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Chypre : autre article de shlomo avineri

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Submitted by Panos on

JERUSALEM POST ARTICLE ON THE FLAWS IN THE ANNAN PLAN FOR CYPRUS

Feb. 29, 2004

The UN's favorite occupation

By SHLOMO AVINERI

On May 1, 2004, Cyprus will join the European Union. The island has been divided since the Turkish invasion in 1974, with a Turkish puppet regime in the North. For decades, futile negotiations have been going on for reunification.

Despite this, the European Union has decided that Cyprus will be admitted in any case: If reunification occurs before accession, the whole island will join the EU; if negotiations fail, only the Greek part, represented by the legitimate Republic of Cyprus, will become a member. In such a case the current Green Line dividing Cyprus—and running through Nicosia—will also become the external border of the EU.

This, of course, raises a number of serious concerns for the EU. Hence its support for the UN-sponsored Annan Plan, aimed at reuniting the island before May 1, has now gone into high gear, with intensive talks taking place between the two sides under UN sponsorship, with the blessing of the EU.

The Annan Plan is a 400-page document. Few people in Cyprus have read it, despite the fact that both communities will have to vote on it before May 1. In typical UN arrogance, it has not been translated into either Greek or Turkish, so most people have only a vague idea of what is in it.

But despite its promise to end the division of the island by setting up a complex loose federal system, a poll released last week suggests that in the Cypriot Greek community 61 percent oppose it, while only 27 percent support it.

Why such meager support for what promises finally to bring peace to the island? The answers are in the details.

Many Greek Cypriots feel that the haste now evident by the UN and the EU stems from the wish to pave the way for talks about the accession of Turkey to the EU. Obviously, if Turkey continued to occupy part of an EU member state, negotiations about its membership could not begin.

GREECE ITSELF has now—wisely—dropped its opposition to Turkish EU membership. Looking at the details of the Annan Plan, however, it appears that the international community, through its wish to pave Turkey's accession, will be legitimating the outcome of Turkish aggression. It is obvious that the Annan Plan contradicts some basic values of both the United Nations and the European Union:

Most of the 200,000 Greek Cypriot refuges who were uprooted by the Turkish invasion will not be able to return to their former places, nor will they receive full compensation; Most of the Anatolian Turks who have been settled in the North by the Turkish occupation authorities will remain in place; Until Turkish accession to the EU, Turkish forces will remain in the North; Greek Cypriots will not be able to move freely or settle in the Turkish part.

The last prohibition rattles Greek Cypriots most: It means that in a united Europe - where every French, Portuguese, Polish or Estonian citizen will be more or less free to take up residence and work in the Turkish part of Cyprus—Greek Cypriots will not have freedom of movement in their own country. In a way, the Greek Cypriots will be ghettoized.

Furthermore, the provisions regarding Turkish settlers and the continued presence of the Turkish army will mean that Turkish aggression has been rewarded.

The UN and the EU, which justly condemn Israeli occupation and settlements in the West Bank, now condones Turkish occupation and Turkish settlers.

If the negotiations prove successful, Kofi Annan may get the Nobel Peace Prize for an agreement which legitimizes ethnic cleansing and occupation. As always, the gap between the lofty ideals of the UN and the sleazy way in which it goes about its business could not be wider.

Many Greek Cypriots feel that they are being bludgeoned into submission in order to appease a much stronger Turkey. They may be exaggerating; but if the negotiations fail because of the Greek Cypriots' feeling of being, once again, victimized by realpolitik, they will not be totally wrong.

The writer is Professor of Political Science at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and former director-general of the Foreign Ministry.

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Sylvain

" The last prohibition rattles Greek Cypriots most: It means that in a united Europe - where every French, Portuguese, Polish or Estonian citizen will be more or less free to take up residence and work in the Turkish part of Cyprus—Greek Cypriots will not have freedom of movement in their own country. "

C'est clair que les Chypriotes grecs n'allaient pas avaler une telle ânerie !

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Wed, 08/25/2004 - 12:26 Permalink
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Milos

Je vois apparaitre ce vieil article (29 février, visiblement) et je dis: attention!
Il me semble partiel et inexact. Par exemple, la non traduction en grec et turc du plan Annan avant les référendums est fausse (en mars-avril, en tout cas).
Ensuite, il est clairement biaisé (comme le montre l'article du Figaro) par le fait que l'auteur israelien cherche clairement à faire un parallèle avec le conflit israelo-arabe (en louant les Chypriotes grecs et critiquant les Palestiniens) et cherche à dénigrer l'ONU (pas tant pour ses positions à Chypre que pour sa condamnation de la politique Sharon , sous-entendu).
Un Israelien, citoyen d'un pays isolé diplomatiquement (soutenu par les Etats-Unis seulement) et reniant les avertissements de l'ONU cherche à soutenir un autre pays qui n'a pas adhéré à un plan de l'ONU. Cela relativise et biaise forcément son analyse et la justesse de celle-ci.

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Fri, 08/27/2004 - 14:54 Permalink

ce que critique avineri c'est que les chypriotes grecs ne pourront pas s'établir librement dans le nord

ceci est toujours exact avec le plan

il faut savoir qu'en février 2004 le plan était plus favorable aux grecs qu'en mai 2004 (les quotas de résidence étaient un peu moins stricts)

d'après le plan des quotas sont établis et les chypriotes grecs ne pourront s'installer dans le nord s'ils excèdent un certain pourcentage dans le village où ils souhaient s'installer pendant 19 ans ou l'entrée de la turquie dans l'UE (le quota le plus favorable est de 18% d'un village jusqu'à la 19e année après l'entrée en vigueur du plan)

par exemple je veux m'installer dns un village du nord; mais il ya déjà 18% ed chpriotes grecs dans ce village. Je nai pas le droit de m'y installer alors qu'un chinois ou un irlandais ou un marocain aurait ce droit.

vu que le nord est vidé de ses grecs depuis déjà 30 ans ca fera 50 ans depuis 74

MAIS CELA NE S'ARRETE PAS LA

En plus de cette règle qui rcevra application pendant 19 ans, une autre disposition dit que des interdictions de résider peuvent peuvent être établis envers les chyrpiotes grecs "pour préserver l'identité" (c'est l'expression employée par le plan) de l'état chypritoe turc . je répète, c'est sans limitation dans la durée

une jolie expression pour dire qu'il faut conserver pour toujours le caractère ethniquement pur du nord tel qu'il est depuis l'invasion de 74

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Fri, 08/27/2004 - 16:48 Permalink
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Panos

bref en les journalistes du monde entier ont soutenu un plan qu'ils n'avaient sans doute pour la plupart et qui permet d'interdire à des citoyens d'un pays de s'établir dans une région de ce pays en raison de leur.. origine ethnique

moi je trouve cela obscène surtout, accessoirement, quand on rappelle qu'il y a seelement 30 ans la quasi totalité des habitants de ladite région provenait de la communauté ethnique en question

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Fri, 08/27/2004 - 16:53 Permalink
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Panos

In reply to by Panos

et enfin la seule version officielle du plan est en anglais

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Fri, 08/27/2004 - 16:58 Permalink