This week in history
THIS time last year, visitors to North Cyprus using the South’s Larnaca airport were told they should “switch to Ercan airport instead” as the Greek Cypriot government was accused of “sabotaging” TRNC tourism. Tourism Minister Fikri Ataoğlu threated that the government would stop giving incentives to travel agents whose North Cyprus holiday packages included flights to South Cyprus.
Also this week last year, the UK Turkish Cypriot community was in shock after it emerged that one of its members, an 82-year-old man suffering from Parkinson’s disease and cancer, had been left fighting for his life following a vicious robbery. Ahmet Dobran was bed-ridden in hospital with three fractured vertebra after being dragged to the ground, punched multiple times and robbed of cash and jewellery in east London. Mr Dobran died nearly five months later.
Late September 2013 saw an İstanbul developer announce plans to build an alcohol-free and sex-segregated hotel in Çatalköy – the first of its kind in the TRNC. Temel Bulut, head of Bulut Construction Ltd, declared his intention to build the 1,700-bed facility, described as a “conservative” hotel, on 40 dönüms of privately-owned seaside land. The businessman was arrested in Turkey in January on fraud charges relating to property sales there.
This week in 2009, part-time and guest lecturers at troubled Eastern Mediterranean University were axed just days before students returned to lessons. It was not known exactly how many lecturers lost their jobs at the Gazimağusa campus, but a number of elective courses were also at risk. The university, which was then struggling with a 40 million TL debt, low student take-up on courses and a row over fee hikes, had sacked rector Ufuk Taneri the previous month. Part-time lecturers would not talk publicly about the loss of jobs because they feared more cuts could follow.
This time in 1998, tourists lazing around the poolside of a holiday village were horrified to witness dog and cat poisoning only yards from their sunbeds. It is believed toxin-laced meat and chicken, placed on plastic bags by men wearing special gloves, led to agonising deaths for the animals at Altınkaya II. The mid-morning incident was the latest in a widespread string of cruel attacks in some tourism areas which sparked outrage.
In international news, on this very day, September 29, 1978, the former leader of the Roman Catholic Church died after the shortest papal reign in history. Pope John Paul, the surprise candidate elected just 33 days before his death, died of a heart attack while reading in bed.
On October 3, 1995, OJ Simpson was found not guilty of the murders of his ex-wife Nicole and her friend Ronald Goldman. The criminal trial was one of the lengthiest in US legal history, with the official court transcript covering more than 50,000 pages.