The University of Cyprus has decided to retire Niyazi Kiziljirek.
The Rector of the University, Tasos Christofides, says in a written statement that because it is considered that the letter of the law has been violated, the University of Cyprus, through its Council, has decided to proceed with the retirement of his colleague Niyazi Kiziljirek, so that if he wishes to do so, he can appeal to the courts and the issue regarding the constitutionality of the 2004 law can be decided in court.
It also states that the University of Cyprus considers that it has not violated the substance and spirit of the law concerning the incompatibility between the position of Member of the European Parliament and that of Professor on leave without pay.
It also states that the University of Cyprus considers the relevant provisions of the legislation to be anachronistic for the reasons that have been explained on several occasions. To this end, it has sent a draft amendment of the legislation to the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports and Youth and is awaiting his actions, he adds.
Christofides notes that Article 70 of the Constitution provides for the incompatibility between the status of MP or Minister and the status of a paid position in a Public Law Organisation, on the grounds that issues of conflict of interest arise when the MP or Minister is called upon to make decisions on matters of the Public Law Organisation from which he or she comes.
It further notes that Article 16 of the Election of Members of the European Parliament Act 2004 provides that the office of Member of the European Parliament is incompatible with the offices, functions or positions to which the office of Member of Parliament is incompatible by virtue of Article 70 of the Constitution.
He adds that, unlike the case of a Member of Parliament or a Minister, a Member of the European Parliament does not deal with matters of the Public Law Organisation from which he comes. It is for this reason that the University of Cyprus considers that it has not violated the essence and the spirit of the law concerning the incompatibility between the position of Member of the European Parliament and that of Professor on leave without pay, he stresses.
Christofides states that, on the basis of a legal opinion obtained by the University of Cyprus, the following conclusions can be made. Article 16 of the 2004 Law violates the principle of proportionality as set out in Article 52 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union which provides that:
"Any restriction on the exercise of the rights and freedoms recognised in this Charter must be provided for by law and must respect the fundamental content of those rights and freedoms. Subject to the principle of proportionality, restrictions may be imposed only if they are necessary and genuinely meet objectives of general interest recognised by the Union or the need to protect the rights and freedoms of third parties."
[2] The question which arises is whether the grounds for imposing an incompatibility between being a Member of the European Parliament and holding a university professorship without remuneration do not apply. Article 16 of the 2004 Law violates the principle of equality, since there is unequal and discriminatory treatment of professors of public universities in Cyprus in comparison with their colleagues from other EU Member States, since in other EU countries there is no question of incompatibility between the office of Member of the European Parliament and that of University Professor, even with remuneration. A further violation of the principle of equality is due to the fact that Article 16 of the 2004 Law creates an incompatibility only for Professors of public Universities and not of private Universities.
In view of the above, he adds, if the matter is brought before the Court, it is very likely that Article 16 of the 2004 Act will be decided to be inconsistent neither with EU law nor with the Constitution of the Republic.
Nevertheless, according to current practice, a law is constitutional unless the judicial process decides otherwise. Therefore, because it is considered that the letter of the law has been violated, the University of Cyprus through its Council has decided to proceed with the retirement of colleague Niyazi Kiziliurek, so that if he wishes to do so, he can appeal to the courts and the issue that arises regarding the constitutionality of the 2004 law can be decided in court, the Rector of the University of Cyprus said.
Source: CNA
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