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CAN PAPADOPOULOS JR. MAKE A DIFFERENCE?
Hurriyet Daily News, Turkey
Dec 4 2013
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With the junior coalition member Democratic Party (DIKO) electing to
its leadership Nicolas Papadopoulos, the son of the late President
Tassos Papadopulos who earned the title "Mr. No," with his fierce
opposition to the 2004 Annan Plan, might create an added complication
to the already deadlocked Cyprus talks.
It was a razor-thin victory for Papadopoulos Jr. He received 51 percent
of the vote or just 546 votes more than that which went to incumbent
Marios Garoyian. This result also demonstrated that most probably
the fight between the hardliners and the even stronger hardliners
within DIKO that has been continuing since the December 2008 death of
Papadopoulos Sr. has not yet ended. Still, the last remarks before
the vote, both candidates pledged to let election time contentions
remain in the ballot box.
The blood feud between the two rival wings within DIKO and,
consequently a leading DIKO member refusing to support Garoyian in the
vote for parliament speakership resulted in the precious seat going
to Ioannakis Omiriu, the leader of the Movement for Social Democracy
(EDEK). Indeed, there were speculations before the DIKO vote that
should Papadopoulos lose the contest, his group would abandon DIKO,
and together with "allies" in EDEK form a new political group. Would
Garoyian abandon the battle, accept defeat though he lost leadership
with a negligible 546 votes? What would be the fallout of the continued
tensions between the winner and the loser of DIKO on the Anastasiades
presidency? Papadopoulos and his campaign executives were keen in
stressing during the campaign that DIKO would respect the coalition
accord with President Nikos Anastasiades and as long as he remained
loyal to the term of the deal, DIKO would not withdraw its much
needed support from the government. Indeed, it was under pressure
from that flank of the party, that in writing the coalition protocol
the former DIKO chief Garoyian, an Armenian Cypriot, insisted on a
set of terms under which President Anastasiades has been unable to
continue the talks from where they were left off by his predecessor
socialist Demetris Christofias.
It is at least obvious now that Anastasiades, who maneuvered like
a belly dancer over the past many weeks to wait for the outcome of
the coalition partner DIKO's convention before engaging himself in
any way in a new Cyprus-talks exercise, will be less comfortable
now. He at least will constantly feel the threat of Papadopoulos to
withdraw from the government. Could he now steer anywhere close to a
federation with strong federated units and a weak central government
he is believed to be preferring over a resolution with a rotating
presidency, cross-voting and such "lunacies" of the Christofias
era? Difficult, at least.
The period ahead will be even more difficult for Anastasiades if he
really wanted to make it into history as the Greek Cypriot leader to
have solved the Cyprus problem. Papadopoulos Sr. was talking about a
resolution with the "right content." That is, a resolution bringing an
end to Turkish Cypriot presence on the island by melting them in the
"Cyprus nation," through osmosis. Papadopoulos Jr. is now stressing
he would work for a resolution "with the right content." That is, of
course, another way of saying he is opposed to a compromise deal. Now
the question? Since he has assumed new party leadership and prospects
of further rising in politics are in the horizon, can Papadopoulos Jr.
surprise everyone, abandon his father's hardline rhetoric and
contribute to a compromise resolution? Can he make a difference? Very
unlikely!
December/04/2013
Hurriyet Daily News, Turkey
Dec 4 2013
Print Page Send to friend "
Share
With the junior coalition member Democratic Party (DIKO) electing to
its leadership Nicolas Papadopoulos, the son of the late President
Tassos Papadopulos who earned the title "Mr. No," with his fierce
opposition to the 2004 Annan Plan, might create an added complication
to the already deadlocked Cyprus talks.
It was a razor-thin victory for Papadopoulos Jr. He received 51 percent
of the vote or just 546 votes more than that which went to incumbent
Marios Garoyian. This result also demonstrated that most probably
the fight between the hardliners and the even stronger hardliners
within DIKO that has been continuing since the December 2008 death of
Papadopoulos Sr. has not yet ended. Still, the last remarks before
the vote, both candidates pledged to let election time contentions
remain in the ballot box.
The blood feud between the two rival wings within DIKO and,
consequently a leading DIKO member refusing to support Garoyian in the
vote for parliament speakership resulted in the precious seat going
to Ioannakis Omiriu, the leader of the Movement for Social Democracy
(EDEK). Indeed, there were speculations before the DIKO vote that
should Papadopoulos lose the contest, his group would abandon DIKO,
and together with "allies" in EDEK form a new political group. Would
Garoyian abandon the battle, accept defeat though he lost leadership
with a negligible 546 votes? What would be the fallout of the continued
tensions between the winner and the loser of DIKO on the Anastasiades
presidency? Papadopoulos and his campaign executives were keen in
stressing during the campaign that DIKO would respect the coalition
accord with President Nikos Anastasiades and as long as he remained
loyal to the term of the deal, DIKO would not withdraw its much
needed support from the government. Indeed, it was under pressure
from that flank of the party, that in writing the coalition protocol
the former DIKO chief Garoyian, an Armenian Cypriot, insisted on a
set of terms under which President Anastasiades has been unable to
continue the talks from where they were left off by his predecessor
socialist Demetris Christofias.
It is at least obvious now that Anastasiades, who maneuvered like
a belly dancer over the past many weeks to wait for the outcome of
the coalition partner DIKO's convention before engaging himself in
any way in a new Cyprus-talks exercise, will be less comfortable
now. He at least will constantly feel the threat of Papadopoulos to
withdraw from the government. Could he now steer anywhere close to a
federation with strong federated units and a weak central government
he is believed to be preferring over a resolution with a rotating
presidency, cross-voting and such "lunacies" of the Christofias
era? Difficult, at least.
The period ahead will be even more difficult for Anastasiades if he
really wanted to make it into history as the Greek Cypriot leader to
have solved the Cyprus problem. Papadopoulos Sr. was talking about a
resolution with the "right content." That is, a resolution bringing an
end to Turkish Cypriot presence on the island by melting them in the
"Cyprus nation," through osmosis. Papadopoulos Jr. is now stressing
he would work for a resolution "with the right content." That is, of
course, another way of saying he is opposed to a compromise deal. Now
the question? Since he has assumed new party leadership and prospects
of further rising in politics are in the horizon, can Papadopoulos Jr.
surprise everyone, abandon his father's hardline rhetoric and
contribute to a compromise resolution? Can he make a difference? Very
unlikely!
December/04/2013