Erhurman on Barcelona camp: Trying to stop children’s football is a defeat for humanity

Attempting to force the cancellation of a children’s football camp “is clearly a defeat for all people and for humanity as a whole”, Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhurman said on Wednesday, with efforts in Greek Cypriot sporting and political circles ramping up in the aim of cancelling a children’s football camp licenced by Spanish footballing giant Barcelona in the north. “I do not want any Turkish Cypriot or Greek Cypriot person to be deprived of the opportunities which young people in other countries have because of the Cyprus problem. The sadness which a Greek Cypriot young person may experience for such a reason cannot be my joy,” he said. He added that “as a human being, I cannot accept that the sadness which a Turkish Cypriot young person may experience for this reason should produce joy for any Greek Cypriot”. “The participation of young people, artists, and clubs from other countries in any organisation held in our country does not mean that these countries recognise the TRNC, just as the participation of Greek Cypriot young people in any organisation held in Turkey does not mean that Turkey recognises the Greek Cypriot administration in southern Cyprus,” he said. Related Articles • CFA chairman writes to Spanish counterpart over Barcelona football camp in north • Bicommunal London football match hailed as ‘example for Cyprus’ • Greek Cypriots ‘reject’ proposal for bicommunal children’s football match This comment comes after Turkey’s political opposition had expressed fury after a Greek Cypriot delegation of teenagers was invited to attend the International Geography Olympiad in Istanbul earlier this month. “While I do not think it is right to frame these types of organisations within a political context, if a political context must be sought, I believe it would suffice to recall the statements made by the United Nations, the European Union, and the relevant bodies of the Council of Europe after 2004,” he said. This was a reference to that year’s Annan plan to reunify Cyprus, which was accepted by the Turkish Cypriot electorate but rejected by the Greek Cypriot electorate in a referendum, and after which the then European Commissioner for enlargement Gunter Verheugen had said he felt “cheated by the Greek Cypriots”, and others called for an end to the Turkish Cypriots’ political isolation. “If trust is to be built on this island, it is necessary to first ensure that young people trust each other,” Erhurman said on Wednesday, before adding that it was for this reason that he had suggested that bicommunal sports events be held. He had said in January that the Greek Cypriot side had rejected a proposal for a bicommunal children’s football match to be played. “Our proposal for a match between two under-14 football teams from northern and southern Cyprus was rejected. The reason given was that the teams from southern Cyprus are members of international federations, and that such a match would cause problems with those federations,” he said at the time. On Wednesday, he said that “cancelling a festival, attempting to prevent children from playing football, is, from my perspective, not a diplomatic victory, but is clearly a defeat for all people and humanity as a whole”. FC Barcelona has historically been closely connected to Catalan identity Earlier, Cyprus Football Association Haris Loizides had written a letter to his Spanish counterpart Rafael Louzan, urging him to discourage FC Barcelona from holding the camp, which is due to take place at northern Nicosia’s Near East University over the course of two weeks next month. “The CFA, as soon as it became aware of the announcement of the organisation of an FC Barcelona academy training camp in the occupied territories, took the appropriate actions, in consultation with Uefa,”, European football’s governing body, the CFA said. It added that Loizides had “requested the intervention” of Louzan, “so that the camp would not take place in the occupied territories, as such a thing is contrary to the current legal and regulatory framework”. The camp, which is set to take place over the course of two weeks next month, was most likely not centrally organised by FC Barcelona itself, but by its affiliate academy in Istanbul, which is headed by Albert Medall. FC Barcelona licences companies to run “Barcelona Academy” events, and in the case of the camp which is set to take place in Cyprus, official material has featured Medall, as well as northern Nicosia’s Near East University’s public relations officer Ozer Turan. The club itself has historically been closely connected to the Catalan identity, particularly during the time of the Spanish civil war and the dictatorship of Francisco Franco, which attempted to suppress the identity, language, and autonomy of the Catalan people in favour of Spain’s Castilian majority.