Statement by the General Secretary of the Central Committee of AKEL Stefanos Stefanou after the meeting with delegations of environmental organisations and movements

 

27 November 2021, AKEL C.C. Press Office, Nicosia

Today we had another meeting – dialogue with environmental organisations. This dialogue that we as a Party have been engaged in is ongoing because the environmental crisis that is developing in modern times concerns us very much as it concerns the very survival of our planet. It is also high among the priorities of our overall policy.

With this dialogue we are setting out our Party’s priorities in organising joint actions with environmental organisations to tackle a number of problems.

We are guided by a fundamental principle in our approaches. Environmental concern begins with concern and action in our own country. And our country faces multiple and significant environmental problems.

First of all, the nightmare scenario of the desertification of Cyprus, the problems with fires, the non-existence of integrated spatial planning, the problem with the continuing occupation that does not permit the implementation of a comprehensive plan and scrutiny in the country and a number of other important, manifold and difficult environmental problems that need to be addressed.

To address these problems a comprehensive and effective environmental policy is demanded which the government not only does not have, but on a number of important issues instead of serving the environmental perspective it serves big and powerful interests.

During this government, many environmental crimes have been committed, such as the issue with the sea caves in Peyia, the fact that in the absence of a comprehensive land-use plan, polluting business activities are sprouting near residential areas, the absence of a proper comprehensive plan regarding the Akamas region and numerous other issues.

AKEL, in cooperation with environmental organisations, is elaborating its environmental policy, promoting policies both inside and outside Parliament and at the same time seeking to counter the government’s anti-environmental policy which, instead of solving environmental problems, is creating more and more new ones.