Following a decision made the day before yesterday by the Germasogeia municipal district, which reaffirms its refusal to establish shelters for children and adolescents in the area, the issue will also be brought before the Amathountas Municipal Council, Mayor Kyriakos Xydias told CNA. “The government must respect the position of local government; otherwise, we will take action,” stated Christos Papamichail, Deputy Mayor of Germasogeia.
The issue was raised again by the Ministry of the Interior, which, in a letter dated July 30, called on the municipalities of Larnaca, Latsia–Gerios, Amathus, and the community of Moni to withdraw their reservations regarding plans to establish shelters for children and adolescents.
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The council of the Germasogeia municipal district met on Wednesday in an emergency session, reiterating its opposition to any plans for shelters, while the minutes of the meeting will be presented to the Amathountas Municipal Council on September 3, said Mayor Kyriakos Xydias.
As he noted, this is the third time the government has raised the issue, adding that the municipal council will be asked to reaffirm its position, which will be forwarded to the relevant ministry.
“Without wishing to preempt the municipal council’s decision, I believe that its position will not change regarding the request to establish facilities for minors in our area,” he added.
For his part, the deputy mayor of Germasogeia, Christos Papamichail, told CNA that the local community’s position is clear and has been expressed in two previous decisions by the former Municipality of Germasogeia and the current Municipality of Amathus, which is now being asked to reiterate something that should already be taken for granted.
When asked about the reasons for refusing to establish shelters for children and adolescents in the area, he stated that no adequate explanations have been provided regarding what will actually be built, noting that the initial plan involved migrant reception centers.
“After our initial reaction, we were told that it would not be a migrant facility but something else—that it would be shelters for minors—and now they’re presenting it as child and adolescent protection centers,” he added.
At the same time, the deputy mayor of Germasogeia expressed the view that the proposed area is not suitable for the development of such facilities, “since it is a sparsely populated area, which is currently considered the most expensive in Cyprus.”
As he said, “these facilities are typically established in densely populated areas, in the city, to ensure the smooth integration of these individuals into society,” and he asked, “How exactly will you help these children when you place them in an area where they will see luxury homes and cars and are more likely to be stigmatized?”
“As far as we’re concerned, the matter is closed. If they continue to disregard the Municipal Council’s decision, we will close the highway,” said Mr. Papamichael, referring to “a mockery, both regarding this specific issue and, more generally, toward Limassol.”
Source: CNA
