President Ersin Tatar said on Friday that the reopening of the fenced-off town of Maraş was a decision long overdue for the Turkish Cypriot people.

Tatar’s words came during an interview with the Anadolu News Agency on the 2nd anniversary of the Maraş initiative.

He said that the opening of the fenced-off town marked the beginning of a new era in Cyprus politics, one that was in harmony with the Turkish Cypriot side’s two-state policy.

The partial opening up of the fenced off town in Gazimağusa began two years ago this month when a number of streets were cleared and beaches upgraded.

3.5 per cent of Maraş, around five square kilometres, was demilitarised and opened for settlement on a pilot basis last year, as part of the second phase of the initiative.             This is the area now being worked on.

Since then the resort town has seen thousands of visitors from both sides of the island and abroad.

Speaking to the Anadolu News Agency, President Ersin Tatar said that close to 750,000 people had visited Maraş since it was first opened to visitors on October 8, 2020.

“Maraş has become a centre of attraction as it deserves,” Tatar said, adding that the opening of the town had brought many benefits for the Turkish Cypriots in terms of tourism, the economy but also politically.

He pointed out that reopening the fenced of resort town had been a dream of the late founding President Rauf Denktaş who was quoted as saying that the city should no longer remain closed.

“The reopening of Maraş was a decision long overdue for Turkish Cypriots who have suffered greatly under the embargoes and from international isolation. We needed to take a step in response to our unjust treatment by the international community. The Maraş initiative and the two-state solution policy are part of the same step,” he said.

Tatar complained that the Turkish Cypriot people’s desire for a federal settlement safeguarded by Türkiye, had not received the support of the Greek Cypriot side.

“We said ‘yes’ to the Annan Plan, they [Greek Cypriots] said ‘no’. They were rewarded with EU membership. The EU should feel ashamed of its treatment of Turkish Cypriots,” the president added.

Tatar also pointed out that the initiative had brought life to Gazimağusa which had a great tourism potential as Maraş had now been converted into a “museum city”.

The president however pointed out that the town’s former residents needed to apply to the Immovable Property Commission (IPC) which is recognised as a domestic legal remedy by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) regarding their property in Maraş.

“The IPC has currently received 500 applications from Greek Cypriots. The Cyprus Turkish Vakıflar [Foundations] Administration has also applied to the commission seeking its property rights which date back to Ottoman times,” Tatar said.

He admitted that there were some complications but said he was confident the IPC will settle these issues.

“Greek Cypriots will be free to return or sell their properties in Maraş. But it’s important that this process is carried out through the IPC so as to be in accordance with international law,” Tatar said.

The president concluded his remarks by thanking everyone who contributed and participated in the reopening of the resort town, adding that the next step will be to open some public buildings in the area.