A useful CBM: exchange of information on properties

By Andreas D Symeou Confidence building is an essential ingredient for the resumption of talks to resolve the Cyprus problem, as United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres stressed in his statement at the end of his official visit to Cyprus this week. A useful confidence building measure (CBM) would be the exchange of information between the two sides about properties, especially affected properties, ie. immovable properties abandoned by their owners on both sides of the island after the Turkish invasion. Property is the most complicated of the six ‘chapters’ discussed in the negotiations up to now but is also a matter that has plagued, over the years, the owners and users of affected properties on a daily basis. It has been agreed that after a solution a Property Commission will be established to decide the fate of all affected properties. Its first task would be to ascertain the owners of these properties, a tremendously difficult task because most of the land records have not been updated for many decades. To achieve its task the Commission would have to create a computerised system in which all the information contained in the existing land records in the possession of the two sides will be entered, compared and updated. Most of the authentic land registers concerning Turkish Cypriot properties are in the hands of the Republic and most of the authentic land registers concerning Greek Cypriot properties are in the hands of the authorities in the north. The Republic is in possession of all authentic land registers for the districts of Limassol, Larnaca and Paphos and most municipalities and communities of the Nicosia district (both in the government controlled areas and in the occupied areas). In addition, provisional registers for the districts of Kyrenia and Famagusta have been created after the events of 1974, which inevitably contain a lot of errors. Authorities in the north are in possession of the remaining authentic registers, including those of the villages in the government controlled part of Famagusta district (Paralimni, Ayia Napa etc). Inevitably, the lack of access in the last 52 years to the authentic records by owners of most of the affected properties has prevented the updating of the ownership (by way of gift, inheritance, sale etc.) in these records. In addition, there exist many other problems not directly connected to the solution of the Cyprus problem. For example, as already mentioned, the authentic records of the properties in the government controlled areas of the Famagusta district are still kept by authorities in the north and all transactions are carried out on the basis of the provisional records, which contain errors. One could reasonably ask why these are records kept useless in a strong room of the Land Office in occupied Famagusta. What prevents their return to the authorities of the Republic? Has this matter ever been discussed between the two sides? It is my firm conviction that there is an urgent need for exchange of information between the two sides with regard to properties of which the authentic records are in their possession. This can be done either directly by the negotiating teams or (preferably) through a Bicommunal Technical Committee on properties. The first step should be the inspection of the computerised property databases used by the two sides to verify their compatibility. If they are incompatible, measures must be taken to make them compatible. Furthermore, should the data entered into these databases be incomplete (eg, if pre-1974 Greek Cypriot title deeds have not been computerised), a significant amount of additional information currently held in paper format will need to be computerised. The next step should be the gradual exchange between the two sides of the data contained in their respective data bases. The implementation of this proposal will have many benefits including: • the gradual creation of a reliable electronic land information system for all affected properties, • the ascertaining of the current owners of all affected properties, • the creation of a climate of trust and conditions of transparency, • the facilitation of the discussions on the property issue in case of resumption of talks, • the facilitation of the work of the Property Commission to be established after the solution. An agreement on this proposal would be beneficial to both parties. A similar agreement was reached many years ago under similar circumstances. Before the outbreak of the riots of 1963-1964, the Nicosia District Land Registry was housed in the Turkish sector of Nicosia. After the riots, around 1967, a gentlemen’s agreement was reached and the registers relating to Greek Cypriot or mainly Greek Cypriot municipalities and communities were returned to the authorities of the Republic. Andreas D Symeou, LLB, MSc, ARICS, is former head/member of the Greek Cypriot working group on properties