Conflict resolution in Cyprus : formal negotiations and bi-communal civil society efforts to move beyond the constitutional issues

Abstract

The Cyprus conflict, being almost half a century long, is considered today as a clear example of negative peace, where mistrust and negative perceptions which the two communities in the island hold of each other, of Turkey, Greece, and the United Kingdom, are seen as standing in the way of its resolution and the transformation to an environment of positive peace. Several studies in Cyprus illustrate that most of the efforts to resolve the conflict focuses in the achievement of a political agreement, while the Cypriot public has little say in the peace process. Following a description of the situation in the island since the opening of crossings in 2003 and the post-referendum atmosphere, the dissertation provides an analysis of whether the existing environment in Cyprus helps to address the elements that sustained the Cypriot conflict up to the present day and provide the opportunity of reconciliation of the people. The dissertation shall support the view that there are substantial barriers and political interests that hinder reconciliation and cooperation between Greek and Turkish-Cypriots. Despite this, the untroubled intermix of Greek and Turkish-Cypriots since 2003 and the narratives of benign gestures from the inhabitants of one community towards the other, allow us to preserve a slight hope about people's power to gradually achieve reconciliation.