members of the House of Representatives withdrew from the Parliament, and Turkish Cypriot civil servants ceased toattend their jobs. Eventually, Turkish Cypriots withdrew from all state institutions and government agencies. There were flare-ups of intercommunal violence in 1963–64 and again in 1967. Turkey threatened to intervene militarily in Cyprus but international pressure prevented a military invasion in 1964 and 1967. Following the threats by Turkey against Cyprus, the Government of the Republic of Cyprus brought the matter to the UN Security Council. The Security Council unanimously adopted resolution 186 of 4 March 1964, whose basic principles have guided international actions on Cyprus ever since. This resolution: l Established the UN Secretary-General’s mission of good offices aiming at a peaceful solution on the basis of an agreed settlement in accordance with the UN Charter l Created UNFICYP, the UN peacekeeping force on Cyprus l Reaffirmed the sovereignty and continuing existence of the Republic of Cyprus l Reaffirmed the continuity of the Government of the Republic of Cyprus. Despite calls by the Security Council to respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of Cyprus and to abstain from the threat or use of force against it, Turkey’s air force bombed Cypriot villages in August 1964. On 26 March 1965, UN mediator Dr Galo Plaza issued one of the most significant reports ever to be prepared on Cyprus (S/6253). The Plaza report considered the 1959 arrangement as “a constitutional oddity;” questioned the functionality of federalism demanded by the Turkish side due to the hardship and inhumane nature inherent in population movements; was critical of disproportionate minority vetoes; and perceived the protection of the rights of minorities to be in international instruments such as the European Convention. Arguing strongly against the geographical separation of the two communities advocated by the Turkish side, Dr Plaza stated that: If the purpose of a settlement of the Cyprus question is to be the preservation rather than the destruction of the state and if it is to foster rather than to militate against the development of a peacefully united people, I cannot help wondering whether the physical division of the minority from the majority should not be considered a desperate step in the wrong direction. Turkey instantly rejected the report and its recommendations and declared that it would not deal with the UN mediator. UN mediation came to an end, and thereafter the UN involvement in the Cyprus peace process has been conducted under the Secretary-General’s good offices. The Cyprus Question| A brief Introduction 28
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