The regime in north Cyprus took a step back from its initial, illegal, ban against New Cyprus Party's campaign calling people to boycott the "elections" in north Cyprus. The ban was originally announced following an event on January 31st which was organized around that campaign. Following this announcement, New Cyprus Party filed an objection indicating that the right to carry out propaganda campaigns does not require participation in the elections. This was supported by a protest march in central Nicosia where party members and sympathizers have participated carrying out banners calling for boycott.

Upon these events, the regime has taken a step back and announced that the party indeed had the right to carry out this campaign. In a press-release, the party announced its aim to continue this campaign and called the people not to go to the ballot box. They claim that these elections are simply to mask the reality of the occupation and to elect new agents in north Cyprus to carry out Turkey's wishes. By going and participating in this process, the public is simply collaborating in the suppression of the expression of their democratic rights. (02/02/05)

Protest demonstration...

 The regime in the northern part of divided Cyprus tried to ban the activities of YKP (New Cyprus Party) who had been running a boycott campaign of the general elections to take place on the 20th of the February 2005. “The Nicosia electoral board” sent a letter to YKP (New Cyprus Party) claiming that the party could not do demonstrations and activities boycotting the elections and if they continued to do so within the boundaries of Nicosia, “legal measures would be taken against them”. The “Electoral Board” cited their demonstration at Hamitkoy (Hamit Mandres) with their placards saying “No to the elections of agents!” and “Don’t obey! Don’t go to the ballot boxes!”.

2nd of February YKP (New Cyprus Party) made a protest march at 14.00 in Nicosia with about 50 members and also sent a letter to the “Nicosia electoral board” saying that they cannot ban the boycott campaign of the party since the party is not taking part in the elections. Since other parties have the right to call on people to vote, they have the right to call on the people to boycott the ballot boxes and not to vote, said the statement. The demonstrators marched through Nicosia and went to the “Nicosia electoral board” where the Secretary of the Party Council, Rasih Keskiner, gave the written statement to the board. A copy was also sent to the “Higher Electoral Board” as well as to the “Nicosia Police” headquarters. The demonstrators carried a placard during the demonstration saying “NO to elections”.

Speaking to the media, Keskiner said that the party’s decision to boycott the elections was clear and that there was no legal obstacle from carrying out such a campaign. Keskiner also asked the people not to be afraid to refrain from going to the ballot boxes – “Instead of going to the ballot boxes and putting a blank electoral ballot in the box, don’t be afraid to decline from going to the ballot boxes” he said.

In the statement given to the “Nicosia electoral board” YKP said, “Since the New Cyprus Party is not taking part in the elections, we are not acting under the Elections and Referendum Law. The boycott activities of our party are not aiming to target any political party or candidate. The Election and Referendum Law was created under emergency conditions...”

In a statement on the 4th of January 2005, YKP had made clear the reasons behind the boycott campaign. Part of the statement read:

“Elections are carried out in order to allow a country’s people to reflect their free will. However, Turkey’s administrations have never allowed this to happen with regimes created in the North of this country; these are totally committed to Turkey. They have intervened with every quarter of the country, changing the structure of the population and causing the native people of Cyprus to become a minority. As long as Turkey’s occupation of the island and unsolved Cyprus problem continues, a structure that would be able to fulfill the minimum requirements of a democratic election will not be present today and it is a blatant fact that the formation of any such structure will not be permitted.”

The party listed a number of measures to fulfill the minimum requirements of democratic elections and said:

“The New Cyprus Party, calls upon our people; not to honor an election for agents under the control of Ankara that will not reflect their own free will, not to abide by their commands; to show their responses by not being afraid of anything, to stand up by not going to the ballot boxes and also by persuading those around them to do the same.

The New Cyprus Party brings your attention once more to the fact that the struggle, for the unification of Cyprus and all Cypriots, is not in the ballot boxes but it is out on the streets.” (02/02/05)

New Cyprus Party

Party Council decision about election

The planed operations of those that see the unsolved Cyprus problem as a solved, because of their own personal benefits, continues. Predominantly the sovereign powers, Turkey’s administrations and their agents in the north of Cyprus, together with the fanatic Greek administrations are playing for time in order to hinder the process of uniting Cyprus and all Cypriots. As father Denktash is asking for another ten years, the son Denktash is asking for another five years and Papadopoulos goes even further asking for an indefinite future date for a solution. Apparently, Ankara, is making an effort to keep Cyprus in hand so as to use it in line with her own benefit while on the other hand, the Papadopoulos administration have the perspective of “as long as its mine, even half will do”, thus working for the division of the island. Those that are exempt from this, and even those that see themselves as essential parts of a solution and peace, are only actually competing to dance in line with the roles drawn up for them.

If those that say they want a “solution” actually meant it, they should have made up a master plan to materialise by October 2005. If Ankara really wanted a solution then it would have given a direction to those in parliament that have no differences left between them, to form a mutual government, get the whole world’s support behind them and therefore put a great amount of pressure on the Papadopoulos administration. However, Ankara has preferred to waste time with a so-called “election” aiming to make appointments to specific posts that have no meaning, authority or impact.

Those that render Cyprus hostage, and benefit from this, feel the obligation of carrying out elections from time to time in order to persuade the public and the world into believing that there is a regime of free elections and that democracy is functioning properly. They wish to add legality to their practices by having elections carried out. However, on the other hand, by using the state’s powers they constantly try to direct how the people should think, aiming to enable the continuity of the present regime and acquittal of the past. Yet in places that have been trying to transform into democracies, success has only come in circumstances in which mutual agreements have been made on the conditions of the elections. Otherwise so-called elections have only led to the strengthening of the present regime and to the delay of the arrival of true democracy.

Elections are carried out in order to allow a country’s people to reflect their free will. However, Turkey’s administrations have never allowed this to happen with regimes created in the North of this country; these are totally committed to Turkey. They have intervened with every quarter of the country, changing the structure of the population and causing the native people of Cyprus to become a minority.

As long as Turkey’s occupation of the island and unsolved Cyprus problem continues, a structure that would be able to fulfil the minimum requirements of a democratic election will not be present today and it is a blatant fact that the formation of any such structure will not be permitted.

Under such circumstances:

-          unless the Turkish embassy’s authorities are restricted; their personnel are reduced to that of the number of personnel in any other country over the world, the Republic of Turkey Aid Commission is closed down and exterior interventions are halted, and the administration of organisations such as the Central Bank that are run by civilian and military bureaucrats from the Republic of Turkey are handed over to the control of Cypriots,

-          unless administration by outside directives, of the council and government is stopped,

-          unless studies are carried out to resolve matters mentioned in the council report that confirmed that there were interventions to the previous elections; underground and surface organisations that have intervened in the elections are closed down, the existence of certain officials chasing voters with full briefcases is ended,

-          unless units are formed to observe election offences, taking precautions with police intelligence against Turkey’s military and civilian underground interventions,

-          unless the citizenship problems are overlooked and citizenships in contrary to international law are cancelled,

-          unless the ballot lists are purified and stop becoming a simple registration process and a new ballot list is prepared with cautious process,

-          unless giving the right to candidacy to people who have never resided in the country is stopped,

-          unless observation committees are established, to ensure that state facilities are not used in elections,

-          unless the electoral barrier system is totally abandoned to enable all political opinions to be represented, thus cleansing the citizens perspective of the psychology that they will be impeded by the electoral barrier, which already exists due to the fact that the election areas are constricted and by doing this, taking away some parties’ weapon for opportunist propaganda; of saying “they can not pass the electoral barrier any way, why waste your votes”,

-          unless opposite opinions are allowed to be freely discussed in either the means of mass media or in institutions of education,

-          unless a guide from either the UN or countries of the EU is requested and is put into action in order to specify what should not be allowed to be broadcasted, and to determine which statements in news bulletins lead to the provocation of war and inciting of enmity between races, nations, religions, cultures and sexes by differentiating them, by state or private radio and television and publications of the media, that have been found guilty by international law for such offences,

-          unless the constitution and laws concerning the founding of political parties seizes from requiring conditions such as: being Kemalist and keeping close relations with the Motherland, not denying that the Turkish Cypriot community is an essential part of the Turkish nation and not opposing Turkey’s guarantor rights; and the threat, that parties which do not abide by these conditions will be permanently closed down, comes to a stop,

It will never be possible to speak of a democratic election in the North of this country.

Under these circumstances it would be a historical crime committed against the future generations; to see and indicate the elections as a remedy and to invite the public to participate in this game, unless a structure that is able to fulfil an election’s minimum requirements is formed. The game is being played openly. Our people are experiencing this and they can see what is going on. Political acrobats that have corrupted the politics of this country, who do not care about what they said just before the elections only a year ago and what actions they actually took after these elections, are not ashamed to invite the people to participate in the elections again with the opinion that “they will follow us as soon as we blow the whistle” and by saying “to the elections”. They are still able to say “vote for us, so that we can come to power all by ourselves” as if there is still a difference left between any of them or as if they do not obey and will not obey again, as soon as they are directed to by Ankara’s “this is an order” command.

The New Cyprus Party, which is the only party that is capable of purifying the corrupted politics in this country, emphasizes that it is not possible to carry out this purification by entering the Council that no longer has any meaning; but, that it would only be possible to carry out this purification, even without any need for an election, if the increasing strength of our people were to share our views and unite under the wings of the NCP.

The New Cyprus Party perceives entering this Council, synonymous to being a puppet and it will not be a part of this game devised by those in power. It will not share the common wish of acquitting the regime and adding legality to their actions. It will not participate in a race which will lead to the appointment of people to specific posts that have no authority or impact.

The New Cyprus Party started its struggle by saying “No to Being Governed by Directives” since its establishment in 1989. And now it is saying “No to an Election of Agents Carried out In Line With Directives”.

The New Cyprus Party calls upon our people to reject being “only a crowd that gets into order a soon as a whistle is blown” but to use their right of electing by boycotting the elections and not going to the ballot boxes.

The New Cyprus Party, calls upon our people; not to honour an election for agents under the control of Ankara that will not reflect their own free will, not to abide by their commands; to show their responses by not being afraid of anything, to stand up by not going to the ballot boxes and also by persuading those around them to do the same.

The New Cyprus Party brings your attention once more to the fact that the struggle, for the unification of Cyprus and all Cypriots, is not in the ballot boxes but it is out on the streets.

Now come, let us revive this struggle once again.

New Cyprus Party

Party Council

(04/01/05)