A/HRC/34/56/Add.1 34. The Special Rapporteur hopes that the momentum at the time of drafting of any new constitution will be employed for recognizing a Cypriot identity that transcends “community” affiliations. Thinking beyond bicommunalism is necessary to create a framework incorporating all aspects of contemporary Cypriot society in its full diversity. The Special Rapporteur notes in particular the desire expressed by Maronites and Armenians to be recognized as historical minorities. 2. Policies aimed at shaping cultural identities and references 35. During her visit, the Special Rapporteur regularly heard concerns from Turkish Cypriots regarding the perceived efforts by Turkey to transform their culture and to Islamize their society in ways they felt did not reflect more secular and tolerant local cultural practices. They reported in particular the building of mosques not in keeping with their traditions of architecture, the creation of religious schools with textbooks produced elsewhere and attempts to make religion a mandatory subject in ordinary schools. There should be thorough consultation among Turkish Cypriots, including civil society and women’s human rights defenders, about any such policies and their potential impact on cultural rights. C. Right to access and enjoy cultural heritage Legacy and impact of destruction9 and looting 1. 36. The UNESCO Declaration concerning the Intentional Destruction of Cultural Heritage defines “intentional destruction” as “an act intended to destroy in whole or in part cultural heritage, thus compromising its integrity, in a manner which constitutes a violation of international law or an unjustifiable offence to the principles of humanity and dictates of public conscience”. The qualification of intentional destruction may also apply in cases of wilful neglect. 37. The mandate of the Special Rapporteur is not designed to protect culture and cultural heritage per se, but the conditions allowing all people without discrimination to have access to, participate in and contribute to cultural life in a continuously developing manner. Those conditions are greatly jeopardized when cultural heritage is at risk or destroyed. Therefore, prima facie, the destruction of cultural heritage must be considered a violation of cultural rights (see A/71/317, para. 13). (a) Legacy of past intentional destruction 38. The histories of widespread destruction of cultural heritage in Cyprus during and after the years of conflict are appalling. Many accounts and statistics are available for the harm done to cultural heritage associated with either Greek Cypriot or Turkish Cypriot sites. Religious sites, cemeteries as well as entire villages have reportedly been destroyed.10 However, the Special Rapporteur did not receive encompassing accounts of the overall destruction in all parts of Cyprus, acknowledging at the same time the harm that has been done in both the south and the north. That is why the holistic approach adopted by the Technical Committee on Cultural Heritage is particularly important. 9 10 8 The Special Rapporteur notes that in recent years, UNESCO has started to use the term “destructions” in certain circumstances, which underscores the multiplicity and diverse nature of this phenomenon, something she too would like to emphasize in the present report. See for example, Evaluation Committee for the Cultural Assets in North and South Cyprus, Destroyed Turkish Villages in South Cyprus (2009), which details claims of destruction of predominantly Turkish Cypriot villages and cultural heritage sites, primarily between the 1950s and 1970s; and A. Papageorghiou, Christian Art in the Turkish-occupied Part of Cyprus (the Holy Archbishopric of Cyprus, January 2010), in which the author alleges systematic destruction of Orthodox Christian churches “after the Turkish invasion in July 1974”. See also Miltos Miltiadou and others, “The loss of a civilization. Destruction of cultural heritage in occupied Cyprus” (2012) on Orthodox, Maronite and Armenian churches and monasteries, cemeteries and archeological sites.