Northern Cyprus Property Update: Akfinans Bank tries to gag the press

GagRarely have I felt so utterly useless. Knowing that there is nothing you can do to make the oh so slow system here move any more swiftly. We, that is three other members of Kulaksiz 5 and Chris and myself presented ourselves at the Girne District Court in the capacity of supporters for the Advocate acting for Kibris Gazetesi and Cyprus Today. The language barrier is the first hurdle we encountered but eventually by the process of trial (no pun intended) and error we found the right court. Immediately I felt a little reassured because it was the same Judge who ruled in my favour when I won the Breach of Contract action.

After waiting outside the court we were eventually made aware that the hearing had taken place and nothing had been decided, I suppose after my previous experience it was exactly what I had expected. So really we were back to the status quo.

Akfinans Bank Limited wants an injunction against Kibris Gazetesi and Cyprus Today preventing any reporting of anything in connection with their ongoing action against the Kulaksiz 5, this includes outside as well as inside the courtroom. If they achieve this they will effectively have gagged all the TRNC press. Not unnaturally Kibris Gazetesi and Cyprus Today are treading very carefully in the interim period and I would assume that by association, all other newspapers are too.

Why is such drastic action necessary in the 21st century? Are Akfinans Bank Limited intending to illegally repossess more of the homes on Kulaksiz 5? It is a matter of record that they have already illegally repossessed my villa and the villa of pensioner Eva McCluskey. They have served Writs, the precursor of the legal action needed to evict other owners, i.e. to Bob and Jan French, Mike and Phil Watkins, David and Marion Wilson and to Brian and Margaret Freeman. Are they planning to break into and illegally repossess the villas of the owners who are at present in the U.K. or will they find some way to serve them legally? Legally, now there’s an interesting concept. I think Eva McCluskey and I would have liked the courtesy of having been evicted legally.

They have an interesting way of serving Writs in the TRNC. Now I was always led to believe a Writ is only considered served if it is placed in the hand of the intended recipient. In the cases here it has been thrown on some logs, wedged between the door frame and the door jamb, left at the wrong house and in the last case I know of, just thrown in the garden. If anyone dares to say to me ‘oh well this is Cyprus’ be prepared for me to part your head from your body,

 

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