NICOSIA – Cyprus’ Communist party is upset that shipowners who bring their operations will be exempt from military service, as will their children.

AKEL Communist party Member of Parliament Irini Charalambidou asked Defence Minister Savvas Angelides in a letter if the public interest is being served by Attorney-General Costas Clerides after the Council of Ministers decided on the exemption, the Cyprus Mail reported.

ministers’ decided to exempt shipowners and their children from military service if they bring their
The decision to grant exemptions to Cypriot shipowners and their children living abroad from the obligation to perform military duty was taken in 2015, and recently reconfirmed.

But it only applies if shipowners transfer their headquarters and economic activities to Cyprus, with the government arguing it would attract foreign investment but AKEL and the Citizens Alliance said the decision was “provocative and unacceptable.”

The Ministry of Defence hasn’t release the number of exemptions granted so far for shipowners and their children, but unofficial reports suggest that there have been very few, the paper said.