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Turkish Cypriot opposition leader Tufan Erhurman on Sunday condemned Archbishop Georgios’ Easter message as “provocative” and “divisive,” accusing the Church of Cyprus of overstepping its bounds and complicating efforts toward reunification.
In a strongly worded written statement, the head of the Republican Turkish Party (CTP) rejected the Archbishop’s commentary on the Cyprus issue, asserting that the Church is not a counterpart to the Turkish Cypriot people. He urged Greek Cypriot political leaders, including President Nikos Christodoulides, to clarify the Church’s influence in shaping policy and foreign relations.
Erhurman criticized the Archbishop’s reaffirmation of traditional Church positions, which included warnings against further concessions in peace talks, criticism of the United Nations, and calls for restoring sovereignty over the island’s occupied areas. “We also remember the troubles this Church has brought upon the island,” he added.
Meanwhile, the Media Ethics Committee issued a public warning to the Turkish News Agency Cyprus (TAK) over a mistranslation in its April 20 coverage of the Archbishop’s remarks. The agency inaccurately translated the word “invaders” as “Turks,” a move the committee deemed inflammatory and misleading.
While TAK later issued a correction, the committee said it was insufficient and lacked transparency, urging the outlet to uphold higher ethical standards. “Substituting ‘invaders’ with ‘Turks’ erased critical context, distorted the meaning, and fed into hostile narratives,” the committee said.
The watchdog emphasized the importance of accuracy in translation, particularly in conflict-related reporting, to prevent misinformation and promote responsible journalism.
With information from Cyprus Mirror.
