Strong controversy has been raised over the planned Queen’s Platinum Jubilee charity concert at the ancient Kourion Amphitheatre in Limassol on June 2 organized by the British Bases.
A local charity headed by ruling Disy MEP Loukas Fourlas has described celebrating the platinum jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II in Cyprus – a former colony whose independence was marked with blood – as quite insensitive.
Queen Elizabeth II was the one to sign the death sentence by hanging of nine young Cypriots who were anti-colonial rule fighters back in the late 50s. Some of them were teenagers at the time.
The organisers announced that concert proceeds will be donated to two Cypriot children’s cancer charities, Little Heroes and One Dream One Wish and one British charity, which supports service families, SSAFA.
But Fourlas has said their charity which focuses on young children with cancer were never asked whether they wanted to be part of the jubilee celebration.
The other charity, ’Make a Wish’, said the donation was welcomed since charity is charity.
The concert is also meant to celebrate the friendship and partnership between the UK and Cyprus, a Commonwealth country, according to the organisers.