Former Interior Minister Ayşegül Baybars made a critical assessment regarding public safety, highlighting that the policies of the current government have seriously disrupted the country’s security and peace. The core issue emphasized by Baybars was the security void caused by lack of oversight and weakening state authority.
Background and Context
The recent increase in crime incidents in Cyprus and the concerns prevalent in society shaped Baybars’s assessment. She argues that the current government’s policies, characterized by lack of control, arbitrary practices, and exceptional decisions, have harmed the security culture that has been built up over many years in society. This situation has particularly exacerbated the impact on public safety due to factors such as the growth of the informal economy, uncontrolled population growth, and influxes of foreign labor.
Detailed Examination of Issues
Baybars does not see the issue as limited to police or public order concerns. She emphasizes that the quality of the country’s economic activities, informal economy, rapid population growth, and foreign workforce are all elements that weaken public safety policies, alongside lack of planning and oversight. The failure to apply effective sanctions in spite of rule violations undermines the deterrent nature of the law and indicates that those planning to commit crimes are exploiting this gap.
Particularly, the fact that a significant portion of prisoners and individuals involved in incidents that have made headlines are foreign nationals has highlighted the weaknesses in entry and informal processes even further. Baybars advocates for the creation of a collective state policy requiring coordination among all relevant ministries and institutions to resolve these issues.
Her approach indicates that solutions should not be limited to merely improving record-keeping systems, but also require monitoring of foreign labor, tracking of tourism and hospitality sectors, strengthened crime-fighting efforts, and enhanced international cooperation.
It was stressed that determined and clear steps must be taken in areas overseen by Baybars, such as records, entry and exit, immigration control, and fighting crime as the Interior Ministry. In particular, the aim was to identify foreign individuals whose entry might pose risks and ensure their expulsion from the country.
Baybars noted the need to establish a digital infrastructure, ensure accurate data transmission to the system, make legislative changes, and implement registration requirements in unregistered areas for population identification and planning. Additionally, through the cooperation protocol signed with Turkey, the goal is to achieve information sharing and collaboration to detect individuals who could pose risks to public safety, who might be sought after abroad or who have committed crimes at the point of entry.
Source: www.yeniduzen.com
