus has to offer. The article compared the 'deserted beaches, empty roads, cheap restaurants, great scenery and sunshine' of the TRNC to how the Mediterranean destinations of Spain and France were years ago. The report also commented on the 'friendly people', the historic culture and the 'exceptional food', recommending visitors to try the traditional Cypriot starter 'Meze' calling it a 'gastronomic miracle!' The author concludes that 'its mixture of warmth, sunshine, culture, great food, shopping, friendliness and the lack of crowds' make 'North Cyprus the perfect place for a memorable family holiday'.
Weather forecast for the week ahead.
Light cloud is expected for most of the week. Tuesday and Wednesday will be more overcast, but temperatures will be warmer this week reaching 21-24°C in all parts of the island.
Last week's temperatures
Town/City |
Minimum |
Maximum |
Lefkosa |
4.6C |
23.0C |
Ercan |
1.3C |
23.5C |
Gazi Magusa |
2.1C |
22.2C |
Girne |
7.0C |
21.2C |
Güzelyurt |
1.2C |
22.0C |
CURRENCY
This week's exchange rate
£ STG |
2.53 YTL |
$ USD |
1.32 YTL |
EUROS |
1.76 YTL |
CYP £ |
2.92 YTL |
Resources: Cyprus Today
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