By Andreas C. Chrysafis
Full of optimism Mr. Demetris Chrystofias, the President of the Republic of Cyprus, made it his election campaign to resolve the Cyprus issue where all others have failed and if not, he will not run for another term in office. He gambled on the fact that Mr. Mehmet Ali Talat, a moderate and the leader of the Turkish Cypriots was a personal friend of his and both shared similar ideologies in socialism. Few years ago, Cyprus experienced an identical scenario between Denktash and Clyrides who were also good friends; those talks equally amounted to failure!
Two years on, and those aspirations may possibly now go up in smoke…! At the recent “elections” in the occupied area, Mr Talat has been ousted by an ultra right wing nationalist. More than 162.000 Turks cast their vote at the polls and a question arises: where did all these “registered” voters come from? Certainly they were not indigenous Turkish Cypriots (appx.65.000 living on the island) but rather “imports” aimed to alter the demographic character of the island before a solution can be reached. No official figures are available but it is estimated that over 320.000 mainland Turks have now settled in the northern part of Cyprus.
For 36 years, these on/off talks have achieved nothing but rather helped to wedge the “partition” of the island. The general public on the other hand are not optimistic and the results of a recent nationwide poll showed that 80% of Cypriots do not have faith in the negotiations.
It raises serious questions as to why these talks have bitterly failed to produce positive results all these years. What is it that it’s so badly wrong that no agreement has been reached so far? The answer has always been elusive.
Under normal conditions, the track record of past experiences is a good barometer of the present. In the case of Cyprus, it illustrates that the past performance of home-grown politicians attempting to resolve crucial issues has been marginal and very limited indeed. On the other hand, the coffee-house mentality hails supreme amongst the echelons of the Cypriot political life and it’s certainly not the way to forward.
In Greece, it is this kind of attitude compounded by a thriving black-market economy, an intransigent over-bloated public sector and institutional corruption that broke the camels back. Greece did not take effective measures to deal with its problems instead; it wily swept them under the carpet in the hope that they will never surface! Meanwhile, the powerful and influential, especially the banking institutions the likes of the giant Goldman Sachs and others, made billions out of the cover-up - and a most embarrassing situation for the Greek nation indeed!
Cousin-Cyprus is no different; it is also infected by the same Hellenic virus. Is there a storm on the way? Economic analysts predict that if no immediate steps are taken to protect the economy it’s only a matter of time before currency speculators make their next move; they have already set their sights on Cyprus! As everyone knows, the currency markets do not take prisoners!
To understand why Cyprus always trips from one frying pan into another, one has to first recognize the behaviour of the ruling elite; after all, it is they that have been steering the cart from the very beginning. A great number of them truly believe that they know everything there is to know. Their motto is: “if they don’t already know it…it’s not worth knowing!” and quickly brash aside that which does not comply with their own political ideology.
In time such attitudes may change and it will not be a bad thing. Positive results are brought about by fair-minded affirmative actions and not political point-scoring. In the case of Cyprus this has always been its drawback. There exists a political haemorrhage causing an ungodly schism amongst the nation for far too long. Unless society tackles this problem head-on, there is little room or prospect for a change in the future. The nation desperately needs to be overhauled and rejuvenated with new ideas, new institutions, more universities, fair and just laws and finally, bury the detestable past for good.
One of those positive changes it’s recognising the importance of introducing and establishing new foundations such as brain institutions. Cyprus cannot afford to lag behind other progressive nations and by using these powerful brains known as Think Tanks or Policy Institutes is a way forward.
There is a treasure trove of great minds in Cyprus but unfortunately - and for political expediency - these minds have not been capitalized upon or utilized effectively. Their impact on resolving serious issues could prove of paramount importance but so far, no government in office dared to consider such revolutionary ideas. It preferred to let this wonderful national asset go to waste and sadly… wasted it has been indeed!
In 1831 at the initiative of the Duke of Wellington the first Think Tank, known as the Institute for Defense and Security Studies (RUSI) was founded. The Fabian Society followed next in 1884.
A study in early 2009 found a total of 5,465 Think Tanks worldwide. Of that number, 1,777 were based in the United States; approximately 350 in Washington, DC alone. The UK has 130, Germany 15, France 17, Canada 12, Ireland 8 and the list goes on to include Australia, Iran, Japan, China, India, Pakistan and so on. It is no wonder these nations made great leaps ahead in technology, sciences, medical research, manufacturing and other areas crucial to their nation’s competitiveness.
In Greece there are 17 such “research organizations” as they are commonly known but unfortunately they are ideologically linked with political parties and are not really Think Tanks as such but rather party policy organizations. Their impartiality is questionable.
Many of these professional international Policy Institutes are funded by their governments, interest groups or businesses while others derive their income from consultation on Research & Development. Most companies in progressive nations, they normally allocate a percentage (between 2-5%) in their budget for R & D in their attempt to find solutions or new discoveries for a steady economic growth - that is, if they want to stay ahead of the competition! Governments offer lucrative tax incentives to help companies capitalize upon the expertise of Think Tanks but in Cyprus, such luxury is non-existent…
It has been proven that Policy Institutes are most important, particularly in the security and defense field. Most governments seek the advice of these unique consultancies to provide them with an impartial analysis and proposals to overcome impending situations. In the United States for instance, such institutes form both foreign and domestic policy.
On 16th April, 1941, the British government could not decide on a foreign policy decision and offered the Cyprus question to a Think Tank headed by Professor A.J. Toynbee at the Royal Institute of International Affairs at Balliol College in Oxford with a simple question: “What do we do with Cyprus? Keep it or hand it over to Greece as promised to them?” In a well drafted memorandum prepared by Professor H. Beeley a level-headed expert in Middle East Affairs, the answer was swift and decisive: “Keep it…!” The rest is history.
If Cyprus is to become a modern progressive nation, it has to break down old dogmatic barriers and reach out for new goals. Above all else, it needs to broaden up its sights and take the initiative to encourage the establishment of a variety of these tried and tested brain institutions. Consequently, government and industry alike would start to build upon the non-politically-affiliated counsel of these rare breed of wise academics, professionals and other experts in their field of excellence. Alternatively, “brain imports” is another way to pave the way forward.
How many Think Tanks or Policy Institutes operate in Cyprus…? Absolutely none…!
Andreas C. Chrysafis (info@evandia.com) is published author of: ANDARTES (Historical Novel), WHO SHALL GOVERN CYPRUS – Brussels or Nicosia? (Political analysis) and PORPHYRA in PURPLE (Adventure/Metaphysical novel).
