New UN Cyprus Plan Published To Chorus Of Silence

by Lorys Charalambous, Tax-News.com, Nicosia

13 November 2002

The United Nations presented its blueprint for a re-united Cyprus on Monday, giving copies of the 135-page document to the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot leaders, Glafcos Clerides and Rauf Denktash (still in hospital in New York), and to the three 'guarantor' powers, the UK, Greece and Cyprus.

The leaders have just one week in which to say whether they do, or do not accept the document as a 'basis for negotiation', but actual negotiations are not set to begin for 30 days.

Key features of the proposals include:

• Cyprus will have one over-arching 'common' state and two 'component states, whose relationships to each other and to the 'common' state will be similar to those of a Swiss canton;
• The common state will be the voice of one Cyprus internationally and fulfil the island's obligations to the EU;
• The component states, of equal status, within the limits of the constitution, sovereignly exercise all powers not vested by the constitution in the 'common state' government, organising themselves freely under their own constitution;
• There will be a single Cyprus citizenship and special majority 'common state' law shall regulate eligibility for Cypriot citizenship;
• The 'common state' parliament will be composed of two chambers, the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies;
• Each chamber shall have 48 members. The Senate will be 50-50 and the Chamber in proportion to the population, provided that each 'component state' received no less than 25 per cent of the seats.
• Decisions of parliament will require the approval of both chambers by simple majority;
• The offices of President and Vice President shall rotate every ten months among members of a 6-person Presidential Council. No more than two consecutive presidents may come from the same 'component state';
• The Treaty of Alliance shall permit Greek and Turkish contingents not exceeding an unspecified four-digit figure and a UN peacekeeping operation shall monitor the agreement along with a monitoring committee from the guarantor powers;
• The supply of arms to Cyprus shall be prohibited and all Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot forces including reserve units will be dissolved and their arms removed from the island in phases along with the redeployment of Greek and Turkish forces.
• Areas subject to territorial adjustment which are legally part of the Greek Cypriot component state upon entry into force of this agreement shall be administered during an interim period no longer than three years by the Turkish Cypriot component state. Administration shall be transferred under the supervision of the UN to the Greek Cypriots in agreed phases 90 days after entry into force of this agreement.
• In areas subject to territorial adjustment, properties shall be reinstated to dispossessed owners but in areas not subject to territorial adjustments the arrangements will be on the basis of compensation.

Official reactions to the new plan were thin on the ground on Tuesday; both sides were following official UN advice not to respond until they had a chance to study the plan in detail. Unofficial responses were however lukewarm at best, with many commentators saying that neither side would be pleased by the proposals.

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