Establishing a Truth Commission on missing persons on Cyprus is an initiative whose time may have come. It would allow the relatives of the missing to learn the circumstances of their loved ones’ deaths in the bicommunal troubles and in the Turkish invasion of Cyprus. Also, it could increase trust between the island’s two communities and contribute towards ending its division.
The negotiations on the basis of a bizonal, bicommunal federation have been stuck for years. Most parents of those who were declared missing, and about half of the women whose husbands were lost, have died. Those who are still alive, and the lost men’s children, deserve to know what happened to their loved ones in the last moments of their lives. Strengthening and broadening the mandate of the existing Committee on Missing Persons in Cyprus (CMP), a bicommunal body that has offered valuable service since its establishment in 1981 by a UN General Assembly decision, could provide closure to grieving families. In addition, this would strengthen civil society on both sides of the Green Line.
A Truth Commission was proposed by the NGO Truth Now (whose president is the lawyer Achilleas Demetriades, best known for successfully suing Turkey in the European Court of Human Rights) over a decade ago. The essence of the proposal is for people who know the circumstances of the death of those classified as missing to testify without fear of punishment. Since 1991, those testifying before the CMP have enjoyed immunity. But the CMP’s mandate does not extend to revealing the circumstances of death. According to official figures, 1,510 Greek Cypriots are classified as missing, as are 492 Turkish Cypriots. Of these, 756 Greek Cypriots have been identified and 754 are still missing, while 295 Turkish Cypriots have been identified and another 197 are still missing. The results of the CMP’s investigations are kept in closed archives.
Truth Now proposes that the Truth Commission be an extension of the CMP. It will comprise a Greek Cypriot, a Turkish Cypriot and a representative of the International Committee of the Red Cross. They will share the presidency on a rotating basis. The commission will not attribute responsibility for deaths but will make findings as to the circumstances and cause of death. Its proceedings and findings will be confidential, and the commission will determine whether to issue public statements or reports.
The initiative for a Truth Commission gained great impetus when the Cypriot president, Nikos Christodoulides, proposed its establishment in a meeting with UN Secrtary-General Antonio Guterres and Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar in New York on October 15, 2024. Tatar appeared to accept the proposal, but only for when the Cyprus issue is solved. And so, an initiative that could contribute towards strengthening confidence between the island’s two communities is in the hands of the Turkish Cypriots and Turkey.
