Cypriot President TassosPapadopoulos pledged here Saturday that he would continue hiseffort to reunify the island following the referenda.

In a statement after receiving the official results of thereferenda, Papadopoulos said the result of today's referendum inthe Greek Cypriot community, which rejected a UN plan for a Cyprussettlement, should act as a catalyst for unification and not as apretext for further division.

He assured the Turkish Cypriots that he would remain focused ona solution of a bizonal, bicommunal federation, noting that hewould be announcing new measures to support the Turkish Cypriotsand allow them, as far as possible, to participate in the benefitswhich will be brought by Cyprus' accession to the European Union.

The people of Cyprus, having full and objective informationabout the Annan plan, are faithful to their democratic traditionsand freely exercised their right, Papadopoulos said, adding thatwhoever has been following the course towards the referendum "dismisses as unfounded the allegations about intervention andmisinformation of the citizens."

"The people of Cyprus, with a full sense of their historicalresponsibility regarding their future and their duty to safeguardthe implementation of a functional and viable settlement for futuregenerations, did not accept the proposed solution plan. The will of the people should not be misinterpreted by anyone," the Presidentdeclared.

He held that people did not say no to the solution and they saidno to this particular plan.

"We want the reunification of Cyprus and the two communities in conditions of security, with human rights and fundamental freedoms safeguarded," he said.

Papadopoulos underlined that the non acceptance of the Annan plan is not the end of the road.   There will be a continuation and there will necessarily be new prospects and new possibilities, he said.

The president said that on May 1 the Republic of Cyprus will officially be joining the European Union.   "Our accession opens new horizons and new prospects. We will utilise them constructively to achieve a solution, which Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots will be able to embrace warmly, because it will guarantee everyone's rights and will seal their common future permanently," he added.

A total of 623,801 voters -- 480,165 Greek Cypriots and 143,636Turkish Cypriots -- voted on the plan drawn up by UN Secretary General Kofi Annan to try to end 30 years of division on the island.

The Annan plan is now null and void following the rejection of the Greek Cypriots though it was approved by nearly 65 percent of the voters in northern Cyprus.

Only the Greek Cypriot side of the island will join the European Union on May 1.   Cyprus, an east Mediterranean island, has been divided into the Turkish-Cypriot north and the Greek-Cypriot south since 1974 when Turkish troops entered the north of the island after a failed Greek-Cypriot coup seeking union with Greece.

Source: Xinhua