President says will punish those usurping Greek Cypriot property

We will do everything possible to punish those responsible for usurping Greek Cypriot property, President Nikos Christodoulides said on Sunday, adding that the government does not politicise the issue, which he described as one of human rights.

Asked if prosecuting usurpers was something that should have been done earlier, he said yes but President Christodoulides said that perhaps things should have been done earlier, but he did not want to get stuck in the past.

“I am referring to what is happening today,” he said, adding that the individual right to property “cannot be questioned.”

Illegal actions are being taken by some, he continued, adding that on behalf of the Republic “we will do everything possible to punish those responsible” and that it is within this framework that the government’s actions are taking place.

He said these are “within the framework of legality, and to deal with such situations which, truth be told, have recently increased.

“So it is a conscious choice from the first day we took office,” he said.

“Under no circumstances are we politicizing the issue, it is a matter of human rights, a matter of legality, of justice.”