Written By Marie ‘B’

The Orams ‘eagles’ have now landed back into the heart of their homeland, Hove, and following a mini collapse as the adrenalin rush wore off, life is taking on a more normal hue.

No more paparazzi calling at the door creating ‘embarrassing moments’ (how would you like to answer the door thinking it is the milkman come for his money to be greeted with flashing cameras and anxious journalists?); no constant telephone calls from journalists trying to be THE one to get the scoop of the week and no more worrying what the last court case judgement will be.

For David and Linda Orams it is now ‘business as usual’ of hobbies, family and friends and allowing the legal beagles to get on with planning as to whether there are more doors to open, or windows to crawl through to create a fairer balance on what turned out to be a bit of a fiasco – one that according to some of the Powers that Be should never have happened.

People such as Rauf Denktash, being an ex lawyer, has ideas on how it could have been handled, but he, like many others, accepts that the court cases are now history, whilst re-iterating that the Cyprus property problems should NEVER be settled via individual court cases. There are many other possible avenues which could have meant gain for everyone concerned both sides of the Green line, and hopefully this could still be the case. For now, however, David and Linda Orams have become almost world famous for their five year legal battle which cost an inordinate sum of money (in the region of one and a half million pounds, sterling – which sum could have paid a lot of compensation to a lot of people!), but realise that they have not reached the absolute end of the road.

Many rumours and rumours of rumours have been flying around and enough ‘hot air’ to raise the overall temperature of Northern Cyprus by at least two degrees and an inordinate number of people seem to have been privy to the thinking of the Orams when quite often the Orams did not know of the very thing of which the substance of the rumours was based.

So what, we all wonder, is THE truth of the situation? Most of it is contained in the various Press Statements the Orams have themselves made, such statements being guided by their legal representatives to ensure that only truth is told.

To summarise that truth. The case was ‘lost’ in the London Courts, giving Mr Apostolides a resounding ‘win’ (although one can read various articles that indicate that it is a victory that could ricochet back , shooting the Greek Cypriots in the foot), and orders that the Orams demolish the property and pay back rent and compensation to Mr Apostolides.

One of the last things that the Orams said before returning to U.K was, ‘We have complied with the order as much as we are able.’ They have emptied the property of all their personal possession, applied to the Government for an order to demolish the property, and now wait. It was stated in London that such an order would be denied, but the courts insisted that the Orams went down that path. The request was filed about 10 days ago and will have to be sent to the appropriate ministry, when a decision will be given.

What happens thereafter remains to be interesting, but unknown. The Orams legal team, the Government here, and organisations such as Embargoed! in London, and The Association of Turkish Cypriots abroad are working hard to make known the true history of Cyprus; the history of property issues, dating back to the 1950’s and 60’s, trying to ensure that all necessary organisations people such as MEP’s, the E.U. itself, even across the Atlantic to the USA are not only aware, but that all will agree as to the proper way forward to ensure that there are not hundreds of other ‘Orams’ in the pipeline. This would be a truly ‘no win’ situation for anyone on the island.

Meanwhile, the negotiations between the two leaders are continuing, with property remaining as one of the more difficult aspects to resolve. There are a group of women meeting each Saturday morning at Ledra Street to show their support of the negotiations and sharing slogans such as ‘Cyprus is my future – I will fight for a solution’ and expressing concerns that ‘If there is no solution, there is no work; no food.’

The Orams have been a pawn in a property game, and often state they feel they have been ‘chosen’ as possibly being strong enough to carry the burden which is not only theirs, but the burden of the many thousands of property owners who are looking to a fair solution to the Orams case before being the next victim.

Anyone hearing more rumours should really try to check with the source as to whether it is true, as the Orams themselves have been amazed at the things they are reported to have both said and done. However, the one thing that is no rumour is the gratitude of David and Linda to all those who have shown their love, support and encouragement.

That gratitude is very much a part of their lives as they enter the next phase of being of ‘normality’ but with the very definite cry of ‘Cyprus has not seen the last of us!’
© 2010 Marie ‘B  (Marion Stuart)