Cyprus
Excerpted from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Map of Cyprus
The Republic of Cyprus (Greek: Kypros; Turkish: Kibris)
is an island nation in the eastern Mediterranean Sea,
113 kilometres (70 miles) south of Turkey and
around 120 km west of the Syrian coast.
Details:
Name: in Greek; Kibris Cumhuriyeti,
in English; Republic of Cyprus
Motto: None
Anthem: Ymnos pros tin Eleutherian #1
Capital: Nicosia (pop. 200,686)
Largest city: Nicosia (Officially: Lefcosia)
Official languages: Greek and Turkish
Independence: Declared; 16 August 1960, #2
Recognised; from the UK 16 August 1960.
Area: 9,250 4 km² #3
Population: 780,133 . 2005 est. #4
Currency: Cyprus Pound (CYP)
Time zone: EEST (UTC+3)
. Summer (DST) EET (UTC+2)
Internet TLD: .cy
Calling code: +357 #5
1. "Ymnos pros tin Eleutherian" is also used as
the national anthem of Greece.
The TRNC uses the Turkish national anthem
2. Not recognised by Turkey, which instead recognises TRNC
3. Of which 5,895 km² is in the south and 3,355 km² in the north
4. Number does not include 323,657 inhabitants in the north
5. +90-392 (a Turkish access number) is used in the north
Name and position
The word for the metal "copper" in the English
language (and many other languages) stems from
the Latin phrase aes Cyprium , "metal of Cyprus",
later shortened to cuprum, "copper".
Large deposits of copper are found on the island.
Cyprus is geographically in Western Asia
(or the Near East), though politically and
culturally it is considered as being in Europe.
Historically, Cyprus has always been a bridgehead
between Europe and Asia, with interchanging
periods of Levantine, Anatolian,
and Greek influences.
Political division
Cyprus gained independence from the United
Kingdom in 1960, with the UK, Greece and
Turkey retaining limited rights to
intervene in internal affairs.
The Republic of Cyprus is the
internationally recognised government
of the island, and it controls the
southern two-thirds of the island.
Almost all foreign governments and the
United Nations recognise the sovereignty
of the Republic of Cyprus over
the whole island of Cyprus.
Turkish Cypriots, together with Turkey,
do not accept the Republic's rule over
the whole island and call it the "Greek
Authority of Southern Cyprus".
They control the northern third of the
island, following a military
invasion by Turkey in 1974.
This happened following a coup sponsored
by the military regime of Greece.
The Turkish Cypriot area proclaimed its
independence in 1975, and the self-styled
Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus was
established in 1983.
This state was recognised only by Turkey.
Furthermore, Organization of the Islamic
Conference granted it observer member
status under the name of
"Turkish Cypriot State".
The other power with territory on
Cyprus is the United Kingdom.
Under the independence agreement, the UK
retained title to two areas on the southern
coast of the island, around Akrotiri and
Dhekelia, known collectively as
the UK sovereign base areas.
They are used as military bases.
Reunification
Negotiations have been ongoing for years
to reunite the island, but have not
as yet seen substantial success.
A United Nations plan, announced on
31 March 2004 following talks in Switzerland,
was put to both sides in separate
referenda on 24 April 2004.
On the referendum, the proposed reunification
was favoured by the Turkish Cypriots by a
majority of 2 to 1, but was rejected by
the Greek Cypriots by a 3 to 1 margin.
As a result, while officially the whole of
Cyprus entered the European Union on
1 May 2004, the de facto EU border runs along
the Green Line, dividing the country between
the Greek and Turkish Cypriot parts.
EU law is currently not applied in
the Turkish occupied north.
The Union has promised to send aid in the
form of money and work towards lifting the
trade sanctions imposed by the European Court,
but they have ruled out diplomatic
recognition of northern Cyprus.
As to date, the self declared Turkish Republic
of Northern Cyprus, recognized only by Turkey,
has yet to see any promised aid
or easing of trade sanctions.
History
There are but scanty traces of the Stone Age,
but the Bronze Age is characterized by a
well-developed and clearly marked civilization.
The people early learned to work the rich
copper mines of the island.
The Mycenæan civilization of the West seems to
have reached the island around 1600 B.C.
The Greek and Phonician settlements
belong to the Iron Age.
The island was invaded by Thothmes III of Egypt
about 1500 B.C., and was forced to pay tribute.
In the eighth century before Christ it was
tributary to the Assyrians.
Cyprus has been badgered by its powerful nearby
nations for more than 3,000 years.
In ancient times Cyprus supplied the
Greeks with timber for their fleets.
In the sixth century B.C., Amasis of Egypt
conquered Cyprus, which soon fell under the
rule of the Persians when
Cambyses conquered Egypt.
Alexander the Great (356-323 B.C.) wrested
the island away from the Persians.
Later, Egypt controlled it, then
Rome annexed it in 58-57 BC.
During the reign of Trajan (116 AD), an
estimated 240,000 people were slain when
it was the scene of a rising by the Jews,
who were defeated by the Romans everywhere
in the Roman Empire about 137 and
scattered to many places.
Byzantine emperors took control after the
partitioning of the Roman Empire, then
Arabs took control in 646.
Greeks, Arabs, and Byzantine emperors badgered
Cyprus until 1184 when Isaac Comnenus of Cyprus
made Cyprus an independent sovereignty.
The Republic of Venice took control in 1489,
after which the Turks invaded
and took control in 1570.
Cyprus was placed under British control on July 12,
1878 due to the proceedings at the Congress of Berlin.
Compulsory reafforestation has been
introduced into Cyprus.
The Famagusta harbor was completed
in June, 1906.
Cyprus was ceded to United Kingdom in 1913.
Geography
The central plain (Mesaoria) with the
Kyrenia/Girne and Pentadactylos/Besparmak
mountains to the north and the Troodos mountain
range to the south and west.
There are also scattered but significant
plains along the southern coast.
The climate is temperate, Mediterranean
with hot, dry summers and cool,
variably rainy winters.
Politics
After independence Cyprus became a founding
member of the Non-Aligned Movement despite
all three guarantor powers (Greece, Turkey
and the UK) being NATO members.
Cyprus left the Non-Aligned Movement
in 2004 to join the EU.
Following the independence of Cyprus from
the UK, Cyprus had three referendums on the
issue of wether they wanted
to be annexed by Greece.
All three referendums voted on a margin of 9
to 1, to be annexed by Greece, however it
said that Greek Prime Minister Kostantinos
Karamanlis accepted foreign pressure which did
not want Greece to obtain Cyprus, and did
not claim Cyprus.
Since 1974, Cyprus has been divided de facto
into the Greek government-controlled southern
two-thirds of the island and the
Turkish-Cypriot northern one-third.
The Government of the Republic of Cyprus has
continued as the internationally recognised
authority; in practice, its power extends only
to the Greek Cypriot-controlled areas.
The 1960 Cypriot Constitution provided for a
presidential system of government with independent
executive, legislative, and judicial branches,
as well as a complex system of checks and balances,
including a weighted power-sharing ratio designed
to protect the interests of the Turkish Cypriots.
The executive, for example, was headed by a Greek
Cypriot president and a Turkish Cypriot vice president,
elected by their respective communities for 5-year
terms and each possessing a right of veto over
certain types of legislation
and executive decisions.
The House of Representatives was elected on the
basis of separate voters' rolls.
Since 1964, following clashes between the two
communities the Turkish seats in the House have
been vacant after their unilateral withdrawal
from the government and the Greek Cypriot
Communal Chamber was abolished.
The responsibilities of the chamber were
transferred to the newly
founded Ministry of Education.
In 1974, in order to prevent Greece from
annexing Cyprus after a CIA-backed coup,
the Turkish Army invaded Cyprus.
The Turks proceeded and the military invasion
of Turkish forces (claiming their authority
was as one of the 3 international guarantors
of Cyprus), 195,000 majority Greek Cypriots were
forcibly expelled from the north and 55,000
Turkish Cypriots from the south were
similarly forced to the north.
Ever since, Turkish Cypriots unilaterally set up
their own institutions with a popularly elected
president and a Prime Minister responsible to
the National Assembly exercising
joint executive powers.
In 1983, the Turkish Cypriots declared an
independent "Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus"
(TRNC,) contrary to numerous UN SC resolutions
calling such an act as illegal and a by-product
of a foreign (Turkish) intervention.
In 1985, they adopted a constitution and held
elections - an arrangement
recognised only by Turkey.
Economy
Economic affairs in Cyprus are dominated by
the division of the country into the southern
(Greek) area controlled by the Cyprus Government
and the northern Turkish
Cypriot-administered area.
The Greek Cypriot economy is prosperous but
highly susceptible to external shocks.
Erratic growth rates in the 1990s reflect
the economy's vulnerability to swings in
tourist arrivals, caused by political instability
on the island and fluctuations in economic
conditions in Western Europe.
Economic policy in the south is focused on
meeting the criteria for admission
to the European Union.
As in the Turkish sector, water shortage
is a growing problem, and several
desalination plants are planned.
The Turkish Cypriot economy has about
one-fifth the population and one-third
the per capita GDP of the south.
Because it is recognised only by Turkey, it
has had much difficulty arranging foreign
financing, and foreign firms have
hesitated to invest there.
The economy remains heavily dependent on
agriculture and government service, which
together employ about half of the work force.
Moreover, the small, vulnerable economy has
suffered because the Turkish lira is legal tender.
To compensate for the economy's weakness,
Turkey provides direct and indirect aid
to tourism, education, industry, etc.
The end of the Cold War marked the beginning
of a new era, in which respect and cooperation
between nations, commitment to human rights,
democracy and the rule of law are recognized
as being of fundamental importance.
Within this new environment, the Cyprus
issue is not only a glaring anachronism, but
also continues to be a factor of potential
instability in the Southeastern Mediterranean.
Hence, apart from moral obligation, the
international community has an additional
reason to contribute to efforts towards
a just and viable solution.
Demographics
Greek and Turkish Cypriots share many customs
but maintain their ethnicity based on religion,
language, and close ties with
their respective motherlands.
Greek language is predominantly spoken in
the south, Turkish language in the north.
This delineation of languages is true only
in the present period, due to the post-1974
division of the island, which involved an
expulsion of Greek Cypriots from the north and
the analoguous move of Turkish
Cypriots from the south.
Historically however, Greek (its Cypriot
dialect) was spoken by nearly 82% of the
population, which was evenly distributed along
the entire area of Cyprus, north and south.
Similarly, Turkish speakers were evenly distributed.
English is widely understood.
Education
Cyprus has a well-developed system of
primary and secondary education.
The majority of Cypriots earn their higher
education at Greek, Turkish, British, or US
universities, while there are also sizeable
emigrant communities in the
United Kingdom and Australia.
Private colleges and state-supported
universities have been developed by
both the Turkish and Greek communities.
Although the Cypriote system follows the
Greek system in the south and the
Turkish system in the north.
A large amount of students(after A levels)
are studying abroad mainly in English
speaking countries in the US, UK, Australia
but also in other European destination
such as France, Germany etc.
With the opening of eastearn Europe the students
also have the opportunities to go to
universities of Romania, Hungary etc.
External links
This page was retrieved and condensed from
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyprus)
August 2005
All text is available under the terms of the
GNU Free Documentation License (see
Copyrights for details).
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