Heute war ein ganz normaler Tag, bis mich eine Sache wütend gemacht hat und dann eine zweite. Jetzt habe ich also zwei Dinge, über die ich mich aufregen kann, und ich war neugierig, was andere Leute wütend macht (dies ist keine vollständige Liste, dies sind die Dinge, die mich gerade wütend machen, Dinge, über die ich mich normalerweise aufrege, sind: Wohnen, Gehälter, Korruption), aber ich werde die Dinge behandeln, die hier gerade nicht stehen. Also Dinge, die mich wütend machen:
1) Das Gemeinschaftssystem – mein Gott, ich hasse dieses koloniale Relikt. Ich bin ethnischer Russe, habe aber mein ganzes Leben hier verbracht, ich spreche Griechisch, habe meine ehrlichen 14 Monate in der Armee abgeleistet und ich hasse es, wenn ich gefragt werde, zu welcher Gemeinschaft man gehört. Technisch und rechtlich bin ich wohl GC, aber ich hasse es, dieses Kästchen anzukreuzen (ich habe mich heute entschieden, „Nicht spezifiziert“ anzukreuzen). Es gibt so viele Leute, mit denen ich gedient habe, die halb GC waren, und viele Leute auf meinem Armeestützpunkt, die Zyprioten von der Staatsbürgerschaft her waren, aber einer dritten Ethnie angehörten. Inder, Russen, Ukrainer, Armenier, Deutsche, Engländer, Pakistaner – alle Zyprioten haben in der Armee gedient. Ich kenne einen Typen, dessen Vater GC, dessen Mutter TC ist und der in London geboren wurde, also was zum Teufel ist er? Und warum bekommen die Armenier, Maroniten und Lateinamerikaner einen Sitz im Parlament ohne Stimmrecht? Das scheint fast wie eine Herabstufung. Ich hasse das Gemeinschaftssystem. Es ist ein nordirisches, libanesisches, bescheuertes System und trennt die Bevölkerung ohne Grund. Ich bin Zypriot und monogam.
2) Zyperns unverdienter Ruf als Geldwäscheplatz. Ich habe einen russischen Artikel gelesen und dann diese schreckliche Falschinformation: Zypern ignoriert russische Gräueltaten und westliche Sanktionen, um den enormen Reichtum von Putins Verbündeten zu schützen – ICIJ Russisches Geld (zumindest das korrupte, illegale und kriminelle) ist größtenteils verschwunden, alles, was übrig bleibt, kommt von Schifffahrts- und IT-Unternehmen, die legitime Geschäfte machen. Ich hasse diese schreckliche PR-Situation, in der jedes Mal, wenn ich erwähne, woher ich komme (und ich sage Zypern, weil ich im Grunde nie woanders gelebt habe), dieser ganze Schwachsinn und Unsinn darüber kommt, wie einfach es ist, in Zypern Geld zu waschen und bla bla bla. Die Regierung muss eine PR-Kampagne starten, um ihren Ruf wiederherzustellen, und all diese betrügerischen Journalisten verklagen.
Das waren jetzt zwei Tiraden für jetzt, ich werde in Zukunft vielleicht noch mehr Tiraden machen. Aber meine Frage an alle ist: Was macht alle anderen wütend?
https://old.reddit.com/r/cyprus/comments/1de2r1f/what_pisses_you_off_here/
Von TheoryOfHistory
22 Kommentare
I never heard of an Armenian or Maronite serving.
The community system is not as important as you make it out. It’s just to determine which school your kid goes to and if you go to the army or not, maybe a few more things.
Also, note that Armenians, Maronites and Latins vote in the parliamentary elections as part of the Greek community and therefore they do have a say in the election of the voting Members of Parliament. It’s only the observer members of their communities that do not have a right to vote in Parliament.
Now, as far as money laundering is concerned, you are way off. Cyprus has laundered billions and billions and money laundering is still going on, look at all the sanctions being slapped on Cypriot companies. Yes, the situation has improved in recent years but it was only after heavy pressure and threats of sanctions from the EU and US. In any case, the reputation is not undeserved.
Agreed with a lot of what you’re saying, but there’s some caveats.
Regarding the first, it’s the same in the UK. They all you to add white/black/Asian/mixed (and different denominations of each one. Where does a Cypriot fit into that? I’m darker than Pakistani’s when I’m tanned.
Unfortunately, it is as you said, a remnant of the colonial past in Cyprus and it has been enshrined in our constitution, so no one bothers to change it.
Regarding your second point… You’re right, a lot of Russian money left the country. Partially it has been replaced by Israeli and Ukrainian money, the disparity is still there and our government is going very little to disprove the reputation we got.
Add to that, the mess that is the legal system in Cyprus, and you’re not left with a lot.
Some of the „legitimate“ businesses you’re talking about are also involved in a lot of grey areas of the law, that our legal system is not equipped to handle.
Regarding my pet peeves…
1. The „this is Cyprus“ mentality, that in the end prevents any change from happening. Acts as an excuse to not do anything, and a pass on the assholes that have screwed us over.
The ethnic communities of Cyprus have a very real and tangible historical basis, even if the way they have been historically applied by the British colonial establishment was catastrophic. So it is not pointless to ask someone what their ethnic background is, the same way that being a citizen of any country doesn’t mean your ethnic background is irrelevant.
That being said, the ethnic quotas and segregationist constitution of the RoC is deeply flawed and problematic, which is partially why it failed as well. There is merit to some of your questions which would make one rethink the constitution and its provisions. But still, making the constitution less racist and segregationist won’t remove the very real communal lines that exist between communities. In fact, this isn’t even a bad thing.
It’s good to retain some strong identity among Maronites for example, since their language is nearly extinct. There is value to keeping these distinctions alive in more practical (e.g. educational) terms, because otherwise much about this cultural heritage could be lost.
My friend….If you don’t like it, you can just leave it.
Edit for the downvoters : chill out guys, and get some second degree sense.
„Cyprus’s undeserved reputation as a money laundering place.“
Well, it *is* deserved. A whora to the dolla, years and years of money laundering brought that tag upon us. It doesn’t go away easily or quickly unfortunately. And with the ‚this is cyprus‘ scandal, the tag isn’t only set upon us by the international community but also by locals. The crackdown has stifled a lot of these practices but they are still very much in play, if not for Russians, it’s the myriad of other international businessmen and/or Russians with Ukrainian passports or via third parties. There’s still *a lot* that needs to be done.
Undeserved reputation as a money laundering place? UNDESERVED?? lol
Pienne je si esso sou
I just want to be able to afford and house and have a nice cost of living. Is that so hard to ask for? 🥺
Identity is nauseating. Give it up. Political, Religious, Ethnic, National, etc. Give it up. Let it go. Free your mind.
Fuck it all. 🖕🏻
Fascinating that Maronites and Latins exist in Cyprus. Their culture and language should be protected and supported. We all should have a basic human right to identify in accordance with our personal heritage and to live without fear of prejudice and discrimination.
Every individual, irrespective of their ethnic or linguistic background, should be endowed with the fundamental human right to embrace and celebrate their personal heritage. This inalienable right extends beyond mere tolerance; it necessitates an active commitment to fostering an environment where cultural diversity is not only respected but also nurtured and celebrated.
It’s a tough one. Identity is important but also causes division and conflict.
What language do the Latins speak? Is it a dialect of Roman Latin? Fascinating.
People that park their cars without respect to anyone except themselves
ppl parking whereever
My guy the president of Parliament was caught on camera trying to flog passports to a guy who told him that he represented a criminal.
Totally deserved reputation.
UNDESERVED MONEY LAUNDERING PLACE??????
NAHHHH BROOOOO
WE DESERVE THAT TITLE
THAT’S THE ONE THING WE’RE GOOD AT CMON
I like your funny words, Russian man.
Being told to „Go back to your country“ and „we don’t need you here“ when one half of my family is here hurts.
The colonial system the British left had only the community, ethnicity, nationality of the father matter. It’s the same in a lot of countries including India and Lebanon. That’s just how the British viewed stuff since the middle ages. And the Republic of Cyprus kept this even until today for the army.
There are a lot of things that piss me off about other people’s perception of Cyprus, so all the points brought up in your topic and comments don’t really bother me.
However, there are two things I can mention and I am surpised no one mentioned here before me:
1. The fact that refugees get instant employment right with no restrictions/requirements to qualification or employer status. While my third-country national husband is not allowed to be employed by local Cypriot companies for minimum payment jobs (like petrol station or whatnot), and is only allowed to be employed by companies where majority of shares belong to foreigners, and on positions that require high professional qualifications to justify for high salary. Like wtf? I’m struggling to provide for our family and I am Cypriot, and I am female, it is only fair that my husband shall have equal rights for employment, but somehow Syrians have more rights than my husband does.
2. The fact that majority of locals don’t understand why salaries for foreign employees in IT companies are so high.
Others have already talked about the points you mentioned, so I’ll just talk about what bothers me the most:
1. The close-mindedness of the population. It’s pretty common within small communities, so it makes sense Cyprus would be like that, more about fitting in with the community rather than individuality, but too much of either can be detrimental. The majority of Cypriots are very judgemental, passive aggressive and engage in gossip. It affects the country in both small ways and big ways – like how recently, I was at a periptero, and the cashier talked to me about how disgusting a customer of his was because she was a woman who didn’t shave her legs. How daring to dress differently than others here will get you laughed at and even bullied, how easily we call women sluts etc. But it’s also the reason behind things like our poor, inflexible education system, our underfunded and deeply flawed mental health system, political inaction within the population, strict adherence to gender roles and the whole „traditional mindset“ around ethnicity and queerness. „Standing out is bad, everyone has to be the same and act normal, but also I’m smarter than everyone and I’m never wrong“ is the way I’d describe it. We’re so behind other countries culturally, sociologically and philosophically because of this. It’s one of the main reasons behind people leaving, I think.
The only reason the EU countries turn a blind eye, it’s because they want their holiday. You are a good destination for that.
There’s a few million in unclaimed cash in customs as we speak to reinforce the money laundering reputation. I’ve worked with 3-4 Russian companies and every single one uses cash like it’s 1987 and Crypto like it’s 2087 – including paying untaxed salaries, bonuses, 3rd party contractors in developing countries etc. in conclusion we work hard to look the other way and keep that reputation alive. Sure it’s a small sample size but ask around and you’ll see that this par for the course. The community system is unfortunately political – tends to happen when you have an occupying force on your land.
Some stuff is annoying but just for a few minutes. Then I walk to the beach and it all washes away.
Cyprus has its flaws but it’s pretty awesome as long as you have to deal the government that much.
This is the case in many countries though.