Cyprus Government Comments on Freedom Flotilla

The Ministries of Foreign Affairs, Communications and Works, Justice and Public Order, and Finance have decided to forbid the sailing of the ships of the Freedom Flotilla Coalition that were seeking to break the siege of Gaza and to convey humanitarian aid to the Palestinians.

In statements to CNA, Vasilis Demetriades, Officer of the Ministry of Communications and Works, said that the decision was taken in the framework of International Law, and with an aim to defend the vital interests of the Republic of Cyprus. On the one hand, Cyprus always supports the struggle of the people of Palestine, and on the other hand, the Palestinian Authority has never demanded such kind of assistance, he said.

“The activists have informed the Cyprus government and the relevant Ministries about their operation two weeks ago, and it has been clarified to them that Cyprus government did not wish, at the present, to be engaged in their operation”, Demetriades noted.

He also pointed out that the government has underlined that the standing position of the Republic of Cyprus is to support the struggle of the people of Palestine, and that Cyprus is probably the only EU member state that retains a firm position of support towards the Palestinians.

As he explained, the activists would use Cyprus as a transit stop and as a meeting point in their endeavor to convey humanitarian aid to Gaza.

Cyprus Member of the Parliament and Vice President of the European Parliament Delegation for relations with the Palestinian Legislative Council, Kyriacos Triantaphyllides, who is heading the Cypriot initiative of the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, stated to CNA that he is not responsible for the organizational issues of the operation.

Invited to comment on government’s decision, Triantaphyllides stressed that the only issue which concerns him, is the humanitarian aid to reach the people of Gaza, that live in poverty.

The fleet is composed of nine boats and it carries 750 participants from more than 60 countries, including governmental, parliamentary, European and Arab officials as well as activists of all ages.

The ships also carry more than 10 thousand tons of medical supplies, building materials, timber, 100 prefabricated houses to shelter tens of thousands of people who lost their homes during the Israeli war on Gaza in early 2009; it also carries 500 electric vehicles for the handicapped, especially since the recent war had left nearly 600 disabled people in Gaza.

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