Government
Cyprus is an independent Republic with a presidential system of government. Under the 1960 Constitution, executive power is exercised by the President of the Republic, elected by universal suffrage for a five-year term of office. The President exercises executive power through a Council of Ministers appointed by him. Ministers may be chosen from outside the House of Representatives.
Cyprus is a member of the E.U, United Nations and U.N. Agencies. It is also a member of the Council of Europe, the Commonwealth, the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe and many other international Organisations.
Legislature
The legislative authority in the Republic is exercised by the House of Representatives now consisting of eighty members (56 of whom are to be Greek Cypriots and 24 Turkish Cypriots) elected by universal suffrage for a five-year term. At the time of its establishment, the House consisted of 50 members, 35 of whom were to be Greek Cypriots and 15 Turkish Cypriots. According to the constitution the ratio is 70% Greek Cypriots and 30% Turkish Cypriots. Following the withdrawal of the Turkish Cypriot members, the House has been functioning only with the Greek Cypriot members.
Judiciary
The administration of justice is exercised by the island’s separate and independent Judiciary. Under the 1960 Constitution and other legislation in force, the following judicial institutions have been established: The Supreme Court of the Republic, The Assize Courts, District Courts, Military Court, Industrial Disputes Court, Rent Control Courts and Familiy Courts. The Supreme Courts is the final appellate court in the Republic and the final adjudicator in matters of constitutional and administrative law.
Political Background
In July 1974, Turkey, using as a pretext the criminal coup against President Makarios, invaded Cyprus in violation of the UN Charter and all principles governing international relations. As a result 36,7% of the island was occupied, 162.000 Greek Cypriots - about a quarter of the population - who were forcibly expelled from this area, became refugees in their own country and are still deprived of the right to return to their homes and properties. In addition about 1.479 Greek Cypriots are still missing. The blow was heavy. Byzantine churches, monuments and antiquities were destroyed or looted and many items were smuggled abroad. Sadly, the island’s cultural heritage that reaches back to the 7th millenium B.C. and is part of the common heritage of mankind, continues to this day to be systematically and deliberately destroyed in the occupied areas.
Moreover, about 119.000 (2003) settlers from Turkey have been transplanted illegally to the occupied part of Cyprus and given properties usurped from the expelled Greek Cypriots. At the same time Turkish Cypriots have been emigrating in large numbers, resulting in diminishing the size of the Turkish Cypriot community in the occupied part. All this, coupled with a strong military presence in the occupied areas (estimated at 40 000 Turkish troops) and an attempt to change the place names of villages and towns into Turkish ones, is clear evidence that Turkey is turning the occupied part of Cyprus into a Turkish province.
A series of UN General Assembly and Security Council resolutions condemned the invasion of Cyprus and occupation, demanded the return of the refugees to their homes in safety and the tracing of the missing persons and called for respect of the human rights of all Cypriots. Moreover, the European Commission of Human Rights found the Government of Turkey guilty of gross violations of human rights in Cyprus during and after the invasion.
In November 1983 Turkey instigated the announcement by the Turkish Cypriot leadership of “an independent state” in occupied Cyprus. The international community through UN Security Council Resolutions 541 of 1983 and 550 of 1984 condemned this unilateral declaration by the Turkish side, declared it both illegal and invalid, and called for the immediate withdrawal of the declaration. The opinion of the international community was ignored by Turkey but no other country has recognized the illegal regime.
Efforts to Reach a Solution
Negotiations for the solution of the Cyprus problem have been going on intermittently since 1975 under the auspices of the United Nations.
Progress in the talks has invariably been obstructed by Turkish intransigence. In December 1999 the UN embarked on yet another effort to secure a settlement on Cyprus through proximity talks which would take full consideration of relevant UN resolutions and treaties. After an interruption of over one year, direct talks were launched on 16 January, 2002 between the then President of the Republic Glafcos Clerides, as the representative of the Greek Cypriot community, and the Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktash.
In an effort to move the process forward the UN Secretary-General presented, on 11 November, a detailed plan for a comprehensive settlement. The plan was re-submitted twice in revised form on 10 December and on 26 February, 2003. The leaders of the two communities were asked to meet the UN Secretary-General in The Hague on 10 March, 2003 for talks and to agree to put the plan to separate referenda. The Turkish Cypriot leader, however, with the support, once again, of the Government of Turkey, rejected the plan outright, leading the talks in The Hague to collapse. On 4 February, 2004 the UN Secretary-General called for the resumption of negotiations in New York and on 13 February it was agreed that the two sides would begin negotiating in good faith on the basis of the Secretary-General's plan, seeking to agree on changes that fell within the parameters of the plan.
On 24 April, 2004 the people of Cyprus were asked to approve or reject, through separate, simultaneous referenda held by the two communities, the UN Secretary-General's revised proposal for the Comprehensive Settlement of the Cyprus Problem. By a vote of 64,9% the Turkish Cypriots approved the plan, but a clear majority of 75,8% of Greek Cypriots rejected it. The Greek Cypriots felt the finalised text was not balanced and did not meet their main concerns regarding security and the functionality and viability of the solution. By their vote the Greek Cypriots did not reject the solution to the Cyprus problem which remains their primary goal. They only rejected the particular plan (Annan V) which was put before them.
Greek Cypriot concerns largely centre around some serious shortcomings of the Annan Plan which did not provide for:
* The removal of foreign troops from Cyprus and the elimination of the right of foreign powers to unilaterally intervene in Cyprus;
* Adequate guarantees to ensure that the commitments undertaken by the parties involved would be carried out;
* A property recovery system that appropriately recognised the rights and interests of displaced Greek Cypriots who were forced from their homes in 1974, and a property compensation arrangement that did not require Greek Cypriots to fund their own restitution;
* The right of all Cypriots to acquire property and to live wherever they chose without restrictive quotas; and
* A functional government without deadlocks or voting restrictions based on ethnicity.
On May 1, 2004 the republic of Cyprus became a full member of the EU completing a long journey that lasted more than three decades. The President of Cyprus, along with the other EU leaders signed in Rome, on October 29, 2004, the Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe. The Government of Cyprus is committed to seeking a solution of the Cyprus problem which will allow Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots alike, to fully enjoy the benefits and advantages of European Union membership. A settlement must allow Cyprus to function effectively within the EU and must ensure respect for the human rights and fundamental freedoms of all Cypriots as well as a peaceful, prosperous and secure future for all the citizens of the island.
In view of this, the government has been working systematically towards creating the necessary ocnditions for substantial and constructive negotiations which will in turn lead to an agreed solution to the Cyprus problem, within the new context created by the accession of Cyprus to the European Union.
Source: http://www.visitcyprus.org.cy
