Comments to UNSG Ban Ki-moon Statements on visit to Cyprus

We that advocate for a just and workable solution based on UN adopted Resolutions and the high level agreements of 1977-79 and 2006-08, heard and read the statements of the UNSG on His trip to Cyprus. According to the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon He went to Cyprus to encourage the two leaders of the Cypriot communities to reach a mutually-acceptable solution to the Cyprus problem, an effort that requires “courage, flexibility and vision as well as a spirit of compromise”.

The UNSG stressed quite clearly that: “the process of the talks belongs to Cyprus and that HE is there at the invitation of both sides to ASSIST THE TALKS. They have taken responsibility for finding a solution. They are the ones driving the process and the ones who will benefit from tremendous benefits and opportunities a settlement will bring to this island”. Also the Secretary General added, “The expectations of the international community are very high. And that the UN does not underestimate the importance of a solution not only to Cyprus but also to the region and indeed to the world. Solving the Cyprus problem will give an inspiration to all those around the world trying to solve other seemingly intractable conflicts.

Mr. UNSG Ban Ki-moon, we do believe that the Cyprus problem is not easy to solve mainly under the present conditions and difficulties that the two leaders and the Cypriot legal Citizens of a country a full member of the UN and the EU face. At the same time, We are confident that a solution to this political problem of a UN member country can be possible if You and Your REFEREES (advisors) use as bases the UN Charter rules and implement adopted resolutions that will improve and give the correct conditions for the CYPRIOT POLITICAL WILL needed and the UN SECURITY essential during the talks and during the referendums that have to take place to finalize the agreement. We furthermore believe that the biggest BENEFICIARY of a just and lasting Cyprus solution will be ABOVE ALL the UN and its improved image that will be apple to help other countries to solve their similar problems proper.

Mr. Secretary General do you really feel that courage, flexibility and vision as well as a spirit of compromise by the two community leaders can solve the Cyprus reunification problem without your making sure as the Referee of this political dispute that the conditions for the talks are fair, playable, without outside interferences and the players that will take place in the referendum voting to finalize the results are all legal according to the Republic of Cyprus the full member country of the UN?

We that follow Cyprus from the 1950’s when the UN did not accept Cyprus’s request for self-determination then as a British colony, know of a number of outside interferences that will prevent a just, lasting and workable reunification solution to these talks. Here are some of the main ones:
a) Turkey does not recognize the Republic of Cyprus and is the only country that recognizes the illegal TRNC illegal according to UN resolutions 549 & 550.

b) Turkey voted for the unanimous resolution GA3212 that was also adopted by the Security Council but it does not implement it.
c) Turkey is occupying 37% of the Republic and assists Turkish illegal settlers to enter the occupied area with the illegal to outnumber the legal Turkish-Cypriots now.
d) Turkey says that she supports the “by the Cypriots for the Cypriots talks” but in fact it dictates them.
e) Cyprus as a full member of the UN and EU does not need guarantor powers.

Finally Mr. UNSG, if you allow “Turkish logic” that is based on expansion policies using the Turkish military power to act as an outside interference to the talks the results can be catastrophic not only for the reunification of Cyprus by also for other countries of the UN with minorities asking for statehoods or independence, with the biggest looser been the UN. YOU as the Secretary General must Practice Justice based on the UN CHARTER and using as a tool the implementation of UN adopted resolutions.

Harry Theofanus Human Rights Advocate and Past President of the CFA and PSEKA

Kurds are a large proud ethnic minority in Turkey.
Turkish Cypriots are a large proud ethnic minority in Cyprus.

SOLUTIONS TO THESE PROBLEMS WILL BE IDENTICAL AT THE END OF THE DAY.
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The TC problem exists since 1963.
The Kurdish problem exists since 1923.
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ZAMAN Feb 8th 2010 - The root causes of Turkey’s Kurdish challenge
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It is clear that in today’s Turkey there is a gap between the expectations of Kurds, in terms of their political, cultural and economic aspirations, and the realities on the ground. This is clearly relevant for the conditions of today: In the aftermath of the Justice and Development Party’s (AKP) democratic opening, the expectations of the Kurdish citizens were significantly raised. Yet, at the end of the day, when the Democratic Society Party (DTP) was banned and many Kurdish officials were arrested, the actual events on the ground created a huge gap between the reality and Kurdish expectations. In that sense, the absence of constitutional liberties brings a “political” dimension to relative deprivation. In other words, there is a growing gap between Kurdish political and cultural aspirations and realities of the Turkish political system. Bridging this gap between reality and expectation is crucial if Turkey is to peacefully solve its Kurdish problem and tackle the root causes of terrorism more rationally. Yes, socio-economic problems matter. The growing number of unemployed Kurdish youth is particularly alarming. But repressive political systems exacerbate the challenge. This is why the Kemalist establishment -- from the military to the judiciary -- should do their best to support the democratic opening instead of trying to find ways to stifle it. Only then can the Kurds put a distance between themselves and terrorism.
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It is still mine to "waste".
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Kurds are a large proud ethnic minority in Turkey. TCs are a large proud ethnic minority in Cyprus. SOLUTIONS TO THE PROBLEMS WILL BE IDENTICAL AT THE END OF THE DAY. BELIEVE ME.
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http://www.todayszaman.com/tz-web/columnists-200985-the-root-causes-of-t...
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ZAMAN Feb 8th 2010 - The root causes of Turkey’s Kurdish challenge
""
...
It is clear that in today’s Turkey there is a gap between the expectations of Kurds, in terms of their political, cultural and economic aspirations, and the realities on the ground. This is clearly relevant for the conditions of today: In the aftermath of the Justice and Development Party’s (AKP) democratic opening, the expectations of the Kurdish citizens were significantly raised. Yet, at the end of the day, when the Democratic Society Party (DTP) was banned and many Kurdish officials were arrested, the actual events on the ground created a huge gap between the reality and Kurdish expectations. In that sense, the absence of constitutional liberties brings a “political” dimension to relative deprivation. In other words, there is a growing gap between Kurdish political and cultural aspirations and realities of the Turkish political system. Bridging this gap between reality and expectation is crucial if Turkey is to peacefully solve its Kurdish problem and tackle the root causes of terrorism more rationally. Yes, socio-economic problems matter. The growing number of unemployed Kurdish youth is particularly alarming. But repressive political systems exacerbate the challenge. This is why the Kemalist establishment -- from the military to the judiciary -- should do their best to support the democratic opening instead of trying to find ways to stifle it. Only then can the Kurds put a distance between themselves and terrorism.
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Gentlemen, you may not like me pointing out the parallels but please read below as we will soon be watching history in the making, a replay of sorts of Cyprus early 1960s in Turkey itself. Replace Kurd with TC and Turk with GC. The only thing that is missing from the equation, thus it takes a lot longer in Turkey for developments to unfold, is an outside fascist government co-ruled by a strong military in support of the minority, using it as a pretext to promote own goals.
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I expect the medicine to be as bitter as it has been for the Cypriot people. Good luck!
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http://www.todayszaman.com/tz-web/news-201018-ngos-call-for-calm-amid-pr...
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I want to vote for a TC President who will be Cypriot first. Are there any genuine Turkish Cypriots left in Cyprus? If so, you should sympathize with the struggle of the Kurds, both the peaceful as well as the militant ones. Their struggle is genuine and just!

THERE IS NO UNIFICATION IN THE WORLD! THERE IS ONLY SEPARATION IN THE WORLD: SINCE 1990, 33 NEW COUNTRIES EXISTED BY

THE SEPARATION OF FEDERATIONS, CONFEDERATIONS, COUNTRIES (EVEN THE SAME RACED, SAME RELIGIONED, SAME LANGUAGED

SERBIA-MONTENEGRO!)

YUGOSLAVIA = 16 Bosnia and Herzegovina + 17 Croatia + 18 Macedonia + 19 Serbia and Montenegro + 20 Slovenia

21 Namibia (South Africa)
22 Marshall Islands, 23 Micronesia (Caroline Islands) 24 Palau (USA)

Czechoslovakia = 25 Czech Republic + 26 Slovakia

27 Eritrea (Ethiopia)
28 East Timor (Timor-Leste) (Indonesia)
Serbia-Montenegro = 29 Montenegro + 30 Serbia
31 Kosovo (Serbia).
Georgia = 32 Gerorgia + 33 Abhasia + 34 South Ossetia AND GOES ON....

INDEPENDENT, SOVEREIGN AND PARTIALLY RECOGNIZED NORTH (TURKISH) CYPRUS WILL BE INTERNATIONALLY RECOGNIZED WITHOUT

COMPROMISE JUST AS THE ABOVE 34 NEW COUNTRIES.

We (Turkish Cypriots) hate Greek Cypriots, You (Greek Cypriots) hate us (Turkish Cypriots).
If Greek Cyprus does NOT recognize Turkish Cyprus, We (Turkish Cyprus) will NOT give WATER to Greek Cyprus EVEN IF

GREEK CYPRUS PAY THE PRICE OF WATER!!!

Comments made by people like DIAVOLOS or EMIR SOLER, proves my point that even though there is a very slim possibility in finding solution, HOW DO WE EXPECT TO MAINTAIN IT?

WE DO NOT DESERVE TO HAVE A COUNTRY IF OUR PEOPLE HAVE THESE BELIEVES......ESPECIALLY BEING AN EU country.

We are a lost case...........

Emir Soler......as always, it is YOU that lives on a la la land or rather on a Banana republic.

Since you want to think that you have a country and its name is trnc (aka Banana republic of trnc), you have no choice other than to be close to Turkey. After all 200 countries are idiots no to recognize your Banana and since in Turkey's wisdom, trnc exist.

You are trapted in the la la land and you may have today choice (still) but in few years, you may have no choice. You can become Turkish citizen and you can have all the rights associated with. After all 20 million Kurds are proud to be Turkish, why on earther 88,000 TCs won't be proud.

PS. Especially Emir Soler type of people, we prefer them to stay with Turkey. WE DO NOT WANT YOU, ANYWAY.........

Mike, are you asking Turkish Cypriots to abundant Turkey and join up with RoC?
How naïve you are. That shows you are living in the la la land.
What has RoC done to help Turkish Cypriots last 36 years?
RoC Done NOTHING, part from AMBARGO.
Turkey supported TRNC for last 36 years, and will carry on supporting it years to come.
Cyprus is 38 miles from shores of Turkey. Do you really believe, Turkey will allow, Cyprus to become another Greek Island in Mediterranean? Never in million years.
Your hopes are dashed, when EU, UN and USA decided to do nothing about Cyprus.
Greek propaganda doesn’t work anymore. Look at Greece, cooking the books to get in to EU.
Cyprus will follow very soon.

Fevzi from London, any viable settlement will NOT be a federation of two 'states', it will be a Federal nation of two constituent provinces-the parts of which will NOT have sovereign powers. Turks want to assure their province will have sovereign authority, but it will not. Neither the UN or the EU supports that. Turkey's 35 year effort to upgrade TRNC to a seperate state has not been accepted by the world community, it's a failure.

Antifon: Your reasoning is really funny, soon you will say milk is black. "As for partition, it will not happen". Partition HAS happened, that's what you got now. And if the present talks succeed, you will have a federation made up of two constituent states, a kind of partition, if they don't succeed, the present partition will become permanent.
Contrary to what you say, the majority of GCs want partition as they don't want to share governance with the TCs.
It is not up to China, Russia or France to decide what happens in Cyprus, if they had the power, why didn't they do anything in the last 36 years. Ok, the UN passed some stupid resolutions which are in the waste-paper bin and Turkey is now in the Security Council.
As for Kyrenia, it was mainly Greek but now it is all Turkish, and in a solution, it will still be Turkish but you will get TC owned land left in the South in exchange and/or compensation.
So, stop dreaming.

5% of Turkey's population is 3.6 million people. According to you 3.6 million people in Turkey openly support violence to topple the status quo. I am willing to be that another 20%, if given a choice in a referendum, would vote for representation rights for the Kurdish minority similar to the ones that the 1963 solution provides for the Turkish Cypriots. I remind you that it was less than 5% of Turkish Cypriots (or 1% of total population) that instigated the problems between the GCs and TCs in the 1950s and 60s.

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Antifon, you are very stressed out, your days are numbered, relax man, you will die of a heart attack, before to long. I will take care of your old house in Girne.

I would think twice before invoking the UN. Before the UN laid down its latest ideas it voted numerous resolutions. Let us take them in order, shall we?
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It is not correct to compare the EU with the Cyprus Republic. The EU is a loose confederation. If it wasn't, for example, the solution to Greece's finances would have been easily resolved. It is either childish or ignorant to compare the two, as an apple is simply not an orange.
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As far as partition, it will not happen. The vast majority of Cypriots, the simpletons I refer to, oppose it. The international community opposes it (China, Russia, France, etc). The Cypriots must first want it, and they don't. They never will. Because Keryneia is 88% Greek. And that cannot change. Not in the last 36 years. Not in another 36. You owe me more with every day that passes and you refuse to see the truth. That is more your problem than mine. And I honestly do not wish you to have such a problem.
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Turkey's problems are fundamental. I will not even try to convince you of that cause we will disagree on what fundamentals for a democracy are.
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The correct answers to the questions are:
- 86 is not equal to 14 in Cyprus. No system can make it so.
- 77 is not equal to 23 in Turkey. No system can make it so.
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Read the 1963 solution if you are a deserving Cypriot. It is also a good base for the Turkish problem. Turkey needs our help. Or it soon will.

I wonder if Turkey (the Turkish ruling majority via its Islamic and TSK elites) would accept a similar solution to its Kurdish/ constitutional problem:
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http://www.cyprus.gov.cy/moi/pio/pio.nsf/5716992f751f2acfc2257076004d029...
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The federated solution will soon be scrapped for Cyprus. For one simplistic reason really: Cypriots in their naïveté will not manage to understand how 18 can be made to equal 82 (or 14 to equal 86). These same simpletons are also not capable of understanding that if 18 must equal 82 then why not 23 to equal 77 in Turkey.
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Muster the strength to read above solution. It is part of our history. Hopefully, part of our future too. If you are fair, sincere, a pragmatist and a TRUE CYPRIOT then seek no longer. Simply adjust to EU Cyprus of 2010 and we can enter year 51 united. For the good of Cypriots, Turkey, Greece and the region.

A brit lecturing others on Ethics. LOL. EE-what a moron.

You dressing up in nun's clothing during this weeks drinking binge, EE???? Another proud moment in British expatriate history!

To Antifon

You keep asking the same question which is "should an 18% minority impose its will on an 82% majority?"
The answer is - its not about imposing our will but get equal and fair treatment from the majority.
In any case this is fast becoming an irrelevant. The ratio is no longer 18:82. Its more like 40:60. In another 10 years it will be 50:50. In twenty years the turkish cypriots will be a majority. Does that answer your question.
My question now is will you now bugger off and let real Cypriots add their opinion on this site rather than constantly adding endless rubbish about the kurds.

Never mind the negotiations on Cyprus. A bigger, significantly defining, question is: will Turkey live to celebrate its 90th birthday in peace?
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One of the byproducts of Turkish EU aspirations has been that the fascism in Turkish foreign policy, the fascism in Turkey's approach towards its own large ethnic minority of the Kurds, the fascism in its military inspired/drafted 1982 constitution and the hypocrisy of the fascist ruling regime vis-a-vis Cyprus have become all too apparent to the core Europeans. The Europeans have confirmed beyond reasonable doubt what they suspected all along: Turkey of 2010 is light years away from a European mentality and many people suffer directly or indirectly, including the Turks themselves, as a result.
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For my part I want to say: may your revolution be peaceful. I am afraid however that velvet a Turkish revolution by definition cannot be.

Antifon and Christoph from USA
Please read below from arcives Cyprus mail 19 March 2006.
I think you two bird brains should resurch little more before considering on EU Courts. They already had enought of Greek Cypriot problems. I like to know what will hapen when Turks start courts action agains Greek Goverment...
Vince from London
It's always interesting to hear pontificating from Greek Cypriots about a) how squeaky clean they are when it comes to handling refugee's property and b) how everyone wants to return to the situation pre-1974.
The attached article taken from the (South Cyprus) Sunday Mail, 19th March 2006, suggest they may have some interesting issues to resolve should we ever approach any sort of settlement!
"WE HAVE been shouting and protesting for 30 years because the Turkish Cypriots have been building on our property. But the legitimate government (of Cyprus) gave us money to build houses on the properties of the Turkish Cypriots. And at the time they lied to us, telling us that they had given us state land. This was what was written on the documents we signed."
I retained these words, uttered by a frustrated citizen in a television news story about a noisy protest held last Tuesday in Polemidia by hundreds of displaced persons who had built houses on plots given to them by the Spyros Kyprianou government some 30 years ago.
In the same report, a woman, who was visibly angry, said: "We were fooled. They brought us here, gave us land belonging to the Turkish Cypriots and, through a life of hard toil, we built our houses on it, married, brought up our children and now they are telling us to leave and that they will give us a plot somewhere else. In other words, we have to start from the beginning again. We will never leave. We will stay here and if they dare, they can come and kick us out."
Similar sentiments were expressed by several other protesters. I consider the words of these people very important because they expose, in the most damning way, the absurdity of the policy we followed in the post-1974 years. The policy was centred on the nefarious slogan, ‘All refugees will return to their homes’.
I will not refer to the hypocrisy of the parties in government, which, in view of the elections, are now proceeding with the issuing of title deeds for houses to thousands of refugees. These very same parties lambasted the former president Glafcos Clerides, accusing him of treachery, when, seven or eight years ago, he decided to issue title deeds. I had questioned the wisdom of this move at the time, predicting that one of the consequences would be to create resentment among all refugees who had built houses on Turkish Cypriot land; Tuesday’s protest in Polemidia proved the point. During the Clerides presidency the patriots of AKEL, EDEK and DIKO accused the government of issuing ‘title deeds’ because it had surrendered the right of the refugees to return to their own homes.
The slogan about the "right of all refugees to return to their homes", with which politicians have been bombarding us for more than 30 years is a myth that has now collapsed, as the words of the refugees mentioned above show. It is blatantly obvious that today, 32 years after the displacement of large sections of the population, almost none of the refugees want to return to their home – I refer to the areas that would be under Turkish Cypriot control in the event of a federal settlement.

Vince from London comments:
I'm presuming that Ms Papadopoulos does not support the idea of a negotiated settlement to the Cyprus Problem. Because if she thinks that this sort of article can help the current peace process in any way then she is sadly mistaken. What it does is fuel a totally unrealistic expectation amongst Greek Cypriots that they will be able to wind the clock back 35 years as a result of a questionable legal decision, whilst further brow-beating an already oppressed Turkish Cypriot community. It is these two communities that will need to vote on any proposed solution should it emerge from the current discussions. And simplistic, one-sided articles like this just serve to widen the gap between the two halves.
She's very good at gloating and criticising Turkey but as a politician it would be more appropriate to hear what HER suggestions are to resolve the Cyprus Problem.

Sounds logical. Is it?
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Will Turks also agree to share power with Kurds? Will the Kurds demand it? How far are they willing to go? Should power sharing in Turkey be on a 50-50 basis? How similar should the settlement of the Cyprus problem be to that of the Turkish problem?
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All extremely interesting questions.
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The world has had enough of Turkish fascistic "logic". The Kurds too. Watch for developments that will rock your world. Funnily enough, they will be positive for the Turkish, Kurdish and Cypriot nations.

OK
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A very large percentage of Kurds feel the injustice in their hearts and are quiet supporters of any step in the right direction: COMMUNITY AND HUMAN RIGHST for the Kurds of Turkey, not unlike the rights that the Turkish fascist regime has been advocating for another nation's minority, the Turkish Cypriots of the Cyprus Republic.
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Support for a united country with safeguards on all issues close to the heart of the minority will be the solution for large ethnic minorities in Turkey and Cyprus.
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The solution of Turkey's Kurdish problem lays in Cyprus. And the solution of the Cyprus issue lays somewhere in Kurdistan.
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As far as Cypriot ownership of the process, that can only start to happen when Turkey be a good girl and withdraw its troops from Cyprus.

Sir
I find it hard to believe that the talks can be called Cypriot owned when so many outside powers are influencing the outcome.
Turkey has made it known that there are lines in the sand that can not be crossed and I would suspect that among the Turkish Cypriot population there would be those that suspect the same of Greece although I for one do not share that view with regards to Greece.
I believe that the Turkish side is looking for a fudged solution that will enable it in the future, however far off , to first claim Independence for the North knowing that with the backing it has already from the USA and to a lesser degree other European states it will be very difficult if not impossible to take the North back to the position it finds itself in at the moment with regards to recognition from the rest of the world.

Somebody please put all us Cypriots out of our misery and end these nonsense talks. Is obvious that we cant go on any longer.

Antifon you are not as smart as you think, you are confused and sad.
It is not a time to bring in Kurdish problem in Turkey while you lost %38 of the Cyprus. But if you want some figures here they are, JUST FOR YOU.
80% of Turkish Kurd’s voted for main stream parties which reflect the level of integration of Kurds into Turkish Society, the radicals supporting terror amount to just 5% of Turkey’s population, Turkey is now fulfilling its obligations to award everyone its cultural rights.