The discussion on trips to the occupied territories will continue in a new session in the presence of Kobos-Letymiotis – What was said at the closed-door session of the Tourism Committee
The Parliamentary Tourism Committeediscussed on Wednesday afternoon, behind closed doors, the latest developments regarding the organization of trips to and from the occupied territories, in the presence of the Deputy Minister of Tourism Kostas Koumis, with the President of the Committee Kyriakos< /strong> Hatzigiannis to say that the discussion will continue in a new session, in the presence of the Minister of Foreign Affairs Konstantinos Kobos and the Government Representative Konstantinos Letimbioti.
The decision for a closed-door session for the media was taken by a majority, following a request from the Deputy Minister of Tourism himself, which was supported by the majority of the members of the Commission.
The President of the Committee Kyriakos Hatzigiannis and AKEL Member of Parliament Irini Charalambidou.
The session started at 13.45 and around 14.45 the guests also left the sessionof the Committee and only the Deputy Minister of Tourism and relevant state officials remained, who continued to inform the MPs on the matter.
In statements after the session , the President of the Commissionhe said that “once again they did it the way they did it” and wondered whether “they themselves have realized what they have done”. “They have led the country into an adventure that has to do first with our relations with the partner travel agents and secondly they have led the country into an adventure of fighting and calling into question existing plans and agreements that have existed so far,” added Mr. Hatzigiannis.
“At the end of the day, all these excursions took place, are taking place and are within the framework of the regulation of the green line,” he added.
Mr. Hatzigiannis said that “did not give clear and unambiguous answers today“, adding that “they have accepted that while the Deputy Ministry of Tourism has diagnosed the problem that has arisen, the Deputy Minister admitted that he has not transferred the problem to the President of the Republic, for a decision that had political dimensions”.
< p>He said that he leaves this to everyone's discretion and added that the decision taken “led us, in the midst of efforts to start negotiations to resolve the Cyprus problem, to give the opposite side the opportunity to use it and come abusively to the detriment of the Cypriots as well problem and the efforts being made”.
Mr. Hatzigiannis was asked if “this was a responsible management of a political act” and he hoped that “there would be no other consequences, such as retaliation, for example in the expansion of illegal tourist activity within the city of Famagusta”.
He said that “the occupying power has blackmailed them because the Deputy Ministry of Tourism gave them this opportunity, to threaten for things they didn't need”. >Michalis Giakoumis, after the Commission session, called on “the Government and all relevant bodies to intensify their efforts to ensure that our tourism industry will not be further affected by the unfair competition of the occupied territories”.
“It's not just an economic issue, it's a matter of principle and justice. The tourism industry of the Republic of Cyprus must operate in an equal and fair environment. The state has the responsibility to protect our sovereignty, our economy and fair competition,” he added.
Mr. Giakoumis said that we must intensify our efforts on all fronts” and that “it is necessary stricter enforcement of laws and regulations regarding the advertising and promotion of the occupied territories as a tourist destination.”
He also said that “the awareness of foreign tourist agents and companies about illegal activities in the occupied territories must be increased.” He said that “it is no secret that businesses in the occupied territories operate under a regime that is not recognized by the international community and avoid the obligations that apply to the free areas of the Republic of Cyprus” and added that this creates an unfair competition that directly affects our tourism industry, one of the most important pillars of our economy”.
The Mr. Giakoumis also said that “the Government has an obligation to protect our legitimate businesses, which work hard by paying taxes and following the laws of the Republic and European obligations”.
“We cannot tolerate this continuing the situation, where tourism businesses in the free zones see their customers heading to the occupied due to lower prices resulting from unfair competition conditions,” he added.
