The run-up to Thursday’s General Election has seen furious debates and deep divisions among friends and families as we try to promote the best party we feel best reflects our world view, values and aspirations. One politician who has managed to unite the entire British Turkish community in condemnation is Theresa Villiers, the long-standing Conservative […]
On Saturday, 26 October, the Labour members of Enfield North will have the chance to listen to four very able candidates and select which one should represent them as the Labour Parliamentary candidate at the next general election. Among the four is Margaret Greer, one of my oldest and dearest friends. Here’s why I feel […]
A group of British MPs, who can broadly be described as “the usual suspects”, have all recently fallen over themselves to repeat, parrot fashion, every piece of Greek Cypriot propaganda ever invented since 1974, when the Turkish Army legally intervened in Cyprus under the terms of the Treaty of Guarantee. Balance dictates the necessity to […]
As the British High Commission forecasts “tough choices and compromises ahead” if the UN Talks are to succeed, and Secretary General Guterres fails to mention Greek Cypriot obstruction in his latest report, former TRNC Chief Negotiator Ergün Olgun says more than compromise may be needed for success, and that the UN itself is part […]
For the best part of 60 years Greek Cypriot governments have, with ingenious guile and commendable tenacity, persuaded most of the world and international institutions to see Cyprus through their eyes, the widely held view being that Turkey is entirely responsible for the current situation, having taken the north of the island for itself and […]
Would you like to hear a story? It’s about a forgotten deal between the UK and Turkey, which came to life in the 90s. For the past two decades, the Ankara Agreement has been a strong and vital option in enabling commercial immigration from Turkey to Britain. Recently, the significant rise in new applicants has […]
The Greek Cypriot position on hydrocarbons exploitation is that as an independent and sovereign coastal state, member of both the UN and of the EU, the “Republic of Cyprus” has the right to exploit her natural resources, including offshore resources, and agree boundaries with other coastal states in accordance with internationally accepted procedures. Greece […]
I’ve been trying really hard not to just be against change and to appreciate the possible positive outcomes of gentrification… but it’s becoming an insane situation! Originally from Turkey, I’ve been living in this city for 16 years and consider it as my ‘beloved’. I find it hard to just ditch or pass London on […]
Originally from Croydon, South London, Ayla Azmi Işık is a married mum of one living with her family in Köyceğiz, Muğla, in southern Turkey. Earlier this year her son Enis, then aged 20 months, nearly drowned. Battling against the odds, baby Enis continues to make incredible progress towards a full recovery at İsparta Hospital. Watching the ordeal of […]
Turkey’s referendum result is undoubtedly a serious setback for Turkey’s long and torturous process of democratisation – but it’s not difficult to find signs of hope. The mood of NO supporters in the recent referendum on changes to Turkey’s constitution which dramatically expand the powers of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan ranges from manic depressive […]
