‘Measures for Turkish Cypriots are an admission of guilt’

The 14-point package of measures announced by President Nikos Christodoulides are an “admission of guilt”, Serdar Denktash said.

“The Greek Cypriot side did not prepare these proposals for us; they prepared them with the aim of appearing pleasant to the United Nations. These 14 points are an admission of guilt for usurping our human rights,” he said.

With this in mind, he said the Turkish Cypriot side should also present suggestions to UN Envoy Maria Angela Holguin, and that “the manner in which our human rights were usurped must be explained”.

“The steps we could take unilaterally should have been prepared and presented to the envoy, but I do not know if such a thing has been done,” he said.

He added that talks regarding a potential federal solution to the Cyprus problem should now be “left behind”, saying “it is not right to insist on a federation. We have tried this for years, we must now develop another idea which will redefine political equality.”

“While those in the south continue their own discussions, they manage to present a united front on the Cyprus problem. We cannot agree with each other internally nor externally. We must correct this approach as soon as possible,” he said.

To this end, he pointed out that Turkish Cypriot society is divided between those in favour of a federal solution and those in favour of a two-state solution and said a “common solution can be found between these two polar opposites”.

“It is possible to meet with one voice, a common compromise, and announce it to the world. If we can reach an agreement among ourselves, we know for sure that we will receive assured support from Ankara,” he said.

Additionally, he expressed his support for the north to change its political system from its current parliamentary system to a presidential one.

Denktash is not the first high-profile Turkish Cypriot politician to make such a suggestion, with both ‘foreign minister’ Tahsin Ertugruloglu and ‘transport minister’ Erhan Arikli having made similar calls in recent months.

He said such a change is “necessary”, and that “we must sit down and talk about a proper presidential system which can function in the way we desire.”

“We need to see that we are not getting anywhere by blaming one another. What we need to understand is that our system is not complete. The problems brought by this system are dragging us … towards a terrible place,” he said.

He added, “at the end of the day, when we compare ourselves with the south, we must regain a self-confidence which says ‘despite the help they receive from the rest of the world, we are not to be underestimated’.”

Not all Turkish Cypriot politicians are on board with the idea of moving away from the federal model, however.

Opposition party CTP Leader Tufan Erhurman on Wednesday evening said “it is clear what can happen and what cannot happen.”

“The will of the Turkish Cypriot side for a solution was evident both in 2004 and 2007,” he said, referencing both the Annan plan referendum and Crans Montana.

“That being the case, what is the benefit to a solution to the Cyprus problem, or to us, if Christodoulides, one of those who flipped the table in 2017, gets to be presented with the status of being ‘the side which seeks a solution based on UN Security Council resolutions’ on a silver platter?” he asked.