[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 109 (Wednesday, July 20, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1364-E1365]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               THE THIRTY-SEVEN YEAR OCCUPATION OF CYPRUS

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. CHRISTOPHER H. SMITH

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, July 20, 2011

  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to address ongoing 
human rights

[[Page E1365]]

violations in occupied northern Cyprus. Today is the 37th anniversary 
of the illegal 1974 invasion--a terrible tragedy, and an ongoing one, 
as the continued occupation of that country by tens of thousands of 
Turkish troops continues to deprive of their homes all those forced to 
flee the north--estimated to number approximately 200,000. Many Greek 
Cypriots escaped the north with little more than the clothes on their 
backs. While some have returned to visit their own homes or ancestral 
villages, none have been allowed to take back their rightful property--
those despoiled include an estimated 5,000 Americans of Cypriot 
descent. Several hundred courageous Greek Cypriots, mainly elderly 
people, refused to be uprooted and today live in enclaves, the remnant 
of once-thriving Greek Cypriot communities which have effectively been 
ethnically cleansed.
  Hundreds of churches, chapels and monasteries once dotted the rugged 
landscape of the region, part of Cyprus's rich religious cultural 
heritage. Indeed, St. Paul visited the island nation on one of his 
early missionary journeys, and St. Barnabas, a native of the Cypriot 
city of Salamis, was martyred nearby for his defense of Christianity. 
The Helsinki Commission, of which I am the Chairman in this Congress, 
has documented the desecration and destruction of some of the over 500 
religious sites in the occupied area looted of their priceless icons, 
mosaics and frescoes once revered by the faithful. Many of these sacred 
objects, stolen from churches inside or adjoining Turkish military 
bases, have landed on the international art market. Even the dead are 
not allowed to rest in peace with destruction of cemeteries rampant 
throughout the region. Cypriot authorities interdicted a container 
originating in the occupied area filled with metal destined for a 
recycling facility in Asia. Upon inspection agents found that the unit 
consisted of metal crosses and stolen grave markers.
  Mr. Speaker, I remain deeply concerned over ongoing violations of 
freedom of religion and other rights in northern Cyprus. Let there be 
no mistake, the Turkish government is responsible for what happens in 
the occupied part of the island. Last Christmas, a small group of 
Orthodox believers gathered in the village of Rizokarpaso to celebrate 
the divine liturgy--only to have their worship disrupted by Turkish 
security forces, who ordered them to disperse. The Helsinki Commission 
continues to receive reports of the demolition of churches in the 
region even as others are converted to commercial use as warehouses, 
barns, or casinos.
  Mr. Speaker, the nearly four-decade-long illegal occupation of 
northern Cyprus by Turkey is an affront to the principles enshrined in 
the Helsinki Final Act and an encroachment on the fundamental freedoms 
and human rights of Greek Cypriots living in the region's enclaves and 
those forced to flee the area following the 1974 invasion. Our 
government must continue to engage on behalf of the human rights of 
Greek Cypriots.

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