Environmental damage at Ammos Kambouri beach sparks committee report

The house interior committee decided on Thursday that they would prepare a special report on the Ammos tou Kambouri beach in Ayia Napa, where construction works over the past years caused extensive environmental damage.

In his statements after the end of the session, committee head and opposition Akel MP Aristos Damianou said that an “environmental and urban crime” was committed in the area, adding that “there are criminals, but there was no punishment or accountability.”

Damianou said that the interior committee is preparing a report that will be sent to the plenary, stating that based on the material that has been collected, political, administrative, disciplinary, and possibly criminal responsibilities arise.

And in this case, he said, “big economic interests were placed above the interest of the place, respect for the environment, sustainability, and sustainable development.”

Answering a question about the restoration of the beach, since a relevant fund of €189,000 was approved, he said that the complete restoration of the area cannot take place and explained that “the movement and removal of rocks has permanently altered the landscape.”

“Anything that can be done for partial restoration is welcome,” he added.

Referring to the issue of accountability, Damianou said that the parliament will provide all the relevant material it collected in the context of the parliamentary audit.

He also said that the competent authorities beyond the parliament should decide if issues arise, expressing the opinion that issues of criminality arise.

Responding to a question about church involvement in the issue, Damianou noted that the business activity of the church was also part of the equation, clarifying that those who made the political and administrative decisions are being checked.

In her statements after the end of the committee session, Green Party MP Alexandra Attalides, said that “the environmental crime in Ammos tou Kambouri cannot be reversed, just partially corrected.”

In addition, Attalides said: “The prosecution failed to prove beyond all reasonable doubt the guilt of those involved and acquitted them.”

She added that “the strange thing is that the plaintiffs had not been brought as prosecution witnesses in court.”

She also noted that the destruction of the environment is difficult to reverse, and that nature never returns to its original state.

“The only way to deal with these issues is zero tolerance,” she said, adding that the European Commission is monitoring the case.

At an interior committee meeting in May, Attalides said that the government, church, and “international convicts” were colluding to commit an environmental crime at the Ammos Kambouri beach.

Her statements brought to the fore an old scandal connected to Malaysian fugitive Jho Low who obtained a Cypriot passport after coming to Cyprus in 2015, and reportedly invested in some property in the Famagusta district.

Presenting images from the area and a number of documents, Attalides told deputies at the House interior committee that the problem has been ongoing since 2012.

She claimed that the police and the attorney-general’s office failed to substantiate allegations made about planning interventions at the Ayia Napa beach.