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GREEK CYPRIOT ENVIRONMENTALISTS DEMONSTRATE IN BRITISH SOVERIGN BASES (05.08.02)

Sovereign British Bases Authorities were surprised on August 1, when Greek Cypriot environmentalists staged a snap demonstration at the controversial Akrotiri Salt Lake antenna site.

At around 9am, 15 members of the Green Party, headed by their deputy George Perdikis, closed off the central gate of the Akrotiri airbase and chained themselves to it, cutting off all traffic.

Bases police and soldiers were dispatched to the scene, as traffic congestion in the area heightened with people wanting to get to and from the base.

But within the hour, the demonstration came to a peaceful end, after bases personnel and fire department officials plied open the protestors’ chains.

Peridikis said that the demonstration was meant to remind the public about the antenna issue, which he insisted environmentalists were fighting every step of the way.

He also added that demonstrations of this kind would be carried out in the U.K and in Brussels in order to give the issue international exposure, and called on environmentalists in the U.K to join them in their campaign against the antenna.

Deputy bases police chief Nicos Pandehis said the demonstration had been peaceful and that no serious incidents had taken place. In light of this, the bases authorities did not react forcefully, he said.

Greek Cypriot residents fear that their health will be damaged by emissions from the antenna, while environmentalists are also concerned at the destruction of the area’s unique flora and fauna.