By Jean Christou
ALMOST 4,000 Turkish Cypriots have received visas from Britain since the beginning of the year, newspapers in the north reported yesterday.
Quoting British High Commissioner David Madden, Kibris said 3,797 Turkish Cypriots had obtained visas for entry into Britain.
Britain imposed visa restrictions on Turkish Cypriots after receiving thousands of applications for political asylum from people in the north.
Kibris also quoted Madden as saying the number of people who had applied for asylum had dropped from 1,500 families in the three years 1995, 1996 and 1997 to only two families so far in 1998.
Britain said in January it was withdrawing the right of people from the occupied areas to enter the UK without a visa after processing almost 1,000 unfounded asylum claims over a two-year period.
The decision to impose visas was greeted with outrage in the north and prompted a series of counter-measures by the Turkish Cypriot side, including the imposition of ‘visa charges’ on Greek Cypriots and others crossing to the north.
In the past, Britain had accepted ‘TRNC’ travel documents as proof of identity and allowed Turkish Cypriots to enter the United Kingdom without visas, but a significant number of unfounded asylum claims by people travelling with such documents prompted a rethink.
Turkish Cypriots holding passports of the Cyprus Republic can travel to the UK without a visa.
Recent reports in the Turkish press suggested around 10,000 Turkish Cypriots had applied for and received passports from the Cyprus government.
The Cyprus government estimates that Turkey has brought in at least 100,000 settlers since 1974. It was reported last year that many of these Turkish settlers were taking advantage of ‘TRNC citizenship’ rights to enter the UK by the back door.
It is estimated that some 50,000 of the 120,000 Turkish Cypriots who lived on the island in 1974 have emigrated.
A census by the Denktash regime carried out last year put the entire population of the occupied areas at 200,587. The figure does not include the 35,000 Turkish troops stationed in the north.
There are thought to be less than 80,000 Turkish Cypriots living in the occupied areas now.
