AKEL meets with the Antiquities Department union Branch
AKEL C.C. Press Office, 24th November 2020, Nicosia
An AKEL delegation headed by the Party’s Parliamentary Representative Giorgos Loucaides and the Head of the Cultural Affairs Bureau of the C.C. of AKEL Costas Costa had yesterday a meeting with the PASYDY trade union branch representatives of the Department of Antiquities. The meeting took place at the request of the trade union Branch, within the framework of its contacts with political parties to brief them of its positions on the subordination of the Department of Antiquities to the Deputy Ministry of Culture which is being formed.
Expressing their opposition to the relocation of the Department of Antiquities from the Ministry of Transport, Communications and Works to the Deputy-Ministry of Culture under formation, the representatives of the Branch stated that Antiquities, according to the Constitution of the Republic of Cyprus, belong to the state and not to the community assemblies and any change in the status of the Department can be interpreted as a change of the status of the antiquities and as their downgrading from a state to a community issue. As they said, such an action can be used as an alibi by the pseudo-state in the occupied areas for partitionist moves in the field of cultural heritage.
Furthermore, as they noted, any transfer of the Department from a Ministry to a Deputy Ministry Department will actually constitute a downgrading of antiquities, since the Department’s status will be subordinated to a lower level. Finally, they referred to the practical problems that will arise as to the execution of the Department’s work and role.
Responding to the concerns of the trade union Branch, Giorgos Loucaides assured that AKEL’s position is that the Department of Antiquities should not be moved to the Deputy Ministry of Culture, but remain under the Ministry of Transport, Communications and Works. As he explained, the main reason is that there will be political ramifications from its possible transfer, without of course underestimating the other serious reasons invoked by the PASYDY Branch of the Department of Antiquities. AKEL, concluded G. Loucaides, expects the Minister of Education to fulfill the pledge he made for a meaningful dialogue to begin with all cultural agencies, as well as with the parties. AKEL will submit its own comprehensive positions in this structured dialogue.
