Northern Cyprus

Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus Kuzey Kıbrıs Türk Cumhuriyeti
Flag Coat of arms of Northern Cyprus Coat of arms
Anthem: İstiklâl Marşı  (Turkish) Independence March
Capital	Lefkoşa (Nicosia)
Official languages	Turkish
Government	Representative democratic republic1
• President	Mehmet Ali Talat
• Prime Minister	Ferdi Sabit Soyer
Sovereignty (de facto)  from Cyprus
• Proclaimed	November 15 1983
• Recognition	Only by Turkey
• Water (%)	2.7
Population
• 20062 census	264,172
GDP (PPP)	2005 estimate
• Total	$2 billion (not ranked)
• Per capita	$16,900 (2004) (not ranked)
Currency	New Turkish Lira (TRY)
Time zone	UTC+2 (EET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+3 (EEST)
Calling code	90-392
Internet TLD	.nc.tr
Freedomhouse.org Country Report The press statement of Prime Minister Ferdi Sabit Soyer on the tentative results of 2006 population and housing census (5 May 2006) Nüfus ve Konut Sayimi.

The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) (Turkish: Kuzey Kıbrıs Türk Cumhuriyeti) (KKTC) is a political entity located in northern Cyprus within the internationally recognised borders of the Republic of Cyprus. The TRNC declared its independence in 1983, nine years after the Turkish invasion of Cyprus following a Greek Cypriot coup that was backed by the Athens Junta against the President of Cyprus. It is dependent on and recognized only by Turkey. The United Nations recognizes the de jure sovereignty of the Republic of Cyprus over the whole island.

From the tip of the Karpass Peninsula (Cape Apostolos Andreas) in the northeast, the TRNC extends westward to Morphou Bay and Cape Kormakitis (the Kokkina/Erenköy exclave marks the westernmost extent of the TRNC), and southward to the village of Louroujina/Akıncılar. The territory between the TRNC and the area under the effective control of the Republic of Cyprus is separated by a United Nations-controlled buffer zone.

History

Main article: Cyprus Intercommunal violence

Founder, and former President, Rauf Denktaş

The Constitution of Cyprus, while establishing an Independent and sovereign Republic, was, in the words of de Smith, an authority on Constitutional Law; "Unique in its tortuous complexity and in the multiplicity of the safeguards that it provides for the principal minority; the Constitution of Cyprus stands alone among the constitutions of the world".

In 1963 President Makarios proposed changes to the constitution via thirteen amendments, an unconstitutional act itself according to David Hannay. Turkey and the Turkish Cypriots rejected the proposed amendments as an attempt to settle many of the constitutional disputes in the Greek Cypriots' favor and as a means of demoting the Turks' status as co-founders of the state to one of minority status, removing their constitutional safeguards in the process. The President believed the amendments necessary, "to resolve constitutional deadlocks".

On 21 December 1963, a Turkish Cypriot crowd clashed with the plainclothes special constables of Yorgadjis. Almost immediately an organised attack by Greek Cypriot paramilitaries was launched upon Turkish Cypriots in Nicosia and Larnaca. Though the TMT-now charged with defending the Turkish Cypriots- committed a number of acts of retaliation, the historian Keith Kyle notes “there is no doubt that the main victims of the numerous incidents that took place during the next few months were Turks”. 700 Turkish hostages, including women and children, were taken from the northern suburbs of Nicosia. Nikos Sampson led a group of Greek Cypriot irregulars into the mixed suburb of Omorphita and massacred the Turkish Cypriot population indiscriminately. . By 1964, 193 Turkish Cypriots and 133 Greek Cypriots were killed, with a further 209 Turks and 41 Greeks missing, presumed dead.

Turkish Cypriots members of government had by now withdrawn, creating an essentially Greek Cypriot administration in control of all institutions of the state. Widespread looting of Turkish Cypriot villages led to twenty thousand refugees retreating into armed enclaves which remained for 11 years, relying on food and medical supplies from Turkey to survive. Turkish Cypriots thus formed paramilitary groups to defend the enclaves, leading to a gradual division of the island's communities into two hostile camps. Approximately 20,000 Turkish Cypriots fled their homes and villages to live in enclaves with many of their abandoned villages and homes looted. . As Professor Clement Dodd notes, “They had, of necessity, to relocate themselves in about 3 per cent of the land they owned, estimated at about 34 per cent of Cyprus. Many left the country in those years to seek a living in Britain, Australia and Turkey, and elsewhere, with active encouragement by Greek Cypriots.” .

File:Selimiye mosgue.jpg

Close-up on detail in Selimiye Mosque in Lefkoşa

On 15 July 1974, the Greek military junta of 1967-1974 backed a Greek Cypriot military coup d'état in Cyprus. President Makarios was removed from office and Nikos Sampson, a former EOKA fighter and a member of the Parliament, became president. Turkey claimed that under the 1960 Treaty of Guarantee the coup was sufficient reason for military action and thus Turkey invaded Cyprus on 20 July 1974. Turkey's position was that such intervention was necessary to protect the Turkish Cypriot populace. The coup failed and Makarios returned to Cyprus. Turkish forces proceeded to take over about 37% of the island, causing large numbers of Greek Cypriots to abandon their homes. Approximately 160,000 Greek Cypriots fled to the south of the island, while 50,000 Turkish Cypriots fled north. Approximately 1500 Greek Cypriot and 500 Turkish Cypriots remain missing.

In 1975 the "Turkish Federated State of North Cyprus" was declared as a first step towards a future federated Cypriot state, that would guarantee the political equality of both communities. The move was rejected by the Republic of Cyprus, by the UN, and by the international community. After eight years of failed negotiations with the leadership of the Greek Cypriot community, the north declared its independence on 15 November 1983 under the name of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. The UDI of the TRNC was rejected by the UN and the Republic of Cyprus.

In recent years the politics of reunification has dominated the islands affairs. It was hoped European Union accession would act as a catalyst towards a settlement. In 2004 a United Nations brokered peace settlement was put to a referendum on both sides, with Turkish Cypriots accepting and Greek Cypriots rejecting it, the result being the entry of a divided island into Europe. The long serving Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktas had resigned in wake of the vote, ushering in the pro-solutionist Mehmet Ali Talat as President.

See also: History of Cyprus, Cyprus under the Ottoman Empire, Cyprus dispute, and Operation Atilla

Government and politics

Main articles: Politics of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus and Constitution of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus

File:Ma talat.jpg

Mehmet Ali Talat - Current President of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus

Politics of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus takes place in a framework of a semi-presidential representative democratic republic, whereby the President is head of state and the Prime Minister head of government, and of a pluriform multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the Assembly of the Republic. The Judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislature.

The president is elected for a five-year term. The current president is Mehmet Ali Talat who won the presidential elections on April 17, 2005. The legislature is the Assembly of the Republic, which has 50 members elected by proportional representation from five electoral districts. In the elections of February 2005, the Republican Turkish Party, which favours a peace settlement and the reunification of Cyprus, retained its position as the largest parliamentary party, but failed to win an overall majority.

International status and foreign relations

Main article: Foreign relations of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus

The international community, with the exception of Turkey, does not recognise the TRNC as a sovereign state, but recognises the de jure sovereignty of the Republic of Cyprus over the whole island. The United Nations considers the declaration of independence by the TRNC as legally invalid in several of its resolutions. (Note: the Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic, an exclave of Azerbaijan, does regard the TRNC as sovereign, while the state of Azerbaijan officially has not followed suit). The Organization of the Islamic Conference gives the TRNC the status of a constituent state, and it is an observer member of this organization. Pakistan and Gambia have arguably expressed gestures towards recognition, but have not formally recognized, the TNRC.

London office of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, Bedford Square.

Since the April 2004 referendum on the United Nations Annan Plan, the attitude of the international community towards the TRNC has begun to change.. EU foreign ministers agreed to give the TRNC 259 million euros in aid, but this was subsequently blocked by the Republic of Cyprus which argued that the Turkish Cypriots wanted to bypass the internationally recognised Cypriot government and receive the money directly. The result was for half of the money so far to be lost. A number of high profile formal meetings have also taken place between President Mehmet Ali Talat and various foreign leaders and politicians including US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, British foreign minister Jack Straw, Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf.

Legally, however, the European Union continues to consider the area not under effective control of the Republic of Cyprus as EU territory with a disputed Turkish military presence and thus indefinitely exempt from EU legislation until a settlement has been reached. While certain outlying regions of the EU can and do obtain exemptions from EU law, Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus is the only part of the Union where such laws are not enforceable. The number of seats assigned to Cyprus in the European Parliament (six seats) is based on the population of the entire island as Turkish Cypriots are considered by the EU as citizens of the Republic of Cyprus. Despite the fact that the Turkish Cypriot residents of Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus —and possibly some of the naturalised Anatolian Turks— are EU citizens, fewer than expected Northerners voted in the 2004 elections. There is no support for admitting two Cypriot member states into the EU, as long as the Cyprus dispute is not solved. The status of TRNC has become a recurrent issue especially during the recent talks for membership of the EU. Most members of the EU consider the status of Northern Cyprus as a major stumbling block in Turkey's long road to membership.

Military

Main article: Military of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus

The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus has a 2,000 man Defense Force which is primarily made up of conscripted Turkish Cypriot males between the ages of 18 and 40. This force supplements the 40,000 strong Turkish Army force, which includes the XI Corps with two divisions, which is stationed on the island, despite the fact that major organisations such as the United Nations have repeatedly expressed opposition to the presence of Turkish Army.

Since the area is under dispute, the Turkish military presence in Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus is seen differently by the communities on the island. The Greek population sees it as an occupational force, while the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus citizens see it as a protection force.

Administrative divisions

Administratively, Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus is divided into five counties, namely:

• Nicosia (Turkish: Lefkoşa)
• Famagusta (Mağusa)
• Kyrenia (Girne)
• Morphou (Güzelyurt)
• Trikomo (İskele)

Geography and climate

Detailed map of Northern Cyprus

The climate of the island is of an extreme Mediterranean type with very hot dry summers and relatively cold winters. Most of the rainfall is concentrated between December and January.

The climate of the coastal parts is less extreme than farther inland, due to the fact that the effect of the sea jon atmospheric humidities is always present there. The sea temperature itself never falls below 16ºC. (January and February); in August it can rise to 28 ºC.

Spring and autumn are short, typified by changeable weather, with occasional heavy storms battering the coast in spring and a westerly wind, called "meltem" carrying the influence of Atlantic depressions to this far eastern end of the Mediterranean.

From mid-May to mid-September the sun shines on a daily average of around 11 hours. Temperatures can reach 40º C. On the Mesaoria Plain, although lower on the coasts, with a north-westerly breeze called "Poyraz" prevailing. The skies are cloudless with a low humidity, 40 - 60 per cent, thus the high temperatures are easier to bear. The hot, dry, dust-laden sirocco wind blowing from Africa also finds its way to the island.

Short-lived stormy conditions resulting from fairly frequent small depressions prevail throughout the winter, with 60 per cent of rain falling between December and February. The Northern Range receives around 550 mm of rain per year, whereas the Mesaoria Plain receives only around 300-400 mm.

Frost and snow are almost unknown in Northern Cyprus, although night temperatures can fall to very low levels in winter.

The chief rain-bearing air currents reach the island from the south-west, so that precipitation and atmospheric humidity is at its greatest on the western and south-western sides of the Southern Range. Eastwards, precipition and humidity are reduced by the partial rain-shadow effect of the Southern Range, a similar effect is also caused by the Northern Range which cut off the humidity associated with proximity to the sea from much of the northern Mesaoria Plain. Eastwards of the Northern Range, towards the bays of the Karpaz Peninsula, where the land narrows and the effect of sea influence increases accordingly, humidity increases progressively towards the end of the peninsula.

Part of the Kyrenia mountain range

Most of the rivers are simply winter torrents, only flowing after heavy rain, the rivers running out of the Northern and Southern Ranges rarely flowing all the year round.

During the wet winter months Cyprus is a green island. However, by the time June arrives the landscape at the lower levels assumes the brown, parched aspect which characterises its summer face. The forests and the vineyards in the mountains, plus the stips of irrigated vegatation in the valleys remain green.

Economy

Main article: Economy of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus

The economy of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus is dominated by the services sector including the public sector, trade, tourism and education, with smaller agriculture and light manufacturing sectors. The economy operates on a free-market basis, with a great portion funding of the administration costs offered by Turkey.

The continuing Cyprus problem adversely affects the economic development of the TRNC. The Republic of Cyprus, which is internationally recognised as such and an EU member, has declared airports and ports in the area not under its effective control, closed. All U.N. Member countries and E.U. member countries respect the closure of those ports and airports according to the declaration of the Republic of Cyprus. The Turkish community argues that the Republic of Cyprus has used its international standing to handicap economic relations between TRNC and the rest of the world.

Despite the constraints imposed by its lack of international recognition, the TRNC economy turned in an impressive performance in the last few years. The GDP growth rates of the TRNC economy in 2001-2005 have been 5.4%, 6.9%, 11.4%, 15.4% and 10.6% against 4.1%, 2.1%, 1.9%, 3.8% and 3.9% in the Republic of Cyprus. This growth has been buoyed by the relative stability of the Turkish Lira and a boom in the education and construction sectors.

Studies by the World Bank show that the per capita GDP in TRNC was 76% of the per capita GDP in the Republic of Cyprus in PPP-adjusted terms in 2004. (USD 22,300 for the Republic of Cyprus and USD 16,900 for the TRNC).

Although the TRNC economy has recovered in recent years, it is still dependent on monetary transfers from the Turkish government. Under the 2003-06 economic protocol, Ankara plans to provide around $550 million to the TRNC.

The number of tourists visiting Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus during January-August 2003 was 286,901.

Communications and transport

Because of its status and the embargo, the TRNC is heavily dependent on Turkish military and economic support. It uses the New Turkish Lira as its currency; this used to link its economic status to the vagaries of the Tuksih economy . All TRNC exports and imports have to take place via Turkey, unless they are produced within the occupied area, from materials sourced in the area (or imported via one of the island's legal ports) when they may be exported via one of the legal ports. International telephone calls are routed via a Turkish dialling code: +90 392. On the web TRNC is under the Turkish second-level domain .nc.tr, and mail must be addressed via Mersin 10, Turkey as the Universal Postal Union refuses to recognise the TRNC as a separate entity.

Direct flights to Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus are forbidden by international law. The airports of Geçitkale and Ercan are only recognised as legal ports of entry by Turkey and Azerbaijan.

TRNC sea ports had been declared closed to all shipping by the Republic of Cyprus since 1974. Turkey, however, rejects this declaration while TRNC-registered (but not Cypriot-flagged) vessels have free access to Turkish sea ports.

Naturalised TRNC citizens or foreigners carrying a passport stamped by the TRNC authorities may be refused entry by the Republic of Cyprus or Greece, although after the accession of the Republic of Cyprus to the EU such restrictions have been eased following confidence-building measures between Athens and Ankara and the partial opening of the UN controlled line by the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus authorities. The Republic of Cyprus also allows passage across the Green Line from the part of Nicosia that it controls (as well as a few other selected crossing points), since the TRNC does not leave entry stamps in the passport for such visits.

Airports and harbours

File:GirneMarina.jpg

Girne / Kyrenia Port

Airports & Airfields

• Ercan International Airport (Lefkoşa/Nicosia - Main Airport)
• Geçitkale/Lefkoniko Airport (Mağusa/Famagusta)
• Ilker Karter Airport (Girne/Kyrenia)
• Topel Airport (Güzelyurt/Morphou)
• Pınarbaşı Airport (Girne/Kyrenia)

Sea Ports

• Port of Mağusa (Famagusta)
• Famagusta Free Port & Zone
• Port of Girne (Kyrenia)

TRNC airports are forbidden from receiving international flights as the Republic of Cyprus has declared those ports and airports of the island nation closed after the Turkish invasion of Cyprus. According to a House of Lords hearing (ref: Cyprus: Direct Flights - 07-01-08) "The simplest way of enabling direct flights would be a decision by the Republic of Cyprus to designate Ercan as an international airport under the terms of the Chicago Convention on International Civil Aviation." In the absence of such a decision, Northern Cyprus chooses to remain isolated with only Turkey as its outlet to the rest of the world. Legal residents of the north and visitors are free to use the ports authorised by the Republic of Cyprus (Larnaca and Pafos Airports, and the sea ports of Larnaca and Limassol).

Universities

• Eastern Mediterranean University
• Near East University
• European University of Lefke
• International Cyprus University
• Girne American University
• Middle East Technical University Northern Cyprus Campus

Non-governmental organizations

• Management Centre for the Eastern Mediterranean, an umbrella and support institution for civil society organisations in Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. It organises conferences, training and other events, contains useful lists of NGOs and other organisations and reports from studies and initiatives.
• Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus Red Crescent Association which claims descent from an organisation founded in 1974, but which was long dormant. In April 2006, a General Assembly of the organisation elected the recently retired president of the supreme court, Taner Erginel, as President.

Demographics

According to a census carried out by the Turkish Cypriot administration, the TRNC has a population of about 264,172, of which only just over half is composed of indigenous Turkish Cypriots, with the rest including a large number of settlers from Turkey. Of the 178,000 Turkish Cypriot citizens, 74% are native Cypriots (approximately 120,000) with a further 12,000 claiming one Cypriot parent. Of the remaining people born to non-Cypriot parentage, approximately 16,000 were born in Cyprus. The figure for non-citizens, including students, guest workers and temporary residents stood at 78,000 people. Estimates by the government of the Republic of Cyprus from 2001 place the population at 200,000, of which 80-89,000 are Turkish Cypriots and 109,000-117,000 Turkish settlers. According to a report sponsored by the European Commission, 36,000 Turkish Cypriots emigrated between 1975 and 1995, with the consequence that within the occupied area the native Turkish Cypriots have been outnumbered by settlers from Turkey. The TRNC is almost entirely Turkish speaking, however English is widely spoken as a second language. Many of the older Turkish Cypriots speak and understand Greek - some may even be considered native speakers of the Greek Cypriot dialect.

There are small populations of Greek Cypriots and Maronites (about 3,000) living in Rizokarpaso and Kormakitis regions.

A large percentage of the people living in northern Cyprus after 1974 have emigrated, particularly to United Kingdom but also to Turkey. Many left the island due to the economic situation of the TRNC which, because of the prevailing embargo imposed on it by the international community, faces many difficulties in trading with third countries.

Art

• Nil Burak
• Hussein Chalayan
• Işın Karaca
• Turkish Cypriot Online Museum of Fine Arts

Further reading

• North Cyprus – a Pocket-Guide, published by Rustem Bookshop, Nicosia, 1. edition 2006, ISBN 994496803x

Tourist attractions

The Lala Mustafa Pasha Mosque in Famagusta (Gazimağusa). Formerly Τhe Saint Nicolas Cathedral prior to its conversion in 1571.

• Nicosia has an old town centre similar to that of Famagusta. The ancient city centre is surrounded by a 5.5 km long city wall, which is still intact.
• To the northeast the mythical Five Finger mountains (Pentadactylos, Turkish: Beşparmak) guard the city. This rocky five finger mountain rises 1050 meters above sea level and harbours the legend of the Byzantine hero Digenis, who defeated the invading Arabs with supernatural strength.
• One of the most beautiful beaches in the Mediterranean lies on the Rizokarpaso (Karpaz) peninsula on the easternmost tip of the island and is a nesting ground for endangered loggerhead and green turtles.

See also

• List of cities in Cyprus for Greek, Turkish and Classical names.
• Elections in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus
• Cyprus Turkish Football Federation
• Bayrak Radio and Television Corporation
• Türk Ajansi Kibris (TAK) News Agency
• Constitution of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus
• Reunification
• Annan Plan for Cyprus

External links

Official links

• Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus government site
• Office Of The President, Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus
• Northern Cypriot Tourism Office
• TRNC Public Information Office
• TRNC Central Bank in Turkish language

Other links

• North Cyprus Home Page
• Almanac of Northcyprus
• ATCA News, Association of Turkish Cypriots Abroad
• "Islamic Conference's Parliaments to Call TRNC 'Cyprus Turkish State'" JTW
• Useful Information on TRNC
• International Expert Panel for a European Solution in Cyprus
• Assembly of Turkish American Associations
• Chronology - Cyprus Issue
• Münüse, Folk Music
• TIKA
• Template:Wikitravel
• EU task-force on Turkish Cypriot community
• Geocities
• North Cyprus Forum