INDEPTH: CYPRUS
Cyprus:
A divided land
CBC News Online | April 23, 2003
Legend has it that Cyprus is the birthplace of Aphrodite, the love goddess, but the country has been plagued with ethnic fighting between its Turkish and Greek inhabitants since the 1960s. Cyprus is located south of Turkey, and is the third-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.
Part of the Ottoman Empire for 300 years, the country came under British rule in 1914 and became a Crown colony in 1925. Independence from the U.K. was approved in 1960, with constitutional guarantees by the Greek Cypriot majority to the Turkish Cypriot minority.
Since the mid-1970s, Cyprus has been divided by the "Green Line," which is patrolled by the United Nations. The division went up after Turkey invaded the north of the island in response to a military coup backed by Greece. Turkish Cypriots live in the northern one-third and the Greek Cypriots inhabit the two-thirds of the land south of the line.
Greek Cypriots control the only internationally recognized government but on Nov. 15, 1983, Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktash – who calls himself president – formed the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. The TRNC is only recognized by Turkey.
Cypriot President Tassos Papadopoulos is both the chief of state and head of government. The post of vice-president, which under the 1960 constitution is reserved for a Turkish Cypriot, is vacant.
There are slightly more than 800,000 people in Cyprus. Greek Cypriots make up the majority (85 per cent) of the population and Turkish Cypriots make up 11 per cent. The religious split is about 80 per cent Greek Orthodox to about 20 per cent Muslim.
The Greek Cypriot economy is more prosperous than that of Turkish Cyprus, due in large part to difficulties with international trade in the North because the area is only recognized by Turkey.
Political instability in the region makes it vulnerable to drops in tourism and the area is also linked to economic fluctuations in Western Europe. The economic future of the country is heavily dependent on acceptance into the European Union, which means it must address such issues as water shortages in the Turkish area.
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