Identity Contestations in the Turkish Cypriot Community and the Peace Process in Cyprus

Abstract

This paper will explore Turkish Cypriot identity in a historical setting and scrutinize the scope of identity contestations within the community in the context of growing affiliation with the European Union. Highlighting the effects of significant issues such as immigration, demographic change, political uncertainty, isolation and economic transformation, it aims to reveal how different notions of identity shapes the preferences of diverse actors in Cyprus by determining available and legitimate policy options in peace negotiations. Particular attention is paid to the post-Annan Plan period and how consecutive failures in negotiations and enduring political limbo leads to new understandings of identity and the emergence of new political parties and movements with alternative preferences concerning the Cyprus Dispute. The paper will conclude that as long as uncertainty continues on the island, the debates over identity and the tension between ethnic and civic understandings of it will remain high and will continue to shape Turkish Cypriot politics.

Nationalism and Reconciliation in Cypriot Documentary Film, 1976–1987

“…As he noted, the Cyprus Republic was established on the Hellenic and Turkic concepts and citizenship of the republic was linked to the ethnic communities instead of common citizenship. So the formation of Cypriotism for Mavratsas refers to the idea that Cyprus has its own particular character that is different from the motherland's characteristics (cited in Gülseven, 2020). In this context, Hadjipavlou (2010) says that "both main ethnic communities looked to outside parties to realize their visions.…”