Cyprus Greens Condemn Police Brutality at Nicosia Protest

The government has exceeded every limit.

Cyprus Greens on the police violence against protesters on 13.2.21

The Cyprus Greens party condemned the police violence against peaceful protesters on February 13, saying that the government has exceeded all limits on its power.

Before the demonstration even started, the police were waiting with the water cannon vehicles, dubbed Aida. Images of the police striking people with batons, using tear gas and pepper spray prove that excessive force was used, said the Greens in a statement.

The events are another reason for Minister Yiolitis’ resignation and for the responsible policemen to be held accountable for their brutality. Grievous bodily harm is still a crime. The police association said they were acting under orders but that is simply no excuse and never has been, according to the precedent set by the Nuremburg trials.

Vindictive use of water cannon

A 25-year-old woman who danced in the face of a police water cannon may lose her eyesight after sustaining a serious head injury.

Singer Anastasia Demetriadou was part of a group of artists and other citizens who protested against authoritarianism and corruption in the state on February 13th. Footage shows her slight figure on Makarios Avenue as she danced and clapped her hands in front of the water cannon whose driver deliberately moved closer to aim at her before striking her down with a blast of water. As she fell to the ground, the water pushed her towards a steel post cemented into the pavement.

A group of friends and concerned citizens are raising money for her eye operation and medical bills as she has been largely unemployed for months due to the pandemic restrictions. There has been little in the way of state support for artists forced to suspend their work.

Other images show police using excessive force including a boot on the neck, pepper spray and the use of batons. The water cannon was recently purchased and meant to be used to control vandals at football games with thousands of fans which often turn into riots. In this case, it was used on a harmless and unarmed dancing girl in an incident that should be a lasting shame for the police force.

Outrage

Public outrage has risen to new heights under the pressure cooker conditions of pandemic restrictions and blatant corruption at high levels. High-ranking government officials like Demetris Syllouris and President Anastasiades face questions over their part in the Cyprus Papers, a passport-for-cash corruption scheme exposed by Al Jazeera in which money-laundering criminals received a Cyprus passport.

At the same time, the police have become increasingly aggressive in enforcing COVID restrictions, charging hundreds of people with high fines and using their riot control equipment on peaceful protesters on the pretext of enforcing decrees.

More than one social media user commented that last night the main TV new channels did not carry the story of police brutality against the protesters. And many people who were at the demonstration commented that the police used excessive force while sharing footage showing the same.

The police corralled the protesters into two locations on Stasinou Avenue and Makarios Avenue and turned the water cannon on them. It was deliberate and planned, according to this footage.

Restricted freedoms, surveillance

In recent months, there have been ominous attempts from members of the president’s administration to suppress news stories, certain civil liberties and freedom of expression.

In a big-brother-is-watching you move, Justice Minister Yiolitis used her state power to persecute someone she believed to be responsible for a satirical Twitter account. Acting on Ms Yiolitis complaint, the police raided the home of a Larnaca resident, who denied any involvement. Actions like these are a nuisance and have a chilling effect on the media’s freedom of expression.

In addition, the right to gather in peaceful protest has been suspended because of the COVID-19 pandemic measures. People are clearly not happy to feel they are not allowed to make their voices heard and instead vent their frustrations on social media. To add insult to injury, the police cybercrime unit is being used to surveille social media posts ahead of public demonstrations in an obvious breach of their constitutional right to freedom of expression.

Increasing concerns over EU civil rights

COVID curfews, movement restrictions and civil rights restrictions go beyond permissible bounds for limiting rights during national health emergencies, said Carnegie Europe.

The bounds are meant to ensure that such measures are kept “proportionate, necessary, and nondiscriminatory.”

But far-right countries like Poland have capitalised on the pandemic by using the pandemic as an excuse to restrict civic freedoms, said Carnegie Europe.

Legal experts say that emergency decrees do not supersede the constitution and must be used in a narrow and focused way, not in a wide-ranging way which limits our freedoms in an onerous manner.

Anyone with a responsible conscience understands that the authorities cannot claim to be saving lives from COVID when their own actions deliberately threaten lives. It is an insoluble paradox. There is overwhelming video evidence from witnesses showing that the police pre-planned the corralling and the amateur, dangerous use of the water cannon.

It is time for cooler heads to prevail and bring back some sanity, moderation and public safety.

Authoritarianism will never be accepted. This is not Cyprus.