Welcome to today’s meeting hosted by our party. The purpose of today’s agenda is not to discuss the constitution of the Republic of Cyprus in full. It is not about power sharing, or the bilingualism of the republic and the problems that exist in practice in relation to such issues! We are aware of the difficulties in implementing certain elements of the Constitution under today’s conditions. 14 months ago, our party hosted the meeting held on February 28, 2024. We had discussed a similar topic that day.
Our topic was “Why has there been no solution to the Cyprus problem for 60 years? Could President Christodoulides’s support package for Turkish Cypriots, which concerns daily life, contribute to the 60 year deadlock?” Our agenda today will be almost the same but a little more comprehensive. Why do we care so much about this issue? Because this issue is a topic that directly affects the individual lives of our people and citizens. Because while our innocent citizens are being blamed for the imperialist policies implemented by imperialist powers that want to use our country for their own interests, the collaborators of the imperialists, the real traitors, that is, traitors who betrayed both their own society and this country, are still considered ‘national heroes.’ It is time to put an end to this injustice.
The Republic of Cyprus was established as a bi-communal state. There are two basic elements, two communities that constitute the Republic. One of these communities is the Greek Cypriot community, the other is the Turkish Cypriot community.
Greek and Turkish are official languages of the republic. The President and Vice President of the Republic of Cyprus represent this bilingual, bi-communal character of Cyprus.
The Constitution of the Republic of Cyprus is the guarantee of the bi-communal character of the Republic of Cyprus, its indivisibility, and its inability to be connected to another state.
Yes, all these are facts stipulated by the Constitution of the Republic of Cyprus (1960).
Despite this, how could both the President and the Vice President, could act as if they represented the community they ethnically belonged and as an enemy of the other major community, within a period shorter than 3 years(December 1963)? Because, in fact, neither the President nor the Vice President were representatives of the communities they belonged to, but in effect collaborators of the Anglo American imperialism!
How did it happen that the Vice President, the Turkish Cypriot members of the Council of Ministers and the House of Representatives left their offices, although they were considered as “equal” partners of the Republic of Cyprus?
How did it happen that the President, the Greek Cypriot members of the Council of Ministers and the House of Representatives started to act as if they alone represented the entire Republic of Cyprus?
How did it happen that the President could only act as the President of the Greek Cypriot community, “forgetting” that he is the equal president of both communities.
And these facts are still valid to this day without being questioned enough.
Today, these violations of the constitution are continuing. The bourgeois leaders of both communities continue to violate the Constitution of Republic of Cyprus. While the Turkish Cypriot bourgeois leaders see no harm in violating the “bi-communality”, “private property rights”, “indivisibility of the republic” and many other articles of the Constitution of the Republic of Cyprus, the Greek Cypriot bourgeois leaders are also violating the principles of “bi-communality”, “that the president represents both communities”, “bilingualism of the republic”, “citizenship rights” and a series of other social and individual rights granted by the constitution of the Republic of Cyprus.
The Greek Cypriot bourgeois leadership, which is currently governing
the Republic of Cyprus on its own, uses some of the social and
individual rights, clearly defined by the constitution of the Republic,
especially the “bi-communality,” “property” and “citizenship rights,”
as elements to use for bargaining during intercommunal
negotiations.
Neither the Turkish Cypriot bourgeois leaders nor the Greek Cypriot bourgeois leaders are in favour of an independent and joint bi-communal administration of Cyprus and have never been in favour of it.
While the Turkish Cypriot bourgeois leaders do not hesitate for a second to surrender the rights and interests of the Turkish Cypriot community on the island to the Republic of Turkey, the Greek Cypriot bourgeois leaders are working hard to spread their dominance over the entire island.
These facts, show us, before all, that the bourgeoisie today , have no such problem as independence and they have no such problem as the two communities coexisting and governing the country together.
While some think that the problem stems from the solution model and say, “the only solution is to return to the Republic of Cyprus, looking for another solution is a futile effort!”, others say, “the only solution is a federation to be achieved through negotiations under the supervision of the UN, including the leadership of the two communities and the guarantors! Looking for another solution is a futile effort!” Some say, “there can be no solution other than a two-state solution.” The main reason why the “inter-communal talks” that started in 1968 have not yielded any results despite more than half a century passing is the greatest indicator of these characters of both the Greek Cypriot bourgeoisie and the Turkish Cypriot bourgeoisie.
At this point, one of the facts that guarantees the continuation and strengthening of the status quo in the Cyprus problem is the discriminative attitude of the Greek Cypriot bourgeoisie, who rules the republic on their own, towards the Turkish Cypriot citizens of the republic. After 1974, the Turkish Cypriots were forced to live in the occupied north of our island. Many of you think that the Turkish Cypriots voluntarily chose to live in the occupied area. This is not true. In the summer of 1974, ethnic cleansing took place on our island in accordance with Anglo-American NATO plans. The Greek Cypriots were expelled from the north of our island, and the Turkish Cypriots from the south of our island through pressure, threats, massacres and violent practices. Today, along with Turkish Cypriots, there are a small number of Maronites in Northern Cyprus and Greek Cypriots in Karpas peninsula. For the Greek Cypriot bourgeoisie that dominates the Republic of Cyprus, the Maronites and Greek Cypriots in Karpas peninsula are enclaved citizens of the republic. Turkish Cypriots are the enemies of the republic. If they had accepted all of us as equal citizens of the republic, they would have treated the Turkish Cypriots equally as ‘enclaved Cypriots’. However, the Turkish Cypriots are being punished as if they were responsible for the division of Cyprus.
After the 1974 Turkish invasion, the Turkish Cypriot community was deprived of their social rights determined by the constitution of the Republic of Cyprus by Turkey. The Greek Cypriot rulers also usurped their individual rights in the Republic of Cyprus, which they governed alone under the law of necessity. Today’s Republic of Cyprus is an apartheid state that applies the constitution and laws of the republic in accordance with the ethnic origins of its citizens!
Just to mention some examples; while the foreign spouse of a Greek Cypriot can become a citizen of the Republic of Cyprus, this right is denied to the foreign spouse of a Turkish Cypriot. According to our constitution and laws, a person one of whose parents is a citizen of the Republic of Cyprus is a natural citizen of the Republic of Cyprus. This law applies to the children born to a Greek Cypriot by a foreign spouse. However, this legal right does not apply to Turkish Cypriots. Even if a child born to a Turkish Cypriot from a foreign spouse is born in the ‘free’ areas of Cyprus, their citizenship rights are denied by the Republic of Cyprus. This practice recently has also been applied to children born to Greek Cypriots with spouses from third countries. In other words, if a Greek Cypriot has a child with an EU citizen, that child is granted citizenship. However, the Cypriot citizenship of a child born to an Asian, Middle Eastern, Latin American or African is denied. Because the Greek Cypriot leadership is concerned that this will set a precedent and will contradict the illegal practices carried out against Turkish Cypriots. Thousands of families are devastated and victimized for this reason. All of this is done with fictitious decisions and decrees. The most serious fact here is that, Turkey transported a certain number of population to the north of Cyprus in 1975/6 and later as agricultural labour. The children of Turkish Cypriots who married people from this population were granted citizenship rights until 2007. In 2007, some criteria were introduced to limit the citizenship of children born from mixed marriages with the population of Turkish settlers. According to these criteria, citizenship was supposedly limited to those born from mixed marriages before 1974 or mixed marriages abroad. However, a lot of water had passed under the bridge since then! 33 years had passed since the occupation and the children born to marriages with settlers had already become citizens of the republic! The practice after 2007 is therefore completely unjust and unfair. Turkish Cypriots cannot be blamed for having to live together with the settlers in Northern Cyprus, where they were forced to move under oppression, violence, and ethnic cleansing operations. There is nothing more natural than the development of loving relationships between people while living together. Just like the marriages of Greek Cypriots with Greeks before 1974, Turkish Cypriots marrying Turkish people was also a common occurrence before 1974. It is natural for us to witness such mixed marriages in an environment where people live together. No individual can be blamed for this. Moreover, there are also, Greek Cypriots who developed loving relationships with the settlers from Turkey and marry them. Their spouses and children with the settlers were made citizens. However, the Turkish Cypriot citizens of the republic have been deprived of this right since 2007. The justification that these children were not made citizens because their parents entered Cyprus through illegal ports is inconsistent and absurd. Was there another way for Turkish Cypriots to go abroad, to enter and exit the country from 1974 to 2003? Could they use the ports under the control of the republic? Wasn’t their only option the occupied Timbu (Ercan), Famagusta and Kyrenia ports? Today, Ercan airport, Famagusta and Kyrenia ports are used by all the EU citizens and Greek Cypriots. If we were to visit Ercan airport right now, we would see dozens of cars with Republic of Cyprus license plates in the parking lot! Another excuse of the Greek Cypriot rulers is to maintain the population balance on the island! In 1974, it was said that the total population of Cyprus was around 600 thousand. Of this, 480 thousand were Greek Cypriots and 120 thousand were Turkish Cypriots. We believe that the estimated Turkish Cypriot population at the time was around 100 thousand!
Today, if we consider the Turkish Cypriot population as those who received an identity card from the Republic of Cyprus, and the figures are in the hands of the government of the Republic of Cyprus, according to the information we have obtained, this figure is around 110 thousand. However, this figure also includes a significant number living abroad. In addition, most of those who died have not decreased from the population. However, the population of Greek Cypriots is close to 750 thousand. In other words, while the population of the Greek Cypriot community has increased by approximately 50 percent since 1974, the population of Turkish Cypriots is stagnating and even declining. Meanwhile, nearly 30 thousand Turkish Cypriots born from mixed marriages are being denied citizenship by the governments of The Republic, on the grounds that this will disrupt the population balance. This situation is unacceptable. It is not the Turkish Cypriots who disrupt the population balance, but the population that Turkey has brought to Cyprus. These are not citizens of Cyprus. They are citizens of the illegal TRNC, which has no international validity.
This population is being used to assimilate the Turkish Cypriots, transform their cultural structures, and adapt them to the Turkish-Islamic synthesis. Indeed, in recent weeks, we have all witnessed the mass resistance and struggle of the Turkish Cypriots, both right-wing and left-wing, against the efforts of the Tayyip Erdoğan Government to introduce political Islam into the Turkish Cypriot society. The Greek Cypriot rulers are so inconsistent on this issue that, while rejecting the Cypriot identity of the children born from mixed marriages of Turkish Cypriots, they did not oppose the voting of the settlers from Turkey, the population that is not a citizen of the Republic of Cyprus, in the Annan Plan referendum, where the future of Cyprus would be determined. They did not even make an objection. In fact, they promised to grant citizenship to this population in the Federal Republic of Cyprus in the Annan plan. But they refuse to grant the citizenship that Turkish Cypriots have the right for their children.
The Greek Cypriot rulers are openly violating the constitution of the Republic of Cyprus. With these practices, they are pushing the Turkish Cypriot community into the arms of Ankara and are dealing a heavy blow to the struggle for peace and solution in Cyprus. Obviously their goal is to prevent a solution to the Cyprus problem, protect and strengthen the status quo! There is no other logical explanation of this policy.
The Turkish Cypriots have sought their rights in the courts of the Republic of Cyprus in the face of this injustice, but the Supreme Constitutional Court has also rejected and denied their constitutional rights. In this case, they have applied to the European Court of Human Rights as a last resort. As the Socialist Party of Cyprus, we call on all parties here, especially the parties within the Greek Cypriot community, and invite them to fight against this injustice and end as soon as possible the victimization of thousands of families!
The problem is not only the identity issue. There are other problems as well. The marriages of Turkish Cypriots are not considered legitimate. The children born are treated as illegitimate births. Since their marriages are not considered legitimate, the spouses of deceased Turkish Cypriots registered with the social insurance are not paid their pensions allowances. There is a usurpation and robbery carried out by the state. There is a property issue. The real estates of Turkish Cypriots who were forced to migrate from Southern Cyprus to the North through oppression and violence are being used arbitrarily by the Turkish property guardianship. It is no secret that
numerous corruptions and abuses are taking place over these properties. The compensation for expropriated and occupied lands is not being paid! There is a rule that property will be returned provided that the owner remains under the control of the Republic for 6 months. However it is not being implemented. A property compensation commission has been established in the North,
which works, albeit slowly, in line with EU recommendations. There is no such formation in the regions under the control of the Republic. The government refuses to implement the decisions taken by the Cypriot courts in favour of the Turkish Cypriots. There are obstacles and many individual problems in free trade, in opening accounts in banks, in registering employees with social security, and in many other areas. The Greek Cypriot rulers are clearly violating the constitution of the republic. With these practices, they are pushing the Turkish Cypriot community into the arms of Ankara and dealing a heavy blow to the struggle for peace and solution in Cyprus. This attitude serves no purpose other than strengthening the status quo that exists in our country.
The Turkish Cypriots have sought justice in the courts of the Republic of Cyprus in the face of this injustice, but even the Supreme Constitutional Court has rejected and denied their constitutional rights. In this case, they have applied to the European Court of Human Rights as a last resort, especially for their identity rights.
Today, thousands of Turkish Cypriots are stateless. As the Socialist Party of Cyprus, we call on all parties here, especially the parties within the Greek Cypriot community, and invite them to struggle to end such injustices as soon as possible and to end the victimization of thousands of Cypriot families.
The main reason why the Cyprus problem has continued for more than half a century and a solution has not been found is not because of the solution model, but because of the bourgeois character of the leadership of both communities and the administrators of all other states involved in the problem. They, like the bourgeois of Cyprus, have no concern for a peaceful Cyprus. The only class that can carry these concerns is the working class.
The bourgeoisie of both communities have divided and fragmented the people of Cyprus, made our people fight each other. and divided our island.
The workers and labourers of both communities are the only power that can reunite the people of Cyprus, put an end to the wars and reunite our island!
