There are serious cases, which should not be made public
At first glance, there are some responsibilities, which will certainly be assigned, said the Minister of Justice and Public Order, Marios Hartsiotis, in relation to yesterday's escape of a suspect from the Central Prisons. At the same time, the Minister stated that there are serious cases, which should not be made public and “journalists should not demand full details”.
Marios Hartiotis attended today an event organized by the Limassol Police Department and the International Police Association – Limassol Local Department, in honor of their members and in the context of strengthening relations between them, as well as their relations with the leadership of the Police.
In his statements, and when asked to comment on the criticism he made, that the media focuses more on the negatives and not on the successes of the Police, he said that “it is not something that is unknown”. “I think it has been said too many times at all levels, not only at the level of the Police, that in the part of the news, usually the negative, whether they are events or comments, tend to attract the attention of public opinion much more than some positive events or some successes, let alone on the part of the Police”, he added.
In response to a question as to whether yesterday's prisoner's escape should not have been publicized, for which he requested a report of the facts, the Minister said that ” a report of facts has indeed been requested from the Chief of Police, which report we will receive and if there are, which obviously, prima facie, there will be some responsibilities, they will certainly be assigned”.
At the same time, however, he continued, “you have heard from the Deputy Chief of Police, that frankly in the last two days we had many successes of the Police. At the level of arson we had solved a significant number and we had also arrested specific people who are accused of a significant number of thefts that occurred in the past,” he said.
“So, in that sense, precisely for these positive aspects of the Police I have not seen, not the same visibility, not even a similar visibility”, he said, and wished that the significant successes of the Police would be more prominent.
< p>In relation to the preventive measures announced three months ago, Mr. Hartsiotis stated that it is a short period of time to comment on whether there are positive results, however he noted that “if you ask me very personally, I am not happy”. At the same time, however, he emphasized, “I hope that very soon, with the updated and corrected movements that are made every day, based on the relevant information, yes we will have much better results”.
In response to the question whether there will be new permutations stated that “permutations are frequent, not isolated from time to time. They are frequent and exactly the transfers are within these frameworks of the update, among other things, and the measures taken”.
In relation to the measures for migration flows, he said that these are continuing and expressed the position that “there is a feeling of security and I must say that the Cypriot citizen should feel safe in relation to this specific issue and precisely these measures are updated daily based on the information we have from inside and outside”.
Noting that there is dissatisfaction in the journalistic world for insufficient information from the Police on various issues, the Minister of Justice stated that “the media and journalists should not have any dissatisfaction because they should understand that we are talking about issues related to internal order and security”.
“Such matters are particularly sensitive and the press and media must show the necessary understanding”, he said, and added that “it is not an end in itself to tell every detail about every event – there is a hierarchy”.
It is said that it needs to be said and it is said at the right time, said the Minister of Justice, noting that on some issues, such as immigration and organized crime, “journalists should not demand full details and express this dissatisfaction”.
At the same time, he noted that, while some issues should not be made public, “I notice that too many times journalists and the media find a way, beyond official sources, to secure some information, which potentially for you, they are helpful, but for us, they are distressing because they hinder exactly the mission of the Police”.
During the event, Mr. Hartsiotis assured the members of the Police that he will defend their interests , while he spoke of gaps and failures that are identified and should be corrected. He called on the members of the Police to be alert and ready, as, as he said, we are going through a critical period of developments in our region.
For his part, the Police Director of Limassol, Andreas Angelidis, expressed the his satisfaction with the work carried out and the results brought by the prevention mechanism.
