48
CYPRUS v. TURKEY JUDGMENT
the Commission found that displaced persons had no remedies to contest
interferences with their rights under these Articles and that there was a
violation of Article 13 in consequence.
193. The Court notes that in the proceedings before the Commission the
respondent Government pleaded that, pending the elaboration of an agreed
political solution to the overall Cyprus problem, there could be no question
of a right of displaced persons either to return to the homes and properties
which they had left in northern Cyprus or to lay claim to any of their
immovable property vested in the “TRNC” authorities by virtue of
“Article 159 of the TRNC Constitution” and allocated to Turkish Cypriots
with full title deeds in accordance with implementing “Law no. 52/1995”.
The respondent Government did not contend before the Commission that
displaced persons could avail themselves of local remedies to contest this
policy of interference with their rights. Indeed, the Court considers that it
would be at variance with the declared policy to provide for any challenge
to its application. The Court further recalls in this connection that, as
regards the violations alleged under Article 8 of the Convention and
Article 1 of Protocol No. 1, it concluded that no issue arose in respect of the
exhaustion requirement. It refers to the reasons supporting those
conclusions (see paragraphs 171-75 and 184-89 above).
194. For these reasons, the Court, like the Commission, concludes that
there has been a violation of Article 13 of the Convention by reason of the
respondent State's failure to provide to Greek Cypriots not residing in
northern Cyprus any remedies to contest interferences with their rights
under Article 8 of the Convention and Article 1 of Protocol No. 1.
4. Article 14 of the Convention taken in conjunction with Articles 8 and
13 of the Convention and Article 1 of Protocol No. 1
195. The applicant Government stated that the administrative practices,
“legislation” and “constitutional provisions” at issue violated not only the
rights guaranteed by Article 8 of the Convention and Article 1 of Protocol
No. 1 but, being exclusively directed against Greek Cypriots not living in
northern Cyprus, also Article 14 of the Convention. Article 14 of the
Convention provides:
“The enjoyment of the rights and freedoms set forth in [the] Convention shall be
secured without discrimination on any ground such as sex, race, colour, language,
religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, association with a national
minority, property, birth or other status.”
196. Elaborating on their submission, the applicant Government
maintained that the aim of the respondent State was to discriminate against
Greeks and Greek Cypriots since only these classes of persons were
disentitled to acquire immovable property in the “TRNC”. Other “aliens”
such as British retired persons were not prevented from acquiring
immovable property in the “TRNC”, inter alia property which had been