Property Protest London during President Christofias’ visit
 Posted: Wed May 07, 2008 6:34 pm |
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| purdey |
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| Joined: 16 Jan 2008 |
| Posts: 1897 |
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| No I have not lived in Cyprus my whole life. I left Cyprus when I was nearly thirteen. I spent some time thereafter in England and Greece. My parents returned to Cyprus full time when I was sixteen. I then spent a few years in Cyprus and then in the forces in the UK. Since leaving the forces I have spent 50% of my time in Cyprus. |
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| Posted: Wed May 07, 2008 6:38 pm |
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| cyprusgrump |
| lecturer |
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| Joined: 01 Sep 2005 |
| Posts: 2705 |
| Location: Pissouri, Cyprus |
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| Johnson&Johnson wrote: |
Let me clear this up once and for all.
I do not hate all Brits.
I just don’t like those that come here and do not learn the language, assimilate into the local culture, or make an effort to adapt to the lifestyle (I guess that's 90% of them)
Just like you probably don't much like those foreigners who move to the UK, live in enclaves, do not make any effort to speak English, etc etc.
Jones mentioned the Muslims in the UK. Well, it’s the same thing with many of the British here. What's the difference ? Neither speak the language of the country they have chosen to live in, neither respect their hosts, and neither are willing to assimilate and integrate.
What never ceases to amaze me is those Brits who come here expecting it to be like England, and are suddenly shocked when things don't go their way.
They wonder why they get ripped off by lying builders (dotcom), why they cant get a job, why certain unscrupulous Cypriots treat them like cows to be milked. And then they go back to the UK after a year, with shattered dreams and empty pockets.
So let me give some pointers to make life here easier :
1) Learn the language before you arrive here. And learn it well. It will help tremendously.
2) Respect your hosts. Remember, we are sensitive after being under brutal British colonial rule for so many years. Many of us had relatives who remember the curfews, some who were killed by British soldiers. Don't treat us like peasants. We took over a barren wasteland from you in 1960, yet we have built it up into a modern state within 40 years, despite three wars (civil, anti colonial, modern technological) and a barrage of other obstacles. We are clever, hardowrking and shrewd. And YES, there are plenty of sharks among us, just as there are many in the UK and elsewhere.
3) Criticize constructively, and lead by example. We know we have problems (bad driving, inefficiency, sexual exploitation in cabarets, etc) but these are OUR problems, and we will sort it out without being mocked. We are indeed shit at many things (policing, organization, etc) but so are you (terminal 5, rocketing crime rates in the UK, etc) and we are getting better. Do not forget that we are a very new country and we have to learn a lot as we go.
Finally, let me just say that I like educated and reasonable people, no matter what the nationality.
Jones, It seems that I hit a raw nerve with you, and I do indeed feel that you are one of those Brits whom I descrbed as being loutish beer swillers.
But maybe I am wrong. |
Excellent post!  |
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| Posted: Wed May 07, 2008 6:49 pm |
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| di-di |
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| Joined: 31 Mar 2005 |
| Posts: 39 |
| Location: S.Wales, UK |
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Goodness me what a can of worms.
First of all this "old lady" takes great exception to being openly insulted. I have not insulted nor made racist statements in my posting. Indeed if you had taken the trouble to digest the contents you would see i actually wrote that the Cypriot people were embarrassed and ashamed at the treatment received by both us and Conor.
Yes of course i know the history of Cyprus and am not proud of the way the British treated the Cypriot people. We are not them make no mistake, we are the next generation and cannot be held accountable for our forefathers actions. All we can do is try to live together peacefully but for some reason you do not appear to want this.
I personally have learnt some Greek and strive to further my education in this. I did not bring my paltry pension nor did my husband. What we did was bring was our hard earned 49 years savings and invested in this country because we love the people and the country.
We do not live in a "ghetto", we live in a village as we did not want to live among an ex-pat community. We invest in that village, pay council tax etc etc and integrate and join in with our neighbours [all Cypriots]. We love them and they in turn make sure they invite us and show us how to live and belong to a Cypriot community.
I would never put all Cypriots in one basket when describing them and i did not. Either in the UK or here as said before there are good and bad. All we are doing is talking [or trying to] explain some bad experiences. Surely you cannot take exception to that.
As usual you have turned this into something personal.
There are many Brits here as you describe them and i am ashamed to say they are of my nationality but don't dare lump us altogether.
I am educated, drink very very rarely, put my children through universities, do not owe any money to anyone, have no tatoos [heaven forbid], yes do have an ear piercing in each ear, only swear very little and only when necessary [i resent your language it is disgusting] and i resent most strongly your inference that we "are all the same". Are you at the same time inferring you are the same as unscrupulous Cypriots? No? then neither are we.
This is one world and rather than tear each other apart we should be brought together at times of need. We are all human beings and right now Conor, ourselves and countless others need help not tearing apart.
I am sure if you needed our support just ask, it is simple.
Regards
Di-Di |
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| Posted: Wed May 07, 2008 7:40 pm |
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| miltiades |
| professor |
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| Joined: 13 Apr 2006 |
| Posts: 5690 |
| Location: UK |
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| di-di wrote: |
Goodness me what a can of worms.
First of all this "old lady" takes great exception to being openly insulted. I have not insulted nor made racist statements in my posting. Indeed if you had taken the trouble to digest the contents you would see i actually wrote that the Cypriot people were embarrassed and ashamed at the treatment received by both us and Conor.
Yes of course i know the history of Cyprus and am not proud of the way the British treated the Cypriot people. We are not them make no mistake, we are the next generation and cannot be held accountable for our forefathers actions. All we can do is try to live together peacefully but for some reason you do not appear to want this.
I personally have learnt some Greek and strive to further my education in this. I did not bring my paltry pension nor did my husband. What we did was bring was our hard earned 49 years savings and invested in this country because we love the people and the country.
We do not live in a "ghetto", we live in a village as we did not want to live among an ex-pat community. We invest in that village, pay council tax etc etc and integrate and join in with our neighbours [all Cypriots]. We love them and they in turn make sure they invite us and show us how to live and belong to a Cypriot community.
I would never put all Cypriots in one basket when describing them and i did not. Either in the UK or here as said before there are good and bad. All we are doing is talking [or trying to] explain some bad experiences. Surely you cannot take exception to that.
As usual you have turned this into something personal.
There are many Brits here as you describe them and i am ashamed to say they are of my nationality but don't dare lump us altogether.
I am educated, drink very very rarely, put my children through universities, do not owe any money to anyone, have no tatoos [heaven forbid], yes do have an ear piercing in each ear, only swear very little and only when necessary [i resent your language it is disgusting] and i resent most strongly your inference that we "are all the same". Are you at the same time inferring you are the same as unscrupulous Cypriots? No? then neither are we.
This is one world and rather than tear each other apart we should be brought together at times of need. We are all human beings and right now Conor, ourselves and countless others need help not tearing apart.
I am sure if you needed our support just ask, it is simple.
Regards
Di-Di |
A very good post excellently written with courtesy and civility as one would expect from an English lady . |
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| Posted: Wed May 07, 2008 8:02 pm |
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| simonwjones |
| lecturer |
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| Joined: 09 Mar 2006 |
| Posts: 1396 |
| Location: UK and Cyprus |
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| miltiades wrote: |
| di-di wrote: |
Goodness me what a can of worms.
First of all this "old lady" takes great exception to being openly insulted. I have not insulted nor made racist statements in my posting. Indeed if you had taken the trouble to digest the contents you would see i actually wrote that the Cypriot people were embarrassed and ashamed at the treatment received by both us and Conor.
Yes of course i know the history of Cyprus and am not proud of the way the British treated the Cypriot people. We are not them make no mistake, we are the next generation and cannot be held accountable for our forefathers actions. All we can do is try to live together peacefully but for some reason you do not appear to want this.
I personally have learnt some Greek and strive to further my education in this. I did not bring my paltry pension nor did my husband. What we did was bring was our hard earned 49 years savings and invested in this country because we love the people and the country.
We do not live in a "ghetto", we live in a village as we did not want to live among an ex-pat community. We invest in that village, pay council tax etc etc and integrate and join in with our neighbours [all Cypriots]. We love them and they in turn make sure they invite us and show us how to live and belong to a Cypriot community.
I would never put all Cypriots in one basket when describing them and i did not. Either in the UK or here as said before there are good and bad. All we are doing is talking [or trying to] explain some bad experiences. Surely you cannot take exception to that.
As usual you have turned this into something personal.
There are many Brits here as you describe them and i am ashamed to say they are of my nationality but don't dare lump us altogether.
I am educated, drink very very rarely, put my children through universities, do not owe any money to anyone, have no tatoos [heaven forbid], yes do have an ear piercing in each ear, only swear very little and only when necessary [i resent your language it is disgusting] and i resent most strongly your inference that we "are all the same". Are you at the same time inferring you are the same as unscrupulous Cypriots? No? then neither are we.
This is one world and rather than tear each other apart we should be brought together at times of need. We are all human beings and right now Conor, ourselves and countless others need help not tearing apart.
I am sure if you needed our support just ask, it is simple.
Regards
Di-Di |
A very good post excellently written with courtesy and civility as one would expect from an English lady . |
She's not really British now is she?  |
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| Posted: Wed May 07, 2008 8:12 pm |
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| di-di |
| member |
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| Joined: 31 Mar 2005 |
| Posts: 39 |
| Location: S.Wales, UK |
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Hi guys
Erm does it matter what nationality? Yeah alright then i am British but a nice one.
I am married to a Welshman and when moving to Wales my children encountered racism for the first time in their lives against them after having defended their friends in England for being of differing nationalities. They learnt Welsh and indeed passed A` levels in Welsh among other subjects. It, racism, was horrible and there really is no place for it in the human vocabulary.
Oh well that is better than the accusation that Conor was from the Starship Enterprise. Now would that be racial against the Vulcans, i wonder!!!!!
Beam me up Scottie, now he is nice..................
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| Posted: Wed May 07, 2008 9:23 pm |
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| roseandchan |
| instructor |
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| Joined: 26 Jan 2008 |
| Posts: 441 |
| Location: pinarbasi |
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| so in the south you have property problems to! not just us in the north then, as most of you like to tell the world. now everyone knows south cyprus is not safe to buy property in. |
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| Posted: Wed May 07, 2008 9:45 pm |
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| di-di |
| member |
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| Joined: 31 Mar 2005 |
| Posts: 39 |
| Location: S.Wales, UK |
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Hello and welcome to this thread
Yes of course there are problems. I also had some problems buying and selling in the UK, my home country.
The problem experienced by us here is not as serious as ownership of land but rather some naughty boys purporting to be friendly property developers, solicitors and builders.
Take your money then change into ogres. Certainly not in the league of what is happening in the North.
We did not buy in the North as we heeded the warnings of the GC at the airport DO NOT PURCHASE IN THE NORTH. It is very clear and honest in its request. Of course properties there are much cheaper. The reasons being all too obvious to us who know the Cyprus history.
We bought to retire to, not to make a financial gain at the expense of others
It is certainly safer to buy in the South but as with everywhere in the world some of us suffer at the hands of others.
Our problems are in the open for all to see. I am sure yours are too but they are oh so different.
Di-Di |
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| Posted: Thu May 08, 2008 9:05 am |
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| cyprusgrump |
| lecturer |
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| Joined: 01 Sep 2005 |
| Posts: 2705 |
| Location: Pissouri, Cyprus |
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| simonwjones wrote: |
I appreciate you are passionate about your country and you don't like the way development has spiraled out of control, especially over the last 10 years. I can fully understand why you think the way you do about us Brits as we were the first nation to move over and live there, and yes you are right some of us bring bad names when abroad. BUT we are not all bad and we are not all the same. There are good and bad Cypriots too. In our town there is a large Cypriot family who are the biggest drug dealers around but I know not all Cypriots deal drugs etc.
I live in the UK and do plan to move over one day and before I do, I will learn Greek for sure. I want to feel part of the community and feel like I live in another country. When I visit Cyprus we stay well away from the Karaoke bars/british bars as I don't like this and stay well clear. The louts bring a bad name.
If I was a loutish Brit who enjoyed beers and chips I would have purchased a property in Paphos.
You are wrong |
But haven’t you bought a property in a gated community that has saunas, etc. – with card-reader access?
And wasn’t there some consternation when it was realised that the separation from the ‘green area’ of the development might not be totally secure so perhaps the locals could come in and use the facilities?  |
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| Posted: Thu May 08, 2008 10:04 am |
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| Johnson&Johnson |
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| Joined: 29 Nov 2006 |
| Posts: 191 |
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Di-Di
You spend half a page giving us your credentials, ie how you love Cyprus, how you invested so much money here, how you can order a brandy sour in broken greek, etc etc. Now if I went to live in the USA, would the Americans care that I had bought a house there and did my shopping in Wal-Mart and supported in some meagre way their local economy ? Of course they would not.
As Oracle said earlier, which expat would care about some Cypriot in the UK who was treated badly by a dodgy british builder ? No-one !
When I was living in the UK, did I repeat over and over to the locals how I had learnt a bit of English and bought a house there, and shopped in local stores, and how much I loved the English and their culture ? No - I just got on with my life quietly without thinking I was special. And I remembered I was a guest and acted accordingly.
But because we are a small island and a small population, we are expected to step and fetch whenever some English bloke gets ripped off. Well, tough titty. That’s life so deal with it.
I applaud Conor's get-up-an-go, but somehow I think that President Christofias might have more important things do deal with than this. I DO feel sorry for him, but it's his problem. And he led himself down that dark path by buying something he couldn't see, from someone he didn't know, with no idea what he was getting himself into.
Anyway I'm bored of this whole discussion. |
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