Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar’s father passes away

Rustem Tatar, the father of Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar, passed away early on Saturday morning.

According to reports from the north his funeral will take place later on Saturday, attended only by close family in keeping with coronavirus measures.

Rustem Tatar was a member of the Turkish Cypriot delegation in the negotiations for the establishment of the Republic of Cyprus.

He was also the first Auditor General of the Republic of Cyprus and represented the Republic in meetings abroad between 1960 and 1963.

After the invasion, he represented the Turkish Cypriot side in the Commission of Inquiry into Missing Persons between 1984 and 2005.

President Nicos Anastasiades expressed his sincere condolences in a telephone conversation with Tatar earlier in the day.

In light of the upcoming informal conference on Cyprus, the two leaders agreed to have a separate meeting in Geneva in addition to the formal meetings scheduled by the UN, government spokesman Kyriacos Koushos said in a written announcement.