Tag: Sonya Karafistan

HP News
Barnet Council rejects accusations of “institutionalised racism” against Turks in the borough

The Leader of Barnet Council Barry Rawlings has rejected accusations from local residents of Turkish and Turkish Cypriot descent that the local authority is “racist”, calling them “unsubstantiated claims” at a recent council meeting. Councillor Rawlings’ comments prompted an angry exchange with a group of residents present in the public gallery. The council leader was […]

HP Features
“This will cost Sir Iain support” – Turkish backlash after Chingford MP Iain Duncan Smith backs Armenian Genocide bill

Conservative politician Sir Iain Duncan Smith has landed himself in hot water with British Turks after it emerged he supported the introduction of a new bill calling for the First World War massacres of Armenians in Anatolia to be recognised as a “genocide”. Ayşe Osman, head of the UK’s Turkish Cypriot umbrella body CTCA, has […]

HP News
Commonwealth Games: UK slammed for “blatant discrimination” as Turkish Cypriots excluded from Queen’s Baton Relay

Community leaders and British Turkish Cypriot politicians have hit out at the British High Commission in Nicosia for failing to include Turkish Cypriots in the Queen’s Baton Relay, which will be touring southern Cyprus this weekend to promote the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham. Baroness Meral Hussein-Ece, Councillor Kay Isa, and Ayşe Osman, President of […]

Community
BTCA premieres its Nevcihan Oluşum “A Thousand Words” documentary – the story behind the iconic photo

The world premiere of the documentary ‘A Thousand Words; The Voice Behind the Image’ about Nevcihan Oluşum and her iconic photo took place online on Sunday, 20 December. The screening of the film by the British Turkish Cypriot Association (BTCA) occurred on the 57th anniversary of ‘Bloody Christmas’ – the start of the decade-long assault and […]

HP Features
Arsenal revises policy after British Turks accuse club of “double standards” over Ozil and Aubameyang posts

Arsenal Football Club has revised its communications policy after a leading community group accused the club of “double standards”. The complaint was made by the Council of Turkish Cypriot Associations in an open letter sent to the board of the North London club last month. Penned by CTCA chair Ertuğrul Mehmet, the powerfully worded letter […]

HP News
MPs respond to Turkish Cypriot concerns over UK’s North Cyprus air embargo

A correspondence campaign regarding the Pegasus security clamp-down for flights from Ercan Airport to Britain is starting to bear fruit. The campaign was launched by the British Turkish Cypriot Association (BTCA), Embargoed! and T-VINE Magazine. One of the first to get active was Barnet resident and advertising consultant Sonya Karafistan. Her template letter to MPs […]