CoE Questions Turkey on UnLawful Exploitation of Cyprus Refugees'Property+Warns Measures in 9 Months

*Strasbourg/Angelo Marcopolo/- 47 Member States-strong (including Russia) CoE's Top Political Body, its Committee of (Foreign) Ministers, officialy Raised Questions to Turkey about "Complicity" to "UnLawful Sales and Exploitation" of "Greek Cypriot" Refugees' "Homes and Properties" in the "Part of Cyprus" which is still Occupied by Ankara's Foreign Army, 43 Years after the 1974 Turkish Military Invasion of the now EU Member Country's Northern Territories, and Warned the Turks with "Measures", if they do Not "Address the Issue" in 9 Months Time, i.e. Before "September 2018".

    + Meanwhile, in Addition, the PanEuropean Organisation for Human Rights, Democracy and Rule of Law's Ministers also "Firmly Insisted, once again, that the Obligation to Pay the Just Satisfaction Awarded by the European Court, is UnConditional", and Called "the Turkish Authorities" to tell what "Steps" they took "for the Payment" due since several Years.

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    >>> It's Already during More than ... 35 Years Now (1992-2017 !), Starting as Early as since 1992, that the PanEuropean/International Community has been officially informed by the CoE, inter alia, also for Massive and Continuous Violations of Human Rights of Greek Cypriot Refugees/Displaced Persons, obliged to Flee the Turkish Military Invasion/Occupation of the Northern part of the Island since 1974, (i.e. about 20% of the Total Population of the Country), when the PanEuropean Organisation's Committee of Ministers authorized, for 1st Time, the Publication, in Strasbourg, of a "Hot" Report with the Conclusions of the European Committee on Human Rights, (which was, then, Key part of ECHR's Mechanism), that had, in fact, been Adopted since the 1980ies, (but held "Secret" until 1992, by the Opposition of a Turkish lobby)...  

    + Followed ECHR's landmark Judgements Condemning Ankara's Government on 1994-1998, initially at the individual Case of a Woman Refugee/IDP, Tina Loizidou, (Comp. Loizidou's statements to "Eurofora"s co-Founder, Published then at "TCWeekly" or "PIO/CNA"), and afterwards at the InterState case "Cyprus v. Turkey" of 2001, concerning also All G//C Refugees/IDPs, (Following an Historic, 1st ever, Public Hearing of the Parties in Strasbourg on 1994 : See "Eurofora" Co-Founder's Publication from the spot, then at "PIO/CNA").

    Since then, and After Various Other ECHR's Judgements on Similar Cases, particularly between 2006 - 2010/2013, concerning Mainly the Concrete Ways through which this Strasbourg Court's case-law should be Applied in real Practice, (which had, Meanwhile, become also an International Legal Standard, as attested, among others, also by the Landmark Report of UNO's Expert, Professor Pineiro, published by the UNCHCRefugees, Together with the UNHCHRights and UNSGeneral at nearby Geneva : Comp. "Eurofora" UN Top Legal Expert Pineiro's Statements to "Eurofora"s co-Founder, Published then at "TCWeekly": ... + ..., etc), ECHR's Great Chamber issued its Latest Important Judgement on this Issue on Spring 2014, when Euro-Judges mainly Denounced Strongly "Any ...COMPLICITY in Any  UnLawful Sale and Exploitation of Greek Cypriot Homes and Property in the northern part of Cyprus", as long as the still Continuing, Massive Violations by Turkey of Refugees/Displaced Persons' rights had Not Ceased, (See, "Eurofora"'s NewsReport  at : ...).

    >>> Today, this key Point is officially at the Base of CoE's Committee of Ministers' Latest Decision on that Issue, Published Now, which Also Reminds the Fact that the above-mentioned, Landmark ECHR 2014 Judgement clearly says that "Any" such "possible Permission, Participation, Acquiescence or Otherwise Complicity" in that delicate matter, is blatantly "Not Consistent" with "the Conclusions of the Main (ECHR) Judgement(s)", on GreekCyriot Refugees/IDP, and particularly its 2001 Judgement (Comp. Supra).

    Indeed, during all this time (1992-1994-2001 - 2017), as it was Denounced officially Earlier by the Government of Cyprus, in a Memorandum send to -and Published by- the CoE on December 2017, "Turkey has peristently failed and refused to take measures to suppress the unlawful sale or exploitation of Greek Cypriot Homes and property in the Occupied areas", where, "because of the Continuing Denial of Access to their properties, the Displaced persons have Lost all Control over, as well as the Possibilities to enjoy their land", by a "physical Exclusion of Greek Cypriots" from the Territories Invaded and Occupied by Ankara's Military :

    => Thus, "the Extent of the Illegal (Economic/Estate) Development of (Violently Usurpated) Property in the Occypied Areas, in Recent Years (2001 to 2007) has been on the Rise", reminded nowadays Cyprus, citting also relevant "Evidence of this", Already "Previously .. submitted ... to (CoE's) Committee" of Ministers, as well as the Fact that "its Accuracy has Not been Disputed".

    - F.ex., among others, the Extent of that "illegal development in the Occupied areas covered, approximately, 107 sq. KM" "in 2001", and it was Doubled : "207 sq. KM" "in 2007", "and 270 sq.KM" "in 2014". It "includes at least 85 Large and Medium scale Major (Economic/Estate) Developments", "as Evidenced by the relevant Certificates of Registration".

    + Moreover, "Data Collection and Articles in the Turkish Cypriot Press, Also show that Land Distribution to family members of Turkish Cypriot Politicians, the construction of Luxury Hotels, Land Distribution for Universities, and Large-Scale Concessions to Young Landless persons" are Continuing in Parallel, that officially communicated by the CoE text recalls.

    => So that, by adding also all this, through the Persistance of such Massive Human Rights Violations of G/C. Refugees/IDP, there is even a Threat to provoke Negative Political Consequences, because, in Fact, "Turkey is Attempting to Create an Irreversible "de facto" Situation, Permanently Obstructing the Return to Greek Cypriots of their properties in the Occupied Areas of Cyprus", it concludes.

    The Way in which such a Threat operates in real practice, was Spectacularly Reminded, these Same Days, also by a Demonstration of young Cypriot Students, during the Visit of Turkey's President Erdogan in Athens, which had Chosen, as Unique Moto to call Against the notoriously Massive Import of Turkish "SETTLERS" from Anatolia in the Occupied Territories of Cyprus, (See relevant Photo), who are generally known as usually being the No 1 illegal Foreign Migrants' Group, to whom are reportedly Given also several Usurpated Greek Cypriot Refugees/IDPs' Homes and/or Other Properties, in Addition even to illegal "Passports" Massively attributing so-called "Citizenship" :

    A Thorny Issue against which, Already in the Past, Both CoE's Committee of Ministers, and CoE's Parliamentary Assembly, had adopted Decisions Warning that such attempts to "Alter the Demography" of the Island, (Against which, notoriously struggled even the Turkish Cypriot Dissident Journalist Kutlu Adali, who was Brutaly Murdered in the 1990ies, resulting in a Condamnation of Turkey by ECHR on 2004), Risk to Provoke even an additional "Political Obstacle" to a Peacefull Agreement for a real ReUnification of Cyprus in the Future, (by Artificially and illegaly creating a Group of - Foreign Origin- Population with obvious Interests to Perpetuate the Division of the Country, and, finally, its Partition, in one way or another).

    In Front of that, Turkey Focused its Claims mainly into Seeking to Limit, directly and/or indirectly, the Greek Cypriot Refugees/IPDs' Human Rights, more or less, Only on a partial Financial "Compensation" for what they called "Loss of Use", through a Controversial "Committee" that Ankara's protegées set up, and Unilaterally Control, in the Territories of Cyprus Occupied by Turkey's Military, while, in Addition, excessively Restricting or even Excluding the "Restitution" of Refugees/IDP's Family Homes and other Private Properties.

    + Moreover, Ankara went as Far as to dare Claim, also nowadays, (by their "Note" communicated in Strasbourg this Month) that CoE should (in their view) even ... "STOP" Monitoring the Implementation of ECHR's Judgements which have repeatedly Condemned Turkey for such (a.o.) Massive Violations of Human Rights in Cyprus, irrespectively of the Fact that almost all such ECHR's Decisions have Not Yet been Implemented, and almost all concerned Victims are Still Suffering from - and Exposed to- such Massive Human Rights' Violations !   

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    >>> But CoE's Top Body, its Ministerial Committee, concluding its Human Rights' Session of Winter 2017, this Week in Strasbourg, Rejected such Turkish Claims, by Asking, on the Contrary, from Ankara's Authorities to Give to the CoE "Information" on How might, eventually, be "Adressed", or not, "the Issue of Possible UnLawful Sale and Exploitation of the Properties in question", as it is stated in the relevant CoE's Decision, which has just been just published.

    In particular, CoE's Top Political body, its Ministrial Committee, (which has the Duty to "Supervise" the Execution of ECHR's Judgements by the Condemned States), officially Raised Questions about the uncertain "Effectiveness" of the "Existing ... Mechanism(s)" in the Occupied Territories of Cyprus, still held by Ankara's Foreign Invasion/Occupation Army, and its "Practical Implementation" in reality.

    + Also, CoE Warned Turkey that it intends "to Assess", on the basis of relevant Facts, the "Need for Further Measures", that might prove necessary to Explicitly Ask Ankara to Take.

    In this regard, Cyprus has already suggested to the CoE,  a relevant Series of possible Practical Measures, that Turkey could and should Take in order to Comply with the above-mentioned ECHR's Judgements repeatedly Condemning Ankara for Massive and persisting Violations of Greek Cypriot Refugees/IDPs' Human Rights, (and, especially, ECHR's 2014 Finding : Comp. Supra), according to a relevant Note officialy published this week by the CoE in Strasbourg :

    - F.ex., inter alia :

* "Cease <<Transferts>> (including, but not limited to <<Sales>>, <<Leases>> and <<Mortgages>>) of Displaced Person's Properties, withOut their Consent";

* "Cease encouraging or promoting the Sale and/or Use of Greek Cypriot Properties, in the Occupied Areas of Cyprus, withOut their Consent";

* "Halt all Constructions on Greek Cypriot Properties, in the Occupied areas, carried out withOut the Consent of the Lawful property Owners";

and, in parallel, naturally "Pay the Amounts awared by the (PanEuropean) Court in its ... Judgement of 12 May 2014", (Comp. Supra), for the Damages Already Inflicted to the Victims until then.

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    + Last, but not least, by Fixing the above-mentioned Time Deadline of 9 Months, until "September 2018", CoE's Top Political Body, in Fact, gave to itself a Potentially Valuable Legal and Political Tool in order, also, to Help exert some Beneficial Pressure Towards an eventual Resumption of UNO-sponsored Talks for establishing Peace and ReUnification of Cyprus in the foreseable Future, since that Time-laps includes the forthcoming, crucial Presidential Elections in Cyprus, scheduled for the Beginning of Next Year.

    The Latest Deadlock witnessed at nearby Switzerland, earlier this year (2017), despite some notable Progress previously, mainly because of Ankara's Reluctance to Withdraw its Occupation Army when a Solution might have been agreed, and Turkey's persistent Claim to have a possibility for even more Unilateral Military Interventions during an Endless Future, under that or that Pretext, which has Blocked the Process, has, indeed, in the Meantime, been Exploited by some Turkish Politicians in order to either Threaten a Definite End of that Peace Process, and/or to Ask for even More Political Concessions, Threatening to Worsen, instead of Easing the current situation.

    So that even a simply Human Rights' issue, might, eventually, Help also for Peace and ReUnification, in a possible Solution of the Cyprus Issue, according to EU/CoE and UNO's Basic Values and Legal Principles.