There are Turkish Cypriots who reside in the South either because they opted not to become refugees in 1974 or because they returned some time in the 1980s or 1990s. There are several articles in the international press that involve violations of the human rights of these individuals. In general, stories in the Cyprus press and statements by governmental institutions, such as the police, have created a negative picture of them (e.g. often portraying them as Turkish spies). Two articles from Agence France Presse document human rights violations of Turkish Cypriots living in the South. The first deals with police brutality in an incident that took place in 1995^iv and the second deals with the notorious law that prohibited any civil intermarriage between a Turkish Cypriot and a third person^v. (See also the case of Kemal Selim Vs the republic of Cyprus by Olga Demetriou). Given the small size of this community and its positive contribution to the reconciliation process, it is a shame that it has had to face so many problems. Its position has improved rapidly since the 1990s. However, one major issue to be resolved is the return of the properties of Turkish Cypriots willing to resettle in the South. The Cyprus Action Network supports the return of properties of all permanently resettling Turkish Cypriots within a reasonable timeframe and encourages relevant decisions which have been recently taken on this issue.

Cyprus said Friday it will pay 10,400 British pounds (15,370 dollars) ordered by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) for the mistreatment of a Turkish Cypriot drug suspect.

"The government always abides by the decisions of international bodies," Government spokesman Michalis Papapetrou told reporters Friday. Attorney-general Alecos Markides said there would be "full compliance" but stressed the European court's penalty was much less than the 600,000 pounds (889,139 dollars) demanded in compensation.

Erkan Emes, 33, was badly beaten when arrested for allegedly possessing two kilos of hashish (4.4 pounds) during a Greek Cypriot police sting operation in October 1995. After a failed escape bid, Egmez was hit on the head with a gun by members of a Cypriot anti-drug unit, near the buffer zone separating the north and south of the disputed island.

The police case against him was thrown out by the attorney-general who ordered his release in December 1995. Emes filed a complaint with the EHCR shortly afterwards .

In an independent inquiry, the Cypriot ombudsman criticised the police action as "brutal and inhumane". Most of Emes' time in custody was spent in the hospital.

It is believed to be the first time that Cyprus has been fined by the ECHR on ill treatment charges.

Breaking a longstanding taboo, Cypriot MPs are seeking to amend the island's constitution to allow the divided communities of Orthodox Greek Cypriots and Muslim Turkish Cypriots to intermarry.

The constitution is particularly harsh on love-struck Turkish Cypriots who live in the ethnically Greek south, as they cannot marry anyone outside their small community in a civil ceremony. "Any civil marriage by a Turkish Cypriot with a Greek Cypriot or with a foreigner is considered illegal," said George Christofides, one of three MPs who have drafted a proposal to change the constitution. "It is a sensitive issue, but we are treating it as a matter of human rights and trying to avoid any political confrontations," he told AFP.

Under the 1960 constitution, all marriages in Cyprus had to be performed by the Cyprus Orthodox Church. A 1990 measure provided for civil marriage, but only for the Greek Cypriot community.

"This is against each individual's human rights," Christofides said.

He said the Cyprus government has been taken to the European Court of Human Rights by a Turkish Cypriot who was forced to marry his Romanian wife outside the island.

"We are expecting a judgement in two or three months, so the government must restore Turkish Cypriot human rights on this matter as soon as possible," said Christofides.

The Cyprus Orthodox Church lets Turkish Cypriots marry Greeks, but only if they convert, which happens rarely.

Amending the constitution in favour of Turkish Cypriots is widely considered a vote-losing exercise for the Greek Cypriot parliament at a time when the northern third of the island is occupied by Turkey, which invaded in 1974 in response to an Athens-backed coup in Nicosia.

Only about 1,000 Turkish Cypriots still live in southern Cyprus.