Demetriou calls on Turkey to ‘contribute’ to search for missing persons

House President Annita Demetriou called on Turkey to “contribute” to the search for missing persons in Cyprus on Thursday.

She said the House of Representatives expresses its “undivided support for our missing persons,” and said Turkey should “contribute to the solution of the problem with respect to the relevant decisions of the European Court of Human rights and resolutions of the United Nations.”

She noted that October was the 49th anniversary of the final release of Greek Cypriots captured by Turkish forces, saying “unfortunately today, almost 50 years later, despite the remarkable efforts of the Republic of Cyprus and the Committee on Missing Persons (CMP), the fate of hundreds of our compatriots still remains unknown.”

Her comments come two weeks after Turkey donated €100,000 to the CMP, the latest of the country’s annual donations.

Handing the cheque to the CMP’s Turkish Cypriot member Hakki Muftuzade, Turkish Ambassador in northern Nicosia Metin Feyzioglu said the CMP’s work “goes beyond politics”, and that Turkey “wholeheartedly shares the pain of the waiting families who are desperate to know the fate of their missing relatives.”