Times of Cyprus
| Type | Weekly newspaper |
|---|---|
| Format | Broadsheet |
| Founder(s) | Edward Henry Vizetelly |
| Founded | 14 May 1880 |
| Political alignment | Social Liberal |
The Times of Cyprus, also known at The Cyprus Times was an English-language newspaper published in Larnaca, in Cyprus from 1880, following the island becoming a British protectorate in 1878. It was founded by Edward Henry Vizetelly, who also acted as its first editor. Vizetelly had been a war correspondent for the British newspaper The Daily News, and the New York Times.
In its early years The Cyprus Times was variously accused by British-based reviewers of being too critical of British colonial rule in Cyprus, primarily because it would berate the British government for not taking full control of the island from the Ottoman Empire, and also being too slight, having more of an interest in racing news than social and political events on the island. Yet the newspaper was a campaigning voice calling for Britain to formally annex of the island from the Ottomans, and published articles claiming that the midway house, whereby Britain administered the island but it remained legally the property of Turkey was resulting in the impoverishment of Cyprus.
Amongst the notable figures working for The Cyprus Times was Nikos Sampson. Despite working as a photographer for the newspaper Sampson was also a fervant Greek nationalist, who joined the Greek liberation movement on the island EOKA. In 1974 he was made the puppet President of Cyprus following the military overthrow of the elected leader President Archbishop Makarios in July of that year. Earlier, during the anti-British struggle in Cyprus 1955-1959, Sampson was accused by the British colonial authorities of being a member of EOKA and in 1957 he was charged with murder. Amongst those killed by EOKA, and possibly by Sampson himself, was a fellow journalist on The Cyprus Times Angus MacDonald. The trial of Sampson failed due to claims the police had obtained a confession from Sampson under torture, but Sampson later admitted the killings, and claimed this allowed him to be first on the scene to capture the news photographs. Sampson later went on to found the Greek language newspaper Makhi (Combat).
During the EOKA struggle The Cyprus Times was owned and edited by the liberal minded Charles Foley, who was born in India and arrived in Cyprus in search of 'a quiet life' having worked previously for the Daily Express. Instead he landed in the middle of the Cypriot civil and anti-colonial war. Foley was widely regarded as a sympathetic character for Cypriots, although he was a firm believer in independence for Cyprus rather than union with Greece. In 1958 he stated: 'I have sympathy for the Cypriots as a civilized people who have for generations been denied the ordinary rights of self-rule and freedom.'
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