Greek Cypriot party asks: delay referenda

NICOSIA, Cyprus, April 10 (UPI) -- The biggest Greek-Cypriot party, AKEL, Saturday called for a postponement of referenda on a proposed settlement of the dispute that has torn the island.

The 9,000-page proposal, presented by United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan, calls for a loose confederation among the Greeks and the Turks there.

The referenda, on both sides of the island, are scheduled for April 24.

The left wing AKEL, which is the senior partner in the Greek-Cypriot cabinet, said the vote should be postponed to allow for "objective presentation of the plan to the Cypriot people and for negotiations aiming at filling the gaps existing in the plan," the Cyprus News Agency reported.

Party General Secretary Demetris Christofias said most Greek-Cypriots share a sense of insecurity because of the "long presence of the (Turkish) occupation forces and the de facto partition, or are cultivated by certain circles."

The center-right Democratic Party (DIKO), and the social democratic EDEK coalition party, also decided to oppose Annan's plan, CNA reported.