LEFKOSA - Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) President Rauf Denktas said on Friday that human rights had been violated in Cyprus for 40 years.
Denktas departed from TRNC to Istanbul to attend a meeting on legal aspect of Cyprus issue held by Artvin Bar in Black Sea Artvin province.
Denktas released a statement at Gecitkale Airport. Touching on the legal aspect of Cyprus issue, Denktas said that the world had not accepted yet the existing situation in Cyprus issue. He added that the legal aspect of Cyprus issue was also including human rights and human rights had been violated for 40 years in Cyprus.
Denktas said, ''in no place of the world, a side, which attempts to overthrow the legal government and does not become successful, is given the title of legal government and the other side, which defends its legal rights by not yielding to this illegal administration, is put pressure as if saying 'you have to yield this illegal administration'. This is what happens in Cyprus. If we can explain this to the law circles, then, I think that the discrimination which has been imposed on Turkish Cypriots for 40 years can be started to be examined.''
Calling on the TRNC bar, Denktas said that he hoped that TRNC bar would take the necessary initiative by considering the issue in this aspect and he wanted TRNC bar to establish the necessary contacts with its counterparts in Turkey and in the world.
Denktas said, ''if this is made, it will be explained how Cyprus issue is taken up in such a strange way in legal aspect and how powerful countries of the world put pressure on innocent people to reach a result by acting unjustly.''
(GC-Öª) 13.09.2003