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The government's draft law to regulate Easter bonfires has sparked strong reactions from MPs, who have criticized it as overly strict, impractical, and poorly communicated. The bill was discussed on Wednesday in the Parliamentary Committee on Legal, Justice, and Public Order, where committee members expressed concerns over its lack of consultation with municipalities and communities.
AKEL MP Aristos Damianou accused the government of "carelessness" and "incompetence," highlighting that recent legislation banning fires in inhabited areas inadvertently criminalized the tradition of Easter bonfires. He criticized the government for rushing a new draft law to reverse this, arguing that municipalities, like Nicosia, could not realistically handle the responsibility of overseeing the bonfires, a task even the police and fire brigade struggle with. Damianou called the law “unacceptable and unworkable,” suggesting that its true purpose was merely for "communicative" reasons.
DIKO MP Zacharias Koulias also voiced strong opposition, calling the draft law “extremely unfortunate” and noting that bonfires are a deeply rooted tradition in Cypriot culture. He dismissed the proposed penalties, including imprisonment and hefty fines, as unrealistic and unlikely to be enforced by courts, further criticizing the idea of using the tradition to address societal issues.
Greens-Citizen Cooperation MP Charalambos Theopemptou referred to the international context, citing the Stockholm Convention, which prohibits open fires due to their environmental dangers. He stated that the draft law contradicts both the Convention and EU regulations, particularly regarding the health risks of fire emissions. Theopemptou questioned how the bill even reached the House, given its conflicts with existing laws and international commitments.
The controversial bill has stirred widespread concern about balancing safety, tradition, and environmental obligations in regulating Easter bonfires.
