Frank and Joan's news for 02 July 2005 in Northern Cyprus

Frank and Joan's Adventures in Northern Cyprus

Our adventures in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus continue....

Saturday is newspaper day, so lets see if there is anything that might interest you all out there.

Anybody remember the shooting of Stan Rankin over here about 2 years ago. An Englishman who was acquitted of murder on the grounds of it being an accident has suddenly been jailed for 6 years. The case went back to the high court and on a three to one majority the judges ruled that the original verdict was incorrect, hence the 6 year sentence. One of the judges said, if it was an accident then why did Mr Boak not go to get help for the victim and why did he clean his gun before the police arrived.....hmmmmm

The new centralised work permit centre has opened today, which is designed to ensure a speedy response to applications as the new get-tough era starts. This era has caused major problems fro builders who mostly employed a labour force from the mainland. Some 6,000 of them have hurriedly left the island and now have to await the processing of passports etc before coming back. So if you are desperately waiting for you house to

be built there is now a new excuse.

Apparently there has been a small victory in the EU for the TRNC. Remember that when the north said YES to the referendum the EU proposed a direct trade agreement linked to 259 million Euros aid package for the north as a sort of thank you for the Yes vote. The south have been, within the EU, trying to separate these two things saying that they should control and monitor the 259 million and that direct trade is definitely not on. Well Brussels has said that the two things go together so now the fight is to get the EU to approve the terms and award the TRNC as promised.

I have had masses of mail about the Trevor Macdonald program on ITV. A copy is incidentally is on its way to me as I write. It is very strange that when I got the telephone call from a Rosalind Kestner, his chief researcher some many weeks ago I distinctly remember this lady saying that this was Sir Trevor and he would only ever be involved in totally unbiased journalism. What a load of rubbish, guess that they where got at by some Greek Cypriots in London and bought off. Cannot be proven I know but why the excessive bias.. The general opinion is that this program was very poorly researched, full of generalisations and with disgraceful reporting. Maybe the lady needs to be moved out to a job that she is capable of doing properly. Hey ho when are we going to hear somebody telling the truth as it actually is in programs like this.

Now for the evening, which we spent in the company of Barbara and Bruce, friends who now live sometimes in Karaman but used to live in Canterbury when we where in Kent. Barbara was in fact a cashier in the Barclays bank that Joan used to go in to. We met at The Allah Kerim restaurant in Alsancak. Cheap, cheerful and excellent quality, service a bit slow, but this is Cyprus so who hurries. Afterwards, Joan and I nipped in to The Green Coast hotel complex on our way home as it was Roger B's first night of the season there and he went down very well so guess we will have to organise the gang for one Saturday night.