CYPRUS v. TURKEY JUDGMENT
9
reportedly killed by Turkish-Cypriot fighters; the written statements of
witnesses tending to corroborate the Commission's earlier findings that
many persons now missing were taken into custody by Turkish soldiers or
Turkish-Cypriot paramilitaries.
26. The Commission concluded that, notwithstanding evidence of the
killing of Greek-Cypriot prisoners and civilians, there was no proof that any
of the missing persons were killed in circumstances for which the
respondent State could be held responsible; nor did the Commission find
any evidence to the effect that any of the persons taken into custody were
still being detained or kept in servitude by the respondent State. On the
other hand, the Commission found it established that the facts surrounding
the fate of the missing persons had not been clarified by the authorities and
brought to the notice of the victims' relatives.
27. The Commission further concluded that its examination of the
applicant Government's complaints in the instant application was not
precluded by the ongoing work of the CMP. It noted in this connection that
the scope of the investigation being conducted by the CMP was limited to
determining whether or not any of the missing persons on its list were dead
or alive; nor was the CMP empowered to make findings either on the cause
of death or on the issue of responsibility for any deaths so established.
Furthermore, the territorial jurisdiction of the CMP was limited to the island
of Cyprus, thus excluding investigations in Turkey where some of the
disappearances were claimed to have occurred. The Commission also
observed that persons who might be responsible for violations of the
Convention were promised impunity and that it was doubtful whether the
CMP's investigation could extend to actions by the Turkish army or Turkish
officials on Cypriot territory.
2. Alleged violations of the rights of the displaced persons to respect
for their home and property
28. The Commission established the facts under this heading against the
background of the applicant Government's principal submission that over
211,000 displaced Greek Cypriots and their children continued to be
prevented as a matter of policy from returning to their homes in northern
Cyprus and from having access to their property there for any purpose. The
applicant Government submitted that the presence of the Turkish army
together with “TRNC”-imposed border restrictions ensured that the return
of displaced persons was rendered physically impossible and, as a corollary,
that their cross-border family visits were gravely impeded. What started as a
gradual and continuing process of illegality over the years had now resulted
in the transfer of the property left behind by the displaced persons to the
“TRNC” authorities without payment of compensation and its reassignment, together with “title deeds”, to State bodies, Turkish Cypriots
and settlers from Turkey.