Turkey ordered to pay $132 million to Cyprus

Two decades after the Greek-Cypriot government filed the case, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ordered Turkey on May 12 to pay 90 million euros ($132 million) in compensation relating to its 1974 military intervention.The court only put a price tag on a decision it took back in 2001 when it ruled on two groups, “namely 1,456 missing persons and the enclaved Greek-Cypriot residents of the Karpas Peninsula.”

Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu angrily reacted, saying the judgment is not legally binding, and that the court's decision would harm efforts at reconciliation. “We don’t legally recognize the Greek-Cypriot side,” Davutoglu said on May 14. “The court, therefore, can't impose a decision on us regarding a country that we don’t recognize.”

Riza Turmen, a former ECHR judge and a deputy from the main opposition Republican People’s Party, however, disagrees. “It’s not even open to discussion whether the court’s decision is legally binding or not. It is. Even if Turkey withdraws its signature from accepting the court’s jurisdiction, Turkey is obliged to pay this compensation,” Turmen told Al-Monitor. “If Turkey fails to pay this in the next three months, it will cost the country more with the added late payment interest fees calculated based upon the European Central Bank’s rates. Plus, it will also be the source of political confrontation with the European Council.”

The court’s decision, however, is widely perceived on the Turkish side as a political one. Mehmet Ali Talat, who was president of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) from 2005 to 2010, told Al-Monitor that the court’s decision came as a surprise to him. He explained in detail how he has taken measures since he came to office to correct those areas that the court found troubling — education, religion and property rights of the Greek Cypriots. “I helped the opening of a Greek secondary school and high school in Karpas, ending violation on educational rights. There were some issues regarding the schoolbooks, which we corrected as well. I assisted a second priest be appointed to Karpas, which happened,” Talat said. “I have also taken measures improving the situation significantly on property issues and missing persons. We may not have fulfilled the requirements 100%, but we did pretty well.”