The delay in opening the Lefke-Aplic bordering crossing is the fault of the Greek Cypriot administration and lack of will on the part of the UNDP, says a local NGO platform.
In a written statement, the platform said that the Turkish Cypriot side had done everything required to open the crossing point. They called on officials to progress the work. The platform asked: “How the will Cyprus problem be solved when there is not the necessary political responsibility and determination even to open the two crossing points?”
Regarding the opening of the Derinya crossing point, spokesman for the ‘Famagusta Initiative’ Okan Dagli told Turkish Cypriot daily ‘Yeni Bakis’ that the situation in Famagusta is very bad and only the opening of the university had stopped its economy collapsing.
Dagli said that the main reason for the dire economic situation in Famagusta is the fact that the city has been divided for the last 43 years, is closed in and is in fact a “ghost city without any development and investments. This affects directly the inhabitants of Famagusta who are totally losing out in daily social life and tourism”, stated Dagli.
Recalling the agreement reached between the two community leaders two years ago to reopen the Derinya and Aplic crossing points, Dagli expressed his disappointment over the slow progress of the works and said that both sides are unwilling and reluctant to act.
Dagli called on the two leaders to take concrete steps for the opening of the two crossing points, pointing out that steps and efforts concentrated in the re-rapprochement of the two communities will also contribute to the efforts to reach a solution to the Cyprus problem.
Kibris, Yeni Bakis