Cyprus Reunification Must Not be Forgotten

2008 has been a year of change. For one, Cyprus reunification is now back on the agenda after the appointment of Dimitris Christofias to the presidency of the Republic of Cyprus, joining Mehmet Ali Talat to solve the disputes over Cyprus reunification.

That appointment, an appointment that can solve a problem that has lasted for over a quarter of a country, has in some ways been overshadowed by the more internationally minded affect of the credit crunch and the recession, which is arguably the defining feature of 2008 so far.

Interestingly, Cyprus has not been affected as badly by the recession as some of the major world countries like the United Kingdom, France, German, the United States and Japan. And it has one of under five currently appreciating markets in the world, including the burgeoning and flourishing of the Cyprus property market.

But elsewhere it has taken its toll, and the world's media have in some way neglected the endeavours of Dimitris Christofias and Mehmet Ali Talat to reunite the divided island; after replacing long standing leaders Tassos Papadopoulos and Rauf Denktash, the two set out trying to undo the work of the fiercely segregationist leaders by pledging themselves to weekly reunification talks and promising to attempt to resolve the issue by the close of 2008.

It is that Cyprus reunification push that is spurring the appreciation of the Cyprus property market, so it is perhaps unjust that it has lost so much media coverage; the political will of the island is directly linked to the economic prosperity of North Cyprus and the island of Cyprus - Cyprus properties - so that politics and economics in Cyprus are battling bravely against the global recession.

Dimitris Christofias is not the only new appointment this year, though, and the success of Barack Obama, now president elect, in becoming the first black president, is argued by the world's media to be battling for the title of the most important events of the year.

But truly the three events are not so separate from one another; in the run to the American primaries Barack Obama stated that he greatly wished to see an end to the partition, expressing his support for the heads of state and firmly recommending that, for the island, Europe - and for the international community - Cyprus reunification represents a sound move.

Now that he has been successfully elected, he can add his political weight to a Cyprus reunification push that started with Kofi Annan in 2004 and now includes a majority of the major E.U powers.

With most journalists reporting that one of Obama's biggest challenges will be the improvement of the world economy, perhaps something can be learned, too, from the performance of Cyprus, embodied most by its boom on property in Cyprus and the continued efforts for political union and strength in the face of adversity for its leaders, just as he has given wise counsel to the island in its push for Cyprus reunification.

The push for Cyprus Reunification, then, overshadowed by perhaps more glamorous events, is just as meaningful, and should not be forgotten.