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In November 2005 Transport for London
reinstated an advertising campaign on London Buses and in Underground
Stations promoting occupied Cyprus. This campaign was banned earlier
on in the year for causing offence to Greek Cypriot refugees.
The reinstatement of this offensive campaign followed a dubious
British High Court judgement overturning the original ban which
Transport for London failed to appeal because there was only one
complaint. We therefore call upon all concerned citizens to protest
this offensive advertising campaign and provide Transport for London with
enough complaints to justify a new ban.
SAMPLE LETTER 1
Please send your protest
letters to mayor@london.gov.uk, enquire@tfl.gov.uk, travinfo@tfl.gov.uk, enquiries@asa.org.uk, info@londontravelwatch.org.uk,
donnam@asa.org.uk, mattw@asa.org.uk, debraq@asa.org.uk, ryant@asa.org.uk, zoek@asa.org.uk, press@cap.org.uk, enquiries@cap.org.uk
Fill in
the advertising complaints form here
http://www.asa.org.uk/asa/how_to_complain/complaints_form/
If you are a student then
make your Students Union and Hellenic Societies aware of this campaign,
especially if you live in London.
The Mayor of London
Transport For London
London Travel Watch
Advertising Standards
Authority
Committee of Advertising
Practice
Dear Sir/Madam,
I am writing to complain
about the reappearance of advertising on London buses and outside London
tube stations promoting illegal travel and holidays to the occupied areas
of the Republic of Cyprus, which had previously been banned by Transport of
London and the Mayor of London Ken Livingstone for being offensive to Greek
Cypriots who were ethnically cleansed from their homes when Turkey invaded
Cyprus in 1974.
How can Transport of
London and the Mayor of London Ken Livingstone justify allowing these
offensive adverts to reappear thereby encouraging people to travel to
occupied Cyprus which has been ethnically cleansed of its indigenous Greek
Cypriot majority population by Turkey including over 200,000 refugees and
their families who now live in London.
None of the ethnically
cleansed Greek Cypriot refugees are allowed to return to their ancestral
homes and villages in the north and because of this the European Court of
Human Rights has found Turkey guilty on multiple occasions of violating
their basic human rights including the right to respect for private and
family life, home and correspondence, the right to protection of property,
and the right to an effective remedy (Loizidou vs. Turkey and Cyprus vs.
Turkey).
The unacceptable
advertisements illegally attempt to give legitimacy to the Turkish
occupation of part of the territory of Republic of Cyprus and the illegal
Turkish occupation regime that has been judged to be a puppet of Turkey and
the Turkish military by the European Court of Human Rights (Loizidou v.
Cyprus (merits)). In that judgment, the Court had noted that “Turkey
exercised effective overall control of northern Cyprus through its military
presence there, with the result that its responsibility under the
Convention was engaged for the policies and actions of the "TRNC"
authorities. In the instant case, the Court stressed that Turkey’s responsibility
under the Convention could not be confined to the acts of its own soldiers
and officials operating in northern Cyprus but was also engaged by virtue
of the acts of the local administration ("the TRNC"), which
survived by virtue of Turkish military and other support” such as the
illegal advertisements now reappearing on Transport for London property.
The Turkish occupation of
Cyprus and the puppet Turkish military occupation regime has been condemned
by the United Nations in over 130 resolutions of both the General Assembly
and the Security Council.
UN Resolution 541 (1983)
"Deplores the
declaration of the Turkish Cypriot authorities of the purported secession
of part of the Republic of Cyprus;"
" Considers the
declaration refereed to above as legally invalid and calls for its
withdrawal;"
" Calls upon all
states to respect the sovereignty, independence, territorial integrity and
non-alignment of the Republic of Cyprus;"
" Calls upon all
states not to recognise any Cypriot state other than the Republic of
Cyprus;"
UN Resolution 550 (1984)
" Reaffirms the call
upon all States not to recognise the purported state of the "Turkish
Republic of Northern Cyprus" set up by secessionist acts and calls
upon them not to facilitate or in any way assist this the aforesaid
secessionist entity;"
After the illegal Turkish
invasion of Cyprus 1974 the government of the Republic of Cyprus supported
by the EU and UN imposed a ban on all direct flights to or from occupied
Cyprus and banned the advertisement of such flights. All countries
including Turkey have to abide by this ban. Under international law the
authorities in occupied Cyprus are not allowed to issue visas and any
illegally issued visas are not recognised by any other country except Turkey.
In 1994 the European Court
of Justice passed a judgement that banned all trade with occupied north
Cyprus unless permission was given by the legal government of the Republic
of Cyprus and the trade entered or left Cyprus by official ports and
airports.
The Government of Cyprus
has declared all the harbours and airports of occupied Cyprus closed to
traffic and any entry from these points is illegal. This is the law of the
Country. The Tymbou airport in the occupied areas is built on stolen
property belonging to over 200 Greek Cypriot refugees who can sue anyone in
EU courts for trespassing or using their property. These people are the
legal owners of the Tymbou airport land and Transport for London is
encouraging people to violate their property rights and trespass on their
land. Greek Cypriot refugees who are prevented from excising their property
rights by the Turkish occupation regime own ninety percent of the land and
property in occupied Cyprus (as judged by the European Court of Human
Rights), including nearly all of the hotels and the land they are built on.
Under current Cyprus law the illegal use or exploitation of refugees
property carries a mandatory 2 year minimum prison sentence and the
property owners can sue anyone who is illegally using or exploiting their
property, including British tourists, in the Cyprus courts. The Cyprus
courts verdict can be imposed in any EU member state and the Cyprus courts
are permitted to issue EU arrest warrants to bring the persons to justice
in Cyprus.
The offensive
advertisements that Transport for London is hosting fail to warn people
reading them that if they attempt to travel to occupied Cyprus by any of
the illegal ports of entry or if they violate any of the property rights of
the Greek Cypriot refugees who own 90% of the land and property in the
occupied areas they will be violating the laws of the Republic of Cyprus
and are liable to prosecution by the Cyprus government and by the Greek
Cypriot refugee property owners whose rights they are violating.
Therefore, by allowing
these advertisements which are illegal in EU and Cyprus law Transport for
London is liable to:
1.- The Violation of
Cyprus laws which declare the use of all ports and airports in the occupied
areas illegal.
2.- The Violation of Cyprus
laws which prohibit the illegal exploitation of refugees property which now
carry a sentence of two years in prison.
3.- The Violation of
Cyprus laws of trespass.
4.- The Violation of the
European Convention of Human Rights (Right to property).
6.- The Violation of EU
customs regulations which prohibit the use of the illegal ports and
airports.
7.- Promoting Illegal
entry into the Republic of Cyprus.
8.- Promoting Illegal
entry into the European Union.
9.- Promoting
Illegal trade across EU borders.
10.- Encouraging the
violation of Cyprus and EU laws through advertising and the use of illegal
flights
11.- The Violation of the
UN Resolutions 541(1983) and 550(1984)
12.- The Violation of the
Cyprus Flight Information Region.
13.- Promoting Illegal
entry into Cyprus Air Space.
14.- Ignoring the Air
Traffic Control Regulations.
15.- Promoting flying
without insurance.
I therefore demand that
these illegal advertisements that promote and encourage people to travel to
occupied Cyprus and exploit refugees property and trade with the illegal
occupation regime and thereby give it legitimacy and which cause grave
offence to the Greek Cypriots who were ethnically cleansed by Turkey and
who now reside in London be banned once again. I also demand that Transport
for London seek ways to make the reappearance of such advisements
impossible such as banning advertising on Transport for London property
completely, banning the promotion of foreign countries or parts of their
territory and regions unless the advisements are endorsed by the legitimate
authorities of the country in question, or forcing all advertisements that
may be construed as promoting occupied Cyprus to carry warnings against the
exploitation of refugees property, the use of the illegal ports and
airports in the occupied areas of the Republic of Cyprus and the use of
direct flights to occupied Cyprus and declare that northern Cyprus is under
illegal Turkish occupation.
Yours faithfully,
SAMPLE
LETTER 2
Fill in
the advertising complaints form here using the text below
http://www.asa.org.uk/asa/how_to_complain/complaints_form/
I am
writing to complain about the reappearance of advertising on London buses
and outside London tube stations promoting illegal travel and holidays to
the occupied areas of the Republic of Cyprus, which had previously been
banned by Transport of London and the Mayor of London Ken Livingstone for
being offensive to over 200,000 Greek Cypriots who were ethnically cleansed
from their homes when Turkey invaded Cyprus in 1974 and now live in London.
The unacceptable advertisements illegally attempt to give legitimacy to the
Turkish occupation of part of the territory of Republic of Cyprus and the
illegal Turkish occupation regime and psudo-state that has been judged to
be a puppet of Turkey and the Turkish military by the European Court of
Human Rights (Loizidou v Cyprus (merits) and Cyprus v Turkey application
no. 25781/94) and which has been declared legally invalid by the UN
Security Council in resolutions 541(1983) and 550(1984).
The offensive advertisements that Transport for London is hosting fail to
warn people reading them that if they attempt to travel to occupied Cyprus
by any of the illegal ports of entry or if they violate any of the property
rights of the Greek Cypriot refugees who own 90% of the land and property
in the occupied areas they will be violating the laws of the Republic of
Cyprus and are liable to prosecution by the Cyprus government and by the
Greek Cypriot refugee property owners whose rights they are violating.
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