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Sunday, February 27, 2005

Where to now for the north?

"Where to now for the north?
By Simon Bahceli

The coming months will test Talat�s mettle

WHILE last Sunday�s election result was clearly a victory for Mehmet Ali Talat and his Republican Turkish Party (CTP), it fell short of being a victory for Turkish Cypriots seeking a dismantling of the status quo in the north.

�It is a victory for the CTP,� says independent researcher Mete Hatay. �But they did not get their votes from the other side of the coin; they got them from the BDH and others on the left�.

The Peace and Democracy Movement (BDH), led by former north Nicosia mayor and staunchly pro-solution Mustafa Akinci, lost three seats in last week�s election. His former ally Huseyin Angolemli, leader of the Communal Liberation Party (TKP) and Izzet Izcan, leader of the United Cyprus Party (BKP) also lost their seats.

The CTP now hold 24 seats in the north�s 50-seat �parliament� � a rise of six seats on its pre-election position. "

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