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Re: World Poker Tour (WPT) Event in Northern Cyprus Sept 2009

Having recently arrived in Las Vegas, I was eagerly anticipating playing in the $25k buy in WPT championship event. In fact I have played in many WPT events over the years and to date have never missed the main April Bellagio event but suddenly found myself faced with a moral dilemma that will most likely lead to my being unable to support any future WPT events. Not a great loss to the WPT I must say but nonetheless it makes me question their lack of moral integrity.

The reason for this is basically down to my Cypriot ethnic origins as I was both surprised and shocked to discover that a WPT sanctioned event is scheduled for Northern Cyprus sometime in September later this year. Whilst I feel it is admirable that The WPT wish to spread their brand name to overseas venues I felt I had to write to them in order to ask why they have chosen to hold an event (or sanction an event) that is going to be held in Northern Cyprus which is currently deemed illegal internationally, not officially recognized and containing an occupying force of some 40000 foreign Turkish troops. I also felt strongly that I had to make the general poker public aware of this morally unjustifiable decision of The WPT so am posting this to various poker forums.

You may or may not know some of the history behind the island but for background information I will include a brief outline below.

In 1974 after a suspected coup attempting to unify Cyprus with Greece, Turkey invaded Cyprus (to give you an idea of how one-sided this invasion was it would be rather like the USA invading Hawaii). They took over approximately 40% of the island of Cyprus and thousands of Cypriots died in the conflict not to mention the hundreds of thousands that were displaced having their homes and lands illegally seized.

To this day 40% of the island still remains under illegal occupation.

In 1983 this separated section of Cyprus unilaterally declared independence from the rest of the island and is now known as the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.

This republic is NOT recognized by ANY country ANYWHERE in the world except for Turkey and as such means that it is heavily dependent on Turkey for economic support. (There are numerous United Nations Resolutions concerning Cyprus and condemnations of Turkey and the illegal occupation of Northern Cyprus but I shall not cite them here). In Addition the only direct/non-stop flights that exist to Northern Cyprus come from Turkey so any flights from anywhere else in the world must first land or touch-down in Turkey before going on to Northern Cyprus. Visitors to The Northern Part of Cyprus must also acknowledge the falsely claimed sovereignty of the Northern Territory as part of the entry visa requirements.

Subsequent to the invasion Turkey still maintains an army of approximately 40000 troops on the island and still occupies approximately 40% of the island which rightfully belongs to the (Southern) Republic of Cyprus which is globally recognized as the legal and rightful ruler of the whole island as it has the official sovereignty over the whole island.

By holding a WPT event or lending the brand name to an event in Kyrenia, Northern Cyprus the WPT is giving credibility to the continuing illegal occupation of Northern Cyprus and legitimising an illegal regime and republic that has stolen property and land belonging to others (incidentally the place at which the event is due to take place was illegally seized from the original owners and renamed from the original Zephyros).

Because the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus is not recognized internationally you will also find that trade is severely restricted with that part of the island and that the North is relatively poor and under developed when compared to the more prosperous South. There is also a greater incidence of crime, disease and poor health in The North when compared to The South and grossly inferior medical facilities not to mention the numerous human rights abuses.

As such I find it both incredible and surprising that The WPT would even consider holding a WPT event there never mind actually having one take place later this year. To do so would be very much like the WPT holding charity poker tournaments in order to raise funding for known terrorist organizations such as Hamas and The Taliban.

I also wrote to Full Tilt Poker asking why they are running online qualifiers for this event and I eagerly await both organizations responses along with their explanations and justifications for their actions and why they feel the need to support an event in an illegal republic that continues to occupy a land that belongs to others.

By supporting such an event they are legitimizing and giving credibility to an illegal occupation of a country and supporting their economy.

I am not and have never been one to dictate to others what they should or should not do because I strongly believe individuals should have freedom of choice but just wanted to make as many in the poker community aware of my and others deep feelings that exist surrounding this forthcoming tournament.

This post is not intended for discussion and I am sure the Cypriot Government via it’s US embassy will be addressing this issue directly with the organizations concerned but as I said above just wanted to give some background to all this and express my dissatisfaction with The WPT’s moral bankruptcy in the hope that they can be persuaded to dissociate themselves from this event.

Harry Demetriou

I hope this post wil be discussed despite Harry's statement that it's not intended to be discussed. I thik it's an interesting subject.

As a Greek Cypriot I completely agree and think its a disgrace that a WPT is being held there.

Yeah, it's a bit of a weird one this.

Interesting did'nt know that history in full...and Labour want Turkey in the EU!!! they need to sort this out first imo...

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

 ;popcorn;

A WPT poker tourney containing mostly Turks?

And people thought an EPT in Italy would be soft...

I heard Barry Greenstein has pulled out of the $10K PLO Championship at the Rio too

I lol'd

on a serious note the poker comunity should boycot this event on the basis of democracy.

Power to Poker

You ever shared a table with Mad Turk??!

The reason for this post not to be discussed is primarily because it is likely to quickly drift away from the core content which is whether or not organizations such as The WPT and FTP should be actively promoting events in illegal jurisdictions. If it can stick to the main point then by all means lets discuss whether you can trade morals for money.

You need some rope with that?

having spent some of my formative years on the border in cyprus (aged 4-7) all i can say is that it woulf be lovely to have an event there but only after both sides come to some agreement (which isnt that far off with turkey wanting into the EU)

lol come again?

turkey wants in the EU
they cant get in while thye still occupy cyprus
they will get something sorted in the next 5-10 years IMHO

but then again some people thought it would be sorted in the early 70s

Leaving work now, will put up a proper post on this later

You want fries with that?

+1

This might not help.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/8004534.stm

as someone whose only experience of cyprus is  a youthful week in ayia napa...a really interesting post which makes u think both whoever took this decision knew less about the island than i did before i read this post, and that as poker players we should all stand together for things that are more important than having a week playin games in the sun...gl harry

nice post. If only more players showed a willingness to take that attitude..

I know myself and Cos made this point with the Rocks tournament so i don't think i need to go through it all again but its clearly wrong, i lived in Cyprus for a few years and could never dream of playing in an Occupied North.

Iron, keep dreaming it ain't happening any time soon (partly because those in the South don't really want it back anymore)

well i have diff opinions.,.,., living in cyprus at the moment..,.,.,i feel a bit 50/50 as i want to play in this tourney but also respect peoples views aswel.,.,.,what you must all consider there is still a lot of business going on with both sides of the island where they do a lot of wheeling and dealing.,.,.so on a point of horses for courses,.,.,where does this stop..,.,????
harry.,.,. i understand what your saying but is it still ok for cyp to bring from the north fruit/veg etc??? as this is just one or two commodities they still trade in/./...,or is it just the odd few things that you personally see that dont suit your tastes???
you must look at the BIG pic and think ahhh well no for poker.,.,.,but trading in diff things is ok?????
i think not.,.,.,.,if you feel so strongly about poker.,.,.,why not all other items.,.., regarding cyprus and turkey?
i do very much understand.,.,your views.,.,but what about the turkish cyp who lost everything and had to go back to turkey with nothing?? who built up business and relationships with cyp's then had to leave everything behind.,.,.,.,.,.,?????  ok al be it more moajority with cyp losing out but as i said earlier.,.,horse for courses.,.,.,.,my thoughts and my opinions.,.,.,.,

p.s

just to add all you ever seem to be doing is complaining about something on this site.,.,.,.,cheer up a bit.,.,.,
you never seem to be posting about something good in the world.,.,.,.,

He's a good man, James, one who works hard for things to be right in the poker world. He is also a blonde Shareholder. ;)

i know this tony but all he ever does is complain.,.,.,i know a lot of the time he is right .,.,but dont just be so negative.,.,.,be positive sometimes.,.,.,would he feel the same if a wpt event was being held in one of the balkan countries etc.,.,.,?.,.,.,

As he does not originate in the Balkans, & they are not his homeland, probably not.

I think Harry's post is spot on and I feel exactly the same way.

Maybe if your family was kicked out from the North and your families' homes, land, heritage and everything that comes along with that was stripped from them like my grandparents land was (Harry possibly being from the North too - not that it matters) then you might feel the same way and offer Harry a pardon for his post seeming to be 'complaining'.

Just a thought.

i understand this 100% and maybee complaining was the wrong word to use,the same thing did happen to turkish cypriots living in the south too they were also told to up and leave at very short notice leaving business behind.i know that cypriots are very passionate about what happend and it is almost 40 years....since.....time is a great healer but they will never forget...a bit like GB AND THE GERMANS.....dont mention the war....

a lot of my friends here are cyp and there are a lot of cypriots wanting to play in this tournament.....if the cypriot goverment moved with the times and allowed casinos in the south,this would solve the poker problems and secret gambling dens in the south,also it would boost tourism which they will desperatley need over the next few years...

If Germany  occupied half the UK it would be 'a bit like'

Exactly.

It's not even close to being the same thing.

What an interesting post.  My dad served with the UN sometime in the late sixties or early seventies. He still talks about how beautiful Famigusta looked from the hill side above the resort.

As an Irishman I understand somewhat of how Harry feels. He is a man who speaks only of things that concern him. Perhaps that is why he is seen by some as being so serious.  As for the rights and wrongs of the event, it is right that the organisations involved be made aware of the issues involved. It is a delicate matter which could easily become inflamed.
What I will say is that somewhere along the line some settlement will have to be made between the two countries. What these will be I don't know. Turkey's entry to the EU is probably the best opportunity for decades past or to come.  However again looking at what has happened in Northers Ireland it seems more important to me now, that their is lasting peace in the province than who governs.  The removal of the Turkish army from the area will probably take a long time. Reparations could take decades. In the meantime we all have to get on and allow each other to have opinions and beliefs without fear. I am sure Harry plays poker with many Turkish people who he would call friends. This is a subject bigger than us and will be solved by governments and finance.

Apart from Sofa_King's extremely tilting posts on this subject, I've heard a few poker players talking about playing this event recently and those who I've spoken to didn't know about this situation so i thought this thread was worthy of a bump.

I hope that's ok with mods.

are they going there again then? can't see anything on the wpt website

If not this event, then its def some event in Northern Cyprus.

Be interesting to hear a view from the other side.

yah, agree.

And there we have, in a nutshell, an explanation of 99% of the world's problems!

harry d still playing poker?

well what exactly do you want them to say?

The other side want to make money and that's fine. But everyone else shouldn't be endorsing it.

Bumping this thread because it's relevant

Some questions for you cossy.

Thoughts on Greek Cypriots going there to play?

Do you think there is a place in poker for political stuff?

Do you think your friends should be more aware of the situation and boycott it?

Good questions - they've got me thinking.

Highly unimpressed by Greek Cypriots going there to play. Let's say Alex, Mitch, Pleno, Hopkin etc went to play there. It wouldn't be something that I'd even hold the slightest bit of bad feeling about. A lot of people don't know the political situation. A lot of people are going because poker is their job etc. I take issue with the WPT hosting an event in a state that isn't legally recognised. As such, I would never play a WPT event or satellite etc.

When I visited the North side, we took everything we could possibly need for the day so that we didn't spend a single cent there. I think that should be the approach of every single Greek Cypriot. Crossing the border to give them rake and help them make money is just ridiculous. My grandparents would be ashamed of me.

I didn't want to go too crazy at the time because I know it was being supported by DTD and it would have looked bad on me to be slating the event. I also know a multiple bracelet winner who had 6 figures on deposit there and it took him a very very long time (around 1 year) to get it all sent to him. I have heard some weird things about who is running things and it doesn't fill me with confidence and I question why it's used as a venue etc.

I don't think there's much of a place in poker for politcal stuff but there also has to be to a certain extent. I think people shouldn't be making political messages on their clothing at televised tables etc.

In an ideal world, I'd love all my friends to boycott it. I'd appreciate it more than they know but I'm also not going to let it bother me at all if they do go. Pros have gotta make money and if that's the next stop on the live tour then I can't begrudge anyone for playing it.

As I've said, my grudge is more with the organisers.