Cyprus-Forum.com

[insan]

Christou fires back: They want to turn the state into a community
2004-07-05 | Phileleftheros | ------
Attacks against measures for T/C, against AKEL and himself
The Interior Minister Andreas Christou spoke out about the criticism leveled at him regarding the government’s decision to grant Cypriot citizenship to children of mixed Turkish Cypriot-Turkish settler marriages. The Minister fired back at his critics, pointing out that it is them who want to turn the state into a community.



Can someone tell me why some GCs are against granting citizenships to children of mixed Turkish Cypriot-Turkish settler marriages? I can understand and accept the objection to not being granted RoCs citizenship to children of setlers-settlers marriage but what's wrong with the others?

[metecyp]

Well the question to answer is the following. Is a person (born in Cyprus) whose father is GC and mother is from Greece (or mother GC and father from Greece) considered a citizen? If that's the case, mixed TCs should be also considered citizens. It's plain and simple. If you claim that RC exists and it respects human rights, then you can't apply two different sets of laws. That's what I've been asking all along. I have no problem accepting the existence and legality of RC if it exists the way it is supposed to.

Now, I also want to criticize TCs in this RC citizenship issue. Some TCs abondoned the idea of seperate state, and they see the future in the RC and they go and get their RC identity cards and passports. That's fine and that's their right. However, I personally know some TCs who don't even acknowledge the existence of RC and who still support TRNC and all that, and then they go and get the RC passports in order to travel easier. This troubles me a lot. From a GC perspective, I can understand how some GCs might think that TCs don't care about anything but their own interests. I'm not saying that TCs with RC documents should accept whatever GCs say, but the fact is you can't hold a passport of a country (and hence acknowledge its existence) and support another structure (TRNC) that is completely against it.

[Piratis]

As a matter of principle there is nothing wrong.

Probably some people are afraid that because settlers are the majority in the north now (if you add military etc) and because TC and settlers have the same religion, speak the same language etc, that the settlers will "swallow" Turkish Cypriots and after a while there will be no "pure" Turkish Cypriots. They are afraid that if they give such citizenships that they will promote such kind of marriages.

Are there a lot of marriages between TC and settlers?

[metecyp]

Are there a lot of marriages between TC and settlers?

I can't support this with actual numbers but I don't think that there are a lot of marriages between TC and settlers. TCs are quite conservative in marriage. TC families always prefer their son/daughter to marry to a TC so that's one of the reasons why the numbers kept low. But I know some mixed marriages and one thing I can say for certain is that the children from such marriages are truly Cypriots. They're fully adapted to Cypriot culture and they speak Turkish in Cyprus accent and all that. So I think there shouldn't be a problem in granting citizenship to these people. And it's nothing but paranoia to think that mixed marriages will be promoted by granting citizenships to children from such marriages. TCs are already citizens and I don't think any TC has an agenda of bringing more settlers to the island.

[john]

Is a person (born in Cyprus) whose father is GC and mother is from Greece (or mother GC and father from Greece) considered a citizen? If that's the case, mixed TCs should be also considered citizens. It's plain and simple. If you claim that RC exists and it respects human rights, then you can't apply two different sets of laws.

The mother that is from Greece entered Cyprus from a legal port and has not been brought illegally with the aim of demographic change of the island as a result of invasion. The attempt by Turkey to fill the occupied areas with its own citizens so as to change the structure of the society is completely unlawful. The govenrment is aware of the presence of the Greek mother that married the GC and that they live in Cyprus, so their child is a citizen. The settlers entered illegally, they are a result of war crime and under no circumstances should they be given citizenship.

But now Cyprus is in the EU, where there is a law that children of illegal immigrants whose one parent is an EU citizen that are born on EU soil are automatically EU citizens. This means that Cyprus may have to grant citizenship to all Turkish/TC marriage children and deport the rest, unless we insist on "war crime". Even then, Annan asks us to keep 45000 of the rest, isn't that a lot?

[metecyp]

The settlers entered illegally, they are a result of war crime and under no circumstances should they be given citizenship.

Settlers are not the issue here. We're not even talking about the children of settlers. We're talking about the children resulted from mixed (settler+TC) marriages. Let's say these mixed children are going to be deported. Where do they go? Back to Turkey when one of their parents are in Cyprus?

(Even deporting the children of settlers is problematic because most of them were born in Cyprus and some of them hardly ever visited Turkey. But again, that's not the issue here. )

[john]

Let's say these mixed children are going to be deported. Where do they go? Back to Turkey when one of their parents are in Cyprus?

One of their parents entered the country illegally with main attempt to change the demographic structure of the invaded country, a war crime. If Cyprus refuses to give them citizenship, it has every right. But it hopefully won't, cause we understand their position, eventhough you should also understand that this should be on a person to person basis and not done collectively. If they are to be deported, you should ask Turkey where to send them next.

[Piratis]

Personally I don't have a problem with those people getting the citizenship. What I have a problem with is that some people remember about human rights and laws only when it suits them.

We should apply all human rights for all Cypriots equally.

[Piratis]

Annan asks us to keep 45000 of the rest, isn't that a lot?

Yes, I think the ones we are discussing about here can stay.
Maybe the ones that are born in Cyprus and are children of only settlers and are old enough to live alone in Cyprus (they were born more than 18 years ago), can also stay. But not the rest.

[metecyp]

Yes, I think the ones we are discussing about here can stay. Maybe the ones that are born in Cyprus and are children of only settlers and are old enough to live alone in Cyprus (they were born more than 18 years ago), can also stay. But not the rest.

I'm sure we can reach to an agreement on who can stay and who can't. As I said before, TCs are not happy about settlers either, but at the moment it's something out of their control.

And as for 45.000, I don't know the details of this number (if it includes mixed marriages, etc.) but it doesn't bother me as much because at least it's a limit on the number of settlers. Besides, 45.000 is not too much (at least to me) compared to the whole population of the island. But we agree on the ideal situation where no settler remains unless they are married to a TC or they were born in Cyprus and they are fully adapted to the society.