North’s property commission runs out of money

By Staff Reporter

Ankara has told the Turkish Cypriots it would no longer fund compensation for Greek Cypriot properties under the north’s immovable property commission (IPC) and that those people living in them would have to pay a 25 per cent tax over the value of the property, Turkish Cypriot daily Afrika reported on Wednesday.

According to Afrika, Ankara told the breakaway state it would stop funding the IPC, and the Turkish Cypriot side does not have the money to pay off Greek Cypriot applicants who want to sell their property in the north.

Afrika said the plan is now to impose a 25 per cent tax on those holding Greek Cypriot properties. The paper said contacts have already been held with the banks’ union  so that those individuals who cannot pay could secure a loan with the cash going straight to the IPC. The Turkish ‘ambassador’ to the north is reportedly coordinating the initiative.

As of Wednesday, 5,899 applications from Greek Cypriots had been lodged with the IPC. Some 531 have been concluded through friendly settlements and 12 through formal hearing.  The commission has paid out 161.3m sterling (€200m) in total to Greek Cypriots.

The IPC has ruled for exchange and compensation in two cases, for restitution in one case and for restitution and compensation in five cases. In one case it has delivered a decision for restitution after the settlement of Cyprus issue, and in one case it has ruled for partial restitution.

 

The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.