President Ersin Tatar issued a written statement on Thursday marking the 21st anniversary of the Annan Plan referendum.
Noting that it had been 21 years since the United Nations proposed the Annan Plan as a solution to the nearly century-old Cyprus issue, Tatar reminded that on April 24, 2004, the Turkish Cypriots voted overwhelmingly “yes” to the plan in the hope of a lasting solution, while the Greek Cypriot side rejected it with more than 75% voting “no.”
The President noted that despite all promises made before and after the referendum, the European Union – one of the plan’s strongest supporters – saw no issue in granting EU membership to the Greek Cypriot side alone, contrary to the founding agreements of the island.
“The primary reason for the Cyprus issue remaining unresolved for so many years is the Greek Cypriot side’s persistent attitude of ignoring Turkish Cypriots, treating us as a so-called small minority, and constantly denying our will and our right to sovereign equality” Tatar noted.
He stated that since 1974, there had been no bloodshed or inter-communal conflict on the island, thanks to the de facto two-state system with defined geographical borders currently in effect.
President Tatar stressed that no one should doubt their determination to further strengthen the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus – the final phase of the Turkish Cypriot people’s century-long struggle for national freedom – with the full support of motherland Türkiye.
Calling on the UN, the EU, and the Greek Cypriot administration to lift the unjust and inhumane isolations and restrictions imposed on the Turkish Cypriot people, he also criticized the legal pressures and unjust detentions targeting the real estate sector, stating that such actions contradicted the rhetoric of peace and reconciliation.