Outrageous

The way the British and US Governments reacted to the capture of British military personnel by Iran, together with the initial reactions from the media, are a good reflection of the biased “self-righteous” of the western powers.

A heritage left from the Cold War times, we still assume too much that we, the westerns, are the “good guys” against the evil ones. The war in Iraque and all the, later evident, manipulation aiming to justify the invasion, showed us better.

Today, the existence in Cyprus of a British stronghold, including two military bases and surrounding villages, totaling an area of 157 square kilometers, retained after Cyprus independence in 1960 regardless the contestation by the local population, is still an example of old habits standing with the “old” powers in a new world.

As strange as it may seem to British militaries, the arrest of a Greek-Cypriot politician cannot be justified and presented to the public as a reaction to 'local hostiles acting against Britain' anymore.

Simply because this local hostile is member of the European Parliament!

And this changes the perspective of the media and our own on the issue. Cyprus is not anymore the former colony or an island in the far shouth-east of Europe.

Maybe ten years ago this situation could be “sold” in a different way. Today it just stands out as it is – outrageous!

"It is outrageous that in the 21st century there are Cypriot villages living under British military rule, neither under their own government's jurisdiction nor under the protection of the EU treaties"

Chris Davies - British Liberal Democrat MEP