When I went back to the history, I could find only one Turkish-Cypriot
ship-owner, named Ahmet Chavush Osmancik, who was born in 1849 in the island of
Creta and was later settled in Limassol. He used to have three big boats and
other lighters and he had made a name for his work in the Limassol harbour.
Ahmet Chavush and 14 other prominent Turkish Cypriots, among them also the
famous Kenan brothers from Larnaca, were imprisoned during the First World War
for two and a half years in the Kyrenia Castle by the British colonial
government. They were accused of making plans in order to free the Ottoman
prisoners of war, who were kept in Karavoulis/Famagusta. (1) When Ahmet Chavush
was set free, he bought a big boat and named it as “Osmancik” (the little
Ottoman). (2) When he died in 1930, the Greek Cypriot tradesmen and foreigners were
among the people, who attended his funeral in Limassol. (3) During the rest of
the British administration and after the independence of the island, some young
Turkish Cypriots used to work as sailors on ships, owned by the Greek Cypriots
or foreign companies.
After the invasion and the occupation of the 37% of the northern
territory of the Republic of Cyprus in the summer of 1974, the Turkish Cypriots
got the chance to work in the field of maritime activities. The Famagusta port was opened on 3rd September
1974 and a Turkish Cypriot Ports
Authority was established for the functioning of the ports under the
control of the Turkish Army. Besides Famagusta, the ports of Kyrenia and
Karavostasi (Gemikonagi) started also to offer services. On 3rd October 1974,
the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Cyprus issued an Order, which
declared the ports of Famagusta, Kyrenia and Karavostasi as closed for all
vessels.
The coast line of the occupied part of Cyprus constitutes 50.6% of all
the coast line of the island with a length of 396 km. There are four designated sea-ports in the
occupied northern part of Cyprus. The principal sea-port is in Famagusta, which is important for cargo
transportation. The port has 1,280 metres of quays with drought ranging from
6.7 metres to 11 metres. Some 487,000 square metres of the outer harbour have
been turned into an industrial free trade zone in March 1983.
The Kyrenia port is important
for tourist and passenger traffic visiting the occupied areas of the island. A
new ferryboat port has been constructed in Kyrenia with a depth of 8 metres.
There are regular connections to the southern ports of Turkey and less often
services to Israel and Syria. The construction of the new tourism port of
Kyrenia started in 1983 and it was opened on 16th November 1987 with necessary
technical equipment and personnel. It has a capacity for four ferryboats.
In the north of Famagusta port, Gastria
(Kalecik-Boghaz) is used as an industrial port, where Cyprus Turkish
Petroleum Company and Altınbash Petroleum Company have unloading bays. Boghaz
Industry and Mines Company uses these facilities for loading the material from its
plaster and cement factories.
Nine miles west of Kyrenia, near Alagadi, there is Teknecik power station, where port facilities are used for
unloading fuel oil, which is used for generating electricity since 1976.
At Karavostasi (Gemikonağı)
in Morphou Bay in the West, there were facilities of the Cyprus Mining Company
for loading copper mine with the help of a 200 m long conveyor, but it is not
in use since 1992. In August 2010, it was reported in the Turkish Cypriot press
that a new free port will be built there by a company, called “Portisbi”, which
rented the plot for 49 years. (4)
99% of all the import and export activities of the Turkish Cypriots are
done through maritime lines, involving about 20 companies from the public and
the private sectors.
The Cyprus Turkish Shipping Company was established on 12 March 1975 as a joint venture,
in which the Maritime Organization of Turkey had 51% of the shares and the
Development Bank of the Consolidated Fund of the Turkish Cypriot Communal
Chamber had 49% of the shares. This company has at the moment one ferryboat and
a vessel for cargo transport, both are registered at the Istanbul harbour and are
under the Turkish flag. The ferryboat is named
as M/F Bozcaada, which was renovated in 2006 and has a capacity of 315
passengers and sails between Famagusta and Mersin. The other vessel is called
M/V Hisar with 7,410 DWT and carries dry cargo from various world harbours.
The Shipyard Famagusta Ltd (previously known as GemYat) is located within the Famagusta port for
the maintenance and the repair of the transport vessels. It has 5,500 sqm
closed and open areas and three slipways. The company was founded originally by
Ramazan Gundogdu, who came from Black Sea region and settled in Famagusta in
1989.
In 2006, 60 fisher-boats, cargo-ships, yachts, ro-ro ships and other
vessels were taken care of. Half of them had the flag of the TRNC, 20% of
Turkey and 30% of other countries. 65 persons were employed in the shipyard in
2006 and about 500 tons of steel construction was consumed annually. In July
2011 a new pool was bought and it has a capacity of 25,000 DWT.
TRNC Ship
Registry: There were in 1998 a total of 25 ships, 18 of them carrying the
flag of the TRNC, 6 the flag of Turkey and one, the flag of Malta. The majority
of the ships belong to businessmen from Turkey. These 25 ships had a capacity
of carrying 40,710 DWT weight and 2,390 passengers, collecting a venue of 14
million US dollars for the weight they transport. Annual freight expenses of
the TRNC was in 1998 30 million US dollars. From the direct revenue of these
ships, a total of 42,000 US dollars were cashed in.
In January 2009, the
Union of Turkish Cypriot Ship-owners had 24 members and they were complaining that the number of ships was
declining. According to the Annual Report of the Directorate of the Ports
Department, the number of registered ships was 44 in 2006, raised to 46 in 2007
and went down to 31 in 2008.
List of ships in service in
the occupied areas of Cyprus: (5)
Year Cargo-ship Ro/ro Passenger-ship Ships for special Total
purpose
2006 12 9 14 9 44
2007 13 9 13
11 46
2008 7 7 9 8 31
The Union of Turkish Cypriot
Ship-owners demanded among others the reduction of the port taxes and fees,
opening of the port services to other private companies, employment of TRNC
citizens in the ships with TRNC flags and exemption from customs tax for the
material used in the shipyard, reduction of the electricity tariff, issuing
certificates by the Ports Authority for the graduates of the local Faculties of
Maritime Studies. (6)
Cyprus Turkish
Dock-workers’ Company was started by a law 6/76 officially in 1976 by the 284
dock-workers, who used to work before 1974 at the Famagusta harbour. No new
members were registered since then and in November 1998, there were 98 dockworkers,
who shared the whole revenue of the port among themselves. (7) Moreover this
company still has the monopoly of handling and storing at the Famagusta harbour
and the fees are set by the Ministry of Works and Transport. At the moment,
there are only 19 shareholders left and 100-150 dockworkers, who have been
working at this company for the last 20-30 years, will be laid off, if the law
will be amended and new shareholders will come in from outside the company.
It was reported recently in the press that a bill was presented to the
Council of Ministers of the TRNC, which envisaged the selling of the shares of
the Cyprus Turkish Dockers’ Company. A Jewish-Turkish Maritime Company, named
“Arkas Denizcilik” and based in Izmir, had already bought the shares of a cover-company,
called “Portisbi”, which rented three months ago a strategic place with 10,000
sqm in the Famagusta Free Port and Zone for 25 years and which had paid 2 US
dollars per sqm. It was reported that the Arkas Maritime Company, which
transports cargo containers to the occupied areas of Cyprus will be buying the
shares of the Dockers’ company as well. (8)
Since 2003 the Cyprus Turkish Dockworkers’ Company provided services mainly
outside office hours and complaints arouse from the ship-owners that they have
to pay every year 500 thousand US dollars for the overtime work at the harbour
and the customs.
Distribution of the amount of the weight and the flag of the ships coming to the seaports of the TRNC in 1997 (2003) (9):
Port Flag No of Ships Weight (tons) % of the weight
TR 296
169,622 28.90
Foreign 121
100,410 17.11
Total: 1,050 (1,397) 586,836
(370,414) 100.00
___________________________________________________________________
Kyrenia TRNC 21 28,048 39.08
TR 33 43,720 60.92
Foreign - - -
Total: 54 71,768 100.00
___________________________________________________________________
Teknecik TRNC - - -
TR 7 54,703 38.41
Foreign 6 87,714
61.59
Total: 13 142,417 100.00
___________________________________________________________________
Kalecik TRNC - - -
(Petroleum) TR 62 134,345
96.73
Foreign 2 4,543 3.27
Total:
64 138,888 100.00
_______________________________________________________________
Kalecik TRNC 60 124,857 50.92
(Plaster and TR 34 86,066 35.10
Cement) Foreign 2 4,543 13.98
Total: 106 245,193 100.00
____________________________________________________________________
TRNC Total: TRNC 714 469,709 tons 39.63
TR 432 488,456 tons 41.22
Foreign 141 226,937 tons 19.15
Total: 1,287 1,185,102 tons 100.00
Kyrenia’s old harbour, which up until 1988 was also used by the ferryboats to Turkey, is now
being used as a yacht harbour. After the opening of the new touristic harbour,
one mile to the east of Kyrenia, all ferryboat traffic has been moved there. The
old customs and excise building in the old harbour was completely renovated and
redecorated early in 1990 and turned into a yachting centre. (Depth of the
port, 3.2 metres) Similarly all moorings were equipped with water and
electricity outlets. About 100 yachts and fisher-boats can take shelter here
and it belongs to the Evkaf Administration.
There is another marina in the
new tourism harbour of Kyrenia, which started giving services in 1996,
owned by Gem-yat Delta Marina Ltd. It has a space of 7,500 sqm with 75 berths
in the sea and 80 on land.
There is another possibility for yacht mooring in the harbour of Famagusta, in a special
section for yachts and fisher-boats. However, this place lies
within the commercial harbour and is therefore likely to be noisy and
bothersome to all those, who would rather have a peaceful setting for their
mooring. Plans exist for turning the lagoon between the commercial harbour and
the Palm Reach Hotel into a yacht harbour.
Those
sailing around the eastern Cape of Cyprus, (Zafer Burnu, Cape Andreas) will find
another place of anchorage in the fishing harbour of Yeni Erenkoy (Yialousa),
which is located on the Karpaz Peninsula in the north-eastern
tip of Northern Cyprus. Since Summer 2011, the region’s first-ever luxury
marina is called Karpaz Gate Marina
and it is owned by Karpaz Bay Resort Ltd, belonging to Jewish and English
investors. It offers 300 berths including 15 berths for super yachts and mega
yachts up to a maximum of 60 metres in length. Part of the Karpaz Bay Resort,
it is being developed to the standards of a first class tourist destination
with an expansive 18,000 sqm dry dock for refit and repairs. For yachts sailing
to Northern Cyprus for the first time, Karpaz Gate Marina is a recognised port of
entry.
The Faculties of Marine Studies in the occupied areas of Cyprus:
1. The Faculty of Maritime Studies of the Near East University
in Nicosia was first established in 1996 and gave its first graduates in the
year 2000. The Faculty
of Maritime Studies applies four-year degree programs in the Departments of Deck, Marine Engineering and Maritime Management and two-year programs in its
Vocational School. The initial objective of the Faculty is to train deck and
engineering watch keeping officers for the Merchant Marine Fleet; and in
addition, to train qualified personnel to meet the demands required for
managerial positions. The Faculty of Maritime Studies is collaborating, within a
framework of regulations, with the World Maritime Organization and Undersecretary of Maritime Affairs of Republic of
Turkey. The Faculty is at internationally acknowledged standards since it
provides education through the utilization of latest technologies in accordance
with the international laws and regulations. It provides its students with
apprenticeship and employment opportunities.
2. The Marine School of the Girne American
University in Kyrenia was established in 2007 as Marine school, Department of
Logistics and Transportation. At 2010, Deck Department started to function
also. In carrying out its mission, Marine School commits to improving Maritime,
Transportation and Logistics sector. In today’s competitive environment, the
Mariners, Deck Officers and Logisticians who are the graduates of GAU Marine
School, are aimed to be fully equipped with technological, language Maritime
and Logistics skills. The Techno-park Building, which is an important asset of
Marine School, with its various laboratories, provides opportunity for the
students to continue their education by transportation and logistics research.
3. Istanbul Technical University (ITU), which
was founded in 1773 as the basis of the Ottoman Imperial Naval Architecture, started
to build an education and research campus in the TRNC in 2008 in Famagusta. A
second campus will be built in Yeni Erenköy (Yialousa). According to the rector
of the ITU, North Cyprus was chosen because of its geographical
location and the regional and global programs that serve the needs of the
Maritime Sector. In the 2011-2012 academic year, a total of 90 students were
admitted for the first time in three sections: Marine Transportation and
Management Engineering, Naval Architecture and Marine (Ship-mechanics)
Engineering and Marine Management Engineering. 30 students were admitted in
each section. The language of instruction is in English. The education of
students, who do not have a proficient level of English, first undertake a year
for preparation. 10% of the students receive a full scholarship quota, 30% in
half (50%). A 10% discount will be applied the TRNC citizens.
Other organizations related with Marine Life in
the occupied areas of Cyprus:
1. The First Marine Conference of the Ministry of Works and
Transport of the TRNC was held in Nicosia in May 1998 and the Final Reports of
the Working Groups were published in a book with 187 pages, from where I took
some statistics and information.
2. The Cyprus Marine Science
Foundation: It was established in the TRNC in 2006. It is an organisation
aiming to do research relating to marine sciences, marine biology, marine
fisheries, freshwater ecosystems, freshwater biology, and aquaculture within
and around the island of Cyprus. The Cyprus Marine Foundation has already
conducted several research projects related to fisheries in the Levantine Sea.
3. Marine and Fisheries
Research Institute: It was established in September 2011 at the Güzelyurt
(Morphou) Campus of the European University of Lefke and is actively
encouraging research in Marine Sciences and Fisheries. In addition, the
institute is currently running a MSc programme on Fisheries Technology and
aiming to open other MSc programmes in the near future.
4. During 24th-27th March 2013, Acapulco Resort Hotel in Northern Cyprus
hosted the First International Fisheries
Symposium. This symposium organisation was a
collaboration between European University of Lefke, Cyprus Marine Science
Foundation and the World Sturgeon Conservation Society and supported by the
Turkish Cypriot Authorities. In all, the symposium
attracted a total 280 delegates from a number of different countries including
North Cyprus, Turkey, Germany, Italy, United Kingdom, Malta, Saudi Arabia,
Algeria and Iran. Institutions represented at the symposium included
Universities, Research Institutes, NGO’s, Government Departments and Fisheries
related businesses. Themes covered during the 3 days of the symposium included
Demersal and Pelagic Fisheries, Aquaculture, Fishing Technologies and Processing,
Conservation, Species Ecology & Reproductive Biology. In addition, there
were special sessions on the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEC) and Eastern
Mediterranean Maritime Jurisdiction. A total of 145 presentations were given
and there were a number of business stands present from North Cyprus Chamber of
Industry, YAGA (North Cypriot Development Agency), German businesses, Dardenel
Cyprus & Deep Sea. Following the success of this symposium there are plans
for future symposia during the coming years.
Notes:
1. Ali Nesim, Yeni Kibris magazine, May-June 1989
2. Dogru Yol newspaper, 8.12.1919
3. Soz newspaper, 26.6.1930
4. Kibris newspaper, 1.8.2010
5. Kibris newspaper, 22.1.2009
6. idem
7. Kibris newspaper, 8.11.1998
8. Yeni Duzen newspaper, 30.4.2013
9. Final Reports of the Working Groups, The First Marine Conference of the
Ministry of Works and Transport of the TRNC,
Nicosia, May 1998
(This paper was first presented on 16th
May 2013 at a conference on “Cyprus’s Maritime Tradition: Past, Present and
Future”, organized by the Cyprus Centre of the London Metropolitan University)
