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29/9/2005
Last year the Cyprus
High Commission in London tried unsuccessfully to frighten the
organizers of the Property Investors Show into refusing to allow
representation of Turkish Cypriot [of Northern Cyprus] interests.
This year they have turned their attention to the owners of
the venue, Excel in London's docklands; a copy of the High
Commission's letter has come into my possession.
Fortunately, the venue owners have seen through the High
Commission's agenda. I myself have now written to the High
Commission and I quote from that reply:
"Once again the
Cyprus High Commission is seeking to interfere in the lawful
activities of companies doing business with Northern Cyprus. You
should be aware that I am proposing to direct a complaint to the
Foreign and Commonwealth Office of Her Majesty's Government on the
grounds that your interference in the commercial affairs of
organizations lawfully working within the United Kingdom is an abuse
of your privileged position and a breach of protocol.
"I
note you refer to a decision of the European Court of Human Rights
seven years ago, a decision which was made against the Republic of
Turkey and at a time when the situation in Northern Cyprus was
completely different.
An unsupportable proposition "You also
make reference to the Orams case and make the astounding assertion
that the decision of the District Court in Cyprus is enforceable in
the United Kingdom. That is a wholly unsupportable proposition
calculated to misinform and worry those to whom it addressed.
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"It is the case of your
Government, and therefore presumably your case, that you represent
the whole of Cyprus and I would respectfully suggest that if that is
your position you must seek to uphold the rights of all the peoples
you claim to represent. There is clear evidence, of which you must
be aware, that land in the southern part of the island previously
owned by dispossessed Turkish Cypriots has been appropriated by
Greek Cypriots and is being developed and sold. Indeed, visitors in
Cyprus are encouraged by your government to travel to Larnaca
airport, where it is now clear that the airport has, in part, been
built on land expropriated from its rightful Turkish Cypriot owners.
"If it is truly your position that we must all do our utmost
to prevent illegality and human rights violations from taking place
then we trust that you can show that you are writing in similar
terms to those involved in the illegal sales of Turkish
Cypriot-owned properties, in violation of the human rights of the
Turkish Cypriot population.
"The Turkish Cypriot community
and those who do business with them can no longer sit idly by and
allow the vested interests of the South to retain the upper hand.
The time for action has come."
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