NICOSIA, Sept 8 (AFP) - Cyprus supreme court Wednesday rejected a government appeal against a lower court decision not to punish a Greek Cypriot who flew to Turkey from the breakaway north of the divided Mediterranean island.
Attorney general Solon Nikitas had challenged the controversial decision by a Nicosia district court judge not to penalise a 56-year-old Greek Cypriot for the "illegal journey" to Istanbul.
The Cyprus government rules that ports and airports in the self-declared Turkish Republic of North Cyprus are illegal and travel through them to or from the south is an offence.
Nikitas argued that the lower court was "wrong not to impose a penalty" as Neophytos Constantinou had pleaded guilty to the offence. The attorney general asked the supreme court to refer the case back for sentencing.
Dismissing the appeal, the supreme court said the district court "did not exceed its authority or make any apparent legal errors". It said the procedures followed were "legally proper".
Constantinou, the first Greek Cypriot arrested for such an offence, walked free from Nicosia court last month after the judge ruled the case contravened European Union law. Cyprus joined the EU on May 1.
He was released without punishment after pleading guilty to the charge of "exiting and entering the island through an unrecognised port".
The lower court argued that targeting Greek Cypriots was discriminatory because under EU law all EU citizens, including Cypriots, must be able to move freely within the bloc`s external borders and their own country.
The court also stated that the government itself had declared that no EU nationals or Cypriots would face criminal prosecution on this issue.
Since Turkish Cypriots eased travel restrictions in April 2003, and Ankara lifted Cyprus passport procedures, more Greek Cypriots have risked flying to Turkey.
Flying from the north is both quicker and cheaper than flying from Larnaca airport in the south from where there are no direct flights to Turkey.
The self-declared Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus is recognized only by Ankara while the Greek Cypriot administration is the internationally recognised government of Cyprus.
Cyprus has been divided since 1974 when Turkey occupied the island`s northern third in response to a Greek Cypriot coup aimed at uniting Cyprus with Greece.