President Mustafa Akinci met with President Nicos Anastasiades today and discussed the thorny issue of property. They agreed on the creation of an independent property commission to handle the issue under a solution, UN Special Adviser Espen Barth Eide said.
Both presidents have agreed that the individual’s right to property would be respected and people would be offered different options to make sure this right was fulfilled. The purpose of the new commission would be to resolve those issues.
“Dispossessed owners and current users shall have various choices regarding their claims to affected properties. These different choices shall include compensation, exchange and reinstatement. The exercise of any such choice shall be subject to agreed criteria. There shall be a list of categories of affected properties”, Eide said.
The UN Special Adviser also stated that an Independent Property Commission compromised of an equal number of Turkish Cypriot and Greek Cypriot members will be mandated to resolve property claims based on mutually agreed criteria.
He noted that the leaders continued to make progress towards their common goal of a united Cyprus.
He also confirmed that Anastasiades and Akinci would attend a concert at the recently-renovated Othello Tower in Famagusta on Tuesday night, which has drawn some criticism from some Greek Cypriot politicians.
Eide said the leaders would break for August and meet again on 1st September with their next meeting scheduled for 14th September. However, the technical teams will continue with their work throughout August.
On his return to the presidential palace, Anastasiades said the talks continued in a good climate and that the announcement made by the UN special adviser “speaks for itself”.
President Akinci said that the months leading up to the end of the year were important because he still believed it was possible to solve the issue within months not years… a federal solution, and one in which the youth of the two sides would live in harmony together.
Cyprus Mail, Kibris Postasi
