On the issue of noise pollution, chairwoman of the Committee Interior, AKEL MP Marina Nicolaou said that despite the consultation carried out by the Interior Ministry with all stakeholders, there are still some serious disagreements even from state agencies and noted that the discussion of the bills will continue in subsequent sessions.
"We all agree that there should be a more effective control of sound emission limits from leisure centres and other entertainment venues through the implementation of strict legislation and to remove sound nuisance phenomena that have plagued many of our fellow citizens for years," he said.
The MEP of the Ecologists' Movement Alexandra Attalidou said that in the European Union 25% of citizens suffer from noise pollution issues and the costs of treatments amount to 15 billion euros. She said that in Cyprus unfortunately since 2016 the law on noise pollution is not implemented[/B] and as a result we have desperate citizens, as the Police, Municipalities and the Ministry of Tourism refuse to agree with each other on the implementation of the law.
"We support business but above all we support the citizens' right to sleep," he said, noting that there are leisure centres where the walls of neighbouring houses are shaking from noise pollution. He added that citizens who complain are being threatened, which is very serious and should be addressed by the state.
OSCE Report on Elections
In relation to the OSCE ODIHR Report, Interior Committee Chairwoman Marina Nicolaou, said that there are some positive elements in the Report and added that the Committee has decided that it will send a letter to the Ministry of Interior, asking for clarification whether they will make changes to the Election Law.
In his own remarks, DISY MP and Special Representative for Civil Society at the OSCE Kyriakos Hatzigiannis said that the subject of the discussion was also how these recommendations can be implemented in national law in view of Presidential Elections.
Mr. Hatzigiannis welcomed the fact that the Report was very positive about the level of the Republic of Cyprus and the proper and fair elections.
However, he continued, there were specific recommendations for which there should be strengthening of national legislation and their implementation.
He said the main recommendations relate to disability access to polling stations, as there are gaps in infrastructure, dates of elections, which in the various legislations are different and create some complications.
A third suggestion
, he continued, relates to the funding of candidates, as while there is a restriction on independent candidates there is no restriction on the amounts spent by parties. A fourth suggestion-observation relates to the control of funding of candidates and should, he said. Another suggestion is the institutionalization of international observers so that elections can be monitored by international observers as well as by non-governmental organizations.
On the same issue, Ms. Attalidou said that the recommendations of the Report are very good and stood on the recommendation on the RIK and the suggestion to ensure the impartiality of the RIK, on the issue of the electoral roll and the automatic inclusion of citizens in the electoral rolls in order to remove the barriers for citizens to be able to vote. He also said that the suggestion to have both domestic and foreign observers at the elections is very correct.
RIK Broadcasting Issue
Meanwhile, an issue on political interference at RIK was registered for discussion at the Home Affairs Committee following the departure of journalist Dinos Finikaridis from the show FROM DAY TO DAY. The issue will be discussed in the next session.
Referring to the incident, Alexandra Attalidou said that the Ecologists registered this issue for discussion in the Internal Affairs Committee and stressed that journalistic ethics and freedom of the press are pillars of democracy. The Ecologists, he said, would not tolerate these pillars being attacked by any political interests.
Source: CNA
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