Cyprus-Forum.com

[MrH]

Forget about living as a united island as the GCs can't even guarantee the safety of their own people.....here's another typical example of the brutality of the GC system against one if their own. It looks like the GCs have a habit of denying the obvious. I feel sorry for the dead man's mother. I will be interviewing her in a few days......any suggestions?

STORY FROM THE CYPRUS MAIL:

By Alexia Evripidou

AFTER nine years of waiting for truthful answers, two mourning parents protested outside the Presidential Palace on Wednesday anticipating yet another inconclusive report on the death of their 26 year old son, whilst demanding an end to lies and cover ups.

Dressed in black, Andriana and Charalambos Nicolaou waited in the sun all day for the Cabinet to give a viable explanation into the death of their son, Athanasios, who was serving in the National Guard in 2005. By 1.45pm, Cabinet Secretary Theodosis Tsiolas met the couple and gave them a transcript of the latest report, which upon going home, the Nicolaous discovered was the exact same with what they were given at the last court session in 2011.

The initial court verdict of suicide has been changed over the years to “not suicide” with “inadequate evidence for criminal activity and probable death as a result of a fall from high up.”

However, the evidence gathered by the mourning parents disputes this verdict and indicates foul play with probable drowning.

Nine years of being taken on an emotional rollercoaster, the couple said they protested at the presidential palace because they wanted to relay the message to everyone that “we will not accept any more cover ups and deceptions. Today it is us, tomorrow it could be you. We want the truth”.

On September 29, 2005, Andriana received the call that all parents dread, that her son had not shown up for duty at Polemidhia barracks in Limassol.

Their son, 26 year old Athanasios, had moved from Australia with his architect’s degree from Melbourne University, to set up a new life and an office in Cyprus. He first had to complete six months of compulsory national service, where he was bullied for the first three months and then sent home in a casket to his mortified parents.

Andriana remembers she received the midday call from the army, informing her that her son was missing and was advised by the army commander not to call the police. By 4pm she rang the police and overheard them mention the location of his abandoned car. The mother rushed to the scene to find her son’s body sprawled on his back, 12km away from the army camp and 30 metres below Alassa Bridge on the road from Limassol to Platres.

After the initial police investigation, state pathologist Panicos Stavrianos told the mother that “Athanasios had probably got dizzy and fallen off the bridge.” The first official report came out later in the court hearing in Limassol 2007, where Judge Marina Papadopoulou declared that “the death looked like a suicide.”

Andriana spent six months fighting to get access to the police photographs and other forensic evidence of the death scene, as she ruled out suicide. She said the photos showed no broken or protruding bones with her son’s mouth surprisingly full of sand, even though he was found lying on his back, which she says went unexplored in the original report.

In 2008, the parents appealed district court decision to the Supreme Court which deduced there was not enough evidence to make a final decision and cancelled the 2007 report stating suicide, with a request for further investigations and a new Court hearing set for 2009.

Over the years, the parents took the police photos and case file to get advice from a criminologist and state pathologists in Greece, as well as a trauma expert from London, all of whom ruled out death by suicide or falling. Judging from the photos and information provided, they concluded that their son was probably drowned and placed there.

Andriana told the Cyprus Mail that “the pathologists from Greece carried out DNA tests on Athanasios’ clothes and found DNA samples from three other unknown people.” She continued, “this information was not in the original 2007 state pathologist’s report” and that the tests were not carried out in the original investigation. The DNA, she argued, could indicate that he was indeed drowned by someone with his body then dumped under the bridge.

The family turned to the judgement of Orpheas Perides, expert pathologist from Athens University, who after studying the evidence, appeared in the 2009 court hearing in Limassol to give evidence. He had said that “if Athanasios had fallen 30 metres from the Alassa, then there would be serious fractures and bones would be protruding from the body in the opposite area of where the body impacted the ground, we are looking at a premeditated crime.” In his statement, Perides said that he ruled out a fall.

Andriana also spoke of the bullying that her son was subject to in the army and his trepidations of reporting them to his superiors. After finally having papers thrown in his face by fellow soldiers, Athanasios filed a complaint to his commanding officer. “This was not long before his death,” said his mother.

Even after hearing the professional witness, the court maintained the initial verdict and that falling from a great height was the cause of death.

Shocked, Andriana went to the Attorney General’s office to request an independent investigation which was granted in 2011. Once again, the report came back inconclusive indicating that though there was evidence, there was not enough to suggest criminal activity and was sent back to the police for re-investigation.

Waiting for two and a half years for the latest report and at the end of their tether, the family recently announced on television that they would protest and show everyone the disturbing photos of their dead son “to let the photos speak for themselves,” said Andriana. This, she said, spurred Wednesday’s invite to the Presidential palace to hear the results directly, where they were eventually handed the exact same 149 page report given to them in 2011.

Andriana told the Cyprus Mail, “there are responsibilities in this case that someone needs to own. Responsibility for the crime of our child, responsibility for the arduous plight we’ve been sent on. If people had done their jobs properly, then we would not be suffering for nine long years.”

[B25]

BS, if you are looking to sling mud, why not mention the murders, beatings, chemial usage on the Gezi park protestors in Turkey by the Turkish government. Why not mention the corruption an bribary with a billion dollars in his home yoyr fery own PM. And you claim you need protecting from the GCs? Bloody cheek.
Only an idiot would brag about his failures aka Anan Plan. You made a dogs dinner if that one. God help the GCs if they ever have to mix with you criminal, corrupt lot.
How much did you have to donate to get your son into a US uni? Hmm, hmm?

[Get Real!]

I will be interviewing her in a few days......any suggestions?

Yes, I suggest you first interview this one's parents, who was definitely TORTURED to death...

http://www.todayszaman.com/news-259925- ... pital.html

[Viewpoint]

This is terrible, do you people have children? just imagine it was your child, someone you raised loved educated and cared for, whos life was just wasted for what? these parents need closure they need justice and the GC system should help them get to the truth. Forget about our differences here there is a more important issue these mourning parents whoo are reliving the death of their child everyday, for gods sake stop bickering and help them if you can.

[MrH]

B25, why are you discussing Turkey when I was keeping it Cyprus. I mentioned a case on Cyprus and not Greece. I don't react by mentioning anything about the ill treated Turks in Northern Greece do I? Come on B25, no one here is slinging mud, but only discussing the truth of how the GCs can't even own up to a killing case involving their own people let alone us Turkish Cypriots trusting your corrupt, brutal and racist state. Don't think for a second that we can't see past those hidden gifts known as "minority rights". A Cyprus BBF......nah mate, you must be joking and every Turk on this forum should visit the mother of this poor child as pure evidence of why nothing has changed since the EOKA days. Oops, I forgot that the current GC President and his former political party were built on the backbone of the original EOKA Terrorist regime. Shame, and I actually thought that peace as a unitary or a BBF state had a chance! NOT IN A MILLION YEARS.

[B25]

This is terrible, do you people have children? just imagine it was your child, someone you raised loved educated and cared for, whos life was just wasted for what? these parents need closure they need justice and the GC system should help them get to the truth. Forget about our differences here there is a more important issue these mourning parents whoo are reliving the death of their child everyday, for gods sake stop bickering and help them if you can.

You should be giving this advice to the OP, your bum chum from the north. He started the provocative this thread so that he would get reactions. Now run along and get your next set of instructions from mummy, I'm sure Elroz has more to tell.

[Lordo]

what is it about the average greek cypriot idiot that as soon as they are criticised in any way they attack terkey. who cares what happens in terkey, let the terks who live there worry about that.

now what about the swine south of the border. the ones who hospitalised a boy for distributing leaflets, what about a soldier who was murdered, what about the man who had his leg broken by your special needs police force, what aout your boys who were playing war games with real guns on trodos. come on now boys you is in the eu ffs. you cant behave like pigs now you are in the eu. what kind of a club is this eu anyhow. you can keep it.

[Get Real!]

what is it about the average greek cypriot idiot that as soon as they are criticised in any way they attack terkey. who cares what happens in terkey, let the terks who live there worry about that.

Who attacked Turkey sweetheart?

Did you bother to check the link I posted?

A soldier who was in a coma for 80 days after being beaten by his superiors died on Thursday at İstanbul's Gülhane Military Academy of Medicine (GATA). Uğur Kantar, who was completing his compulsory military service as a private in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (KKTC), was severely injured when he was subjected to torture just a few days before he was due to be discharged.

[Viewpoint]

Why are people still trying to score points over this very tragic event?

[bill cobbett]

Why are people still trying to score points over this very tragic event?

For once, BillC agrees with VP... can we please drop this thread.