The 24 April 2004 referenda–the people’s decision2 Following a spirited public debate, the Greek Cypriot voters overwhelmingly rejected Annan V, by a vote of 75,8 percent against 24,2 percent. In contrast, 64,9 percent of the Turkish Cypriot voters approved the plan. It should be noted that settlers from Turkey, who had no legal right to vote, were allowed to do so. The positive Turkish Cypriot vote is easy to explain: uRejection of the authoritarian policies of Rauf Denktash uContinuation of the illegal Turkish Cypriot “state” uLegitimisation of the status of nearly all illegal settlers from Turkey in the Turkish Cypriot component state uPermanent presence of troops from Turkey in Cyprus uRight of Turkey to intervene in Cyprus Finally, the Turkish Cypriot vote was motivated by the anticipation of substantial economic benefits emanating from the accession of Cyprus to the EU and of expected economic support from the Greek Cypriot community. Various legitimate reasons explain the Greek Cypriot negative vote, including: uRigid negotiating deadlines, no real time for discussion of a most complex legal document, and threats expressed or implied by some of the interlocutors if the Greek Cypriots did not accept the UN plan uMajor derogations from the European Convention of Human Rights depriving all Cypriots of fundamental rights, while other EU nationals residing in Cyprus would enjoy all such rights under the Convention uDissolution of the internationally recognized Republic of Cyprus and replacement by a loose confederation of two largely autonomous states uQuestionable functionality of the new state in view of the provisions on the executive, the legislative and the judicial branches, and the presence of enhanced minority vetoes. (Non-Cypriot third parties, unaccountable to the Cypriot public, would cast deciding votes in key policy areas) uConfederal nature of the proposed constitution was reflected in the absence of a provision on the hierarchy of laws. (This carried the risk of jurisdictional conflicts, which would accentuate the divisive nature of the proposed new polity) 2 See Claire Palley, An International Relations Debacle: The UN Secretary-General’s Mission of Good Offices in Cyprus 1999–2004 (Oxford and Portland, Oregon: Hart Publishing, 2005). The Cyprus Question| A brief Introduction 14
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