Karaca: IPC's Path Could Block New Greek Cypriot Property Cases at ECHR

Kayhan Karaca, an experienced correspondent for NTV who has been following decisions of the Council of Europe and the ECHR for nearly 30 years in Strasbourg, shared his insights with the Turkish Agency Cyprus (TAK).

Karaca emphasized that "the decision by the Committee of Ministers is significant for the legal and political existence of the IPC," reminding that the IPC was established with the approval of the Council of Europe and functions as a domestic remedy for Greek Cypriots in the eyes of the ECHR.

"Greek Cypriots have put considerable effort into ensuring this body is not recognized on the European platform for political reasons," Karaca noted. "They have tried to prevent their citizens from applying to the Commission, but to no avail. Thousands of Greek Cypriots applied to the IPC with compensation claims before taking their cases to the ECHR, and many reached amicable settlements with the Commission."

Karaca acknowledged that there were occasional issues, particularly in the payment of compensation by the IPC, which led to new Greek Cypriot cases being brought to the ECHR. "As a result, the IPC began to be re-examined in Strasbourg, which was exactly what the Greek Cypriot Administration wanted," he explained.

He pointed out that the amicable settlement reached in the Rock Ruby Hotels Ltd. case, where the payment was made and the claimant sent a letter to Strasbourg stating, 'I have received what I wanted, I request that my case be closed,' was a crucial development.

"The Committee of Ministers, based on the available data, decided to close the case this week. In other words, they sent a message that the IPC is functioning. Years later, the Council of Europe once again accepted that the IPC is a functioning body. If the IPC continues to operate effectively, Greek Cypriots will be prevented from filing new property cases at the ECHR, and the political pressure on Ankara regarding Cyprus cases before the Committee will be reduced," Karaca said.

He also noted that this decision is both a legal and political blow for the Greek Cypriots, as they failed to get their arguments accepted in Strasbourg. However, he reminded that "the Greek Cypriot cases on the Committee of Ministers' agenda are not over. Most of their enforcement processes are still ongoing and will continue in the coming months. Additionally, the interstate case that the Greek Cypriots won against Ankara remains on the Committee's agenda."