The Cypriot government has never had a good environmental record. It has always been a hard fight to convince it that the way to keep the island attractive is by preventing big business and the Church from pouring concrete on as much of it as they can.
The tourist office has tried very hard to convince entrepreneurs that they should desist from destroying the island, often to be countermanded by the government. On reading many of the recent reports on Cyprus, you would be justified in thinking that all operators were high-minded idealists intent on promoting nothing but agrotourism and cultural special-interest holidays. The reverse is, of course, true.
Cyprus operators sell cheap, mass-market, traditional package holidays staying in large hotels and apartment blocks. Agrotourism is practised for effect but is too small a market from which to make a good living.
It is, of course, politically correct to say one features village properties because one loves Cyprus and that ‘what has happened to Ayia Napa is terrible’.
Well, if Ayia Napa is so terrible why feature it? How, for instance, can an operator promote all-inclusive properties and yet pretend to believe in ethically correct village tourism at the same time? All-inclusive hotels in Cyprus have a negative impact on the fair distribution of tourism revenues.
Of course, operators always like to say that they are simply providing what clients want – which is a lot of rubbish. If we didn’t feature them there would be no demand for them.
About six years ago we had to pressurise the Cypriot government to ban the early season shooting of migrating birds. It procrastinated as there are 40,000 gun licences issued and the ‘shotgun’ votes are worth having. We lost a lot of bird groups in the meantime and, can you believe, hunting in the Akamas National Park is still allowed.
For years we have asked the government to properly manage this beautiful park. It had already agreed with the British armed forces that the area should not be used for target practice by the RAF.
According to the Cyprus Weekly a few weeks ago, the five-member government committee on the Akamas recommended that ‘all private land and approved exemptions within the Akamas state forest, not on the coast, will be compensated in cash or exchanged with state lands elsewhere’.
However, a part of a large property belonging to a well-known businessman and industrialist would be exchanged with state land which lies between the rest of his property and the adjacent tourist zone. Basically, the concrete will be allowed to creep further into the Akamas.
The government has further fudged the issue by saying that throughout the rest of the Akamas peninsula, outside the state forest, there will be ‘mild and balanced development with sensitivity and respect for environment’. How delightfully vague.
At least the government has said it would review licences for the macho men who run jeep safaris through the Akamas. Let’s hope it has the common sense and insight to conserve the Akamas for future generations to enjoy.
If we tour operators had the guts we could really help but we too are frightened of losing money and of offending powerful interests on the island.