Cyprus-Forum.com

[brother]

First Supreme Court case to be heard in Turkish
Property challenge for CYP 1.6 mln

Financial Mirror Online
Wednesday,  February 09,  2005, 14.00

A Turkish Cypriot family living in the north has made an appeal to the Supreme Court, by using its constitutional right to be heard in Turkish.

This is the first time that a case has been filed in Turkish, particularly using the classical legal terminology that is heavily dependent on Arabic words.

AntennaTV reported last night that the plaintiffs would have to testify through a translator and may even demand the right to be heard by a Turkish Cypriot judge, or at least by a mixed panel of judges as was the norm in the earlier years of the Republic of Cyprus.

This is expected to become a landmark case and open a Pandora’s Box for any other future challenges by Turkish Cypriots resorting to their constitutional right to be heard and tried in their own language.

The case, that was submitted yesterday with the first hearing set for March 9, is challenging the forced appropriation of the family land in Polemidhia, presently worth an estimated CYP 1,598,000.

The plaintiffs inherited the land from Ali Kiamil who died in Nicosia General Hospital on December 25, 2002 and are suing the Ministry of Interior’s Turkish Cypriot Property Board on the grounds of political, racial and religious discrimination, as well as violation of their human rights.

They charge that due to reasons beyond their control they abandoned their family property after the Turkish invasion in 1974 and have since lived in the north.

In the 6-page writ of summons secured by the Financial Mirror, the plaintiffs claim that the state refused to recognise their right to their inheritance and often refer to the 1960 constitution that should have safeguarded their legal rights. They also refer to their basic rights according to E.U. laws and protocols.

[turkcyp]

deleted by the author...

[magikthrill]

I'm not sure this is a bad thing. Good for them for doing this. Can the RoC screw them over though by postponing and elongating the trial thus making it more expensive, or does it not work that way?

[turkcyp]

deleted by the author...

[brother]

I think it will turn the cypiot politics on its head and force all cypriot politicians to think about a solution sooner than later.

[Piratis]

Turcyp, lets say both GCs and TCs win their cases in the ECHR, do you think that the court rulings can be enforced only against RoC and not against Turkey at the same time?

Turkey has to be aligned to ECHR rulings as much as Cyprus especially now that Turkey wants to be part of the EU.

and by the way, I say Turkey, not "TRNC" because the ECHR has already concluded that the "TRNC" is a subordinate administration of Turkey, and has already convicted Turkey itself, and not the "TRNC".

[boulio]

and by the way, I say Turkey, not "TRNC" because the ECHR has already concluded that the "TRNC" is a subordinate administration of Turkey, and has already convicted Turkey itself, and not the "TRNC".

exactly

[insan]

Turcyp, lets say both GCs and TCs win their cases in the ECHR, do you think that the court rulings can be enforced only against RoC and not against Turkey at the same time?

Turkey has to be aligned to ECHR rulings as much as Cyprus especially now that Turkey wants to be part of the EU.

and by the way, I say Turkey, not "TRNC" because the ECHR has already concluded that the "TRNC" is a subordinate administration of Turkey, and has already convicted Turkey itself, and not the "TRNC".

I totally agree with you on this issue, Piratis.

[turkcyp]

deleted by the author...