2. Important legal decisions on the Cyprus question6 u Cyprus v. Turkey (6780/74) and (6950/75)–European Commission of Human Rights, 1976 In a joint report (1976) under former article 31 of the European Convention, Turkey was found to have violated articles 2 (right to life), 5 (liberty and security of the person), 8 (respect for private and family life, home, etc), 13 (effective remedies for violations of rights and freedoms), and article 1 of Protocol 1 (peaceful enjoyment of possessions). On 20 January 1979, the Committee of Ministers adopted resolution DH (79) calling for the enduring protection of human rights through intercommunal talks leading to a solution of the dispute. u Cyprus v. Turkey (8007/77)–European Commission of Human Rights, 1983 The Commission, under former article 31 of the European Convention, found Turkey in breach of its obligations under article 5 (liberty and security of the person), article 8 (respect for private and family life, home, etc) and article 1 of Protocol 1 (peaceful enjoyment of possessions). On 2 April 1992 the Committee of Ministers adopted resolution DH (92)12 in respect to the Commission’s Report and made the 1983 report public. u Autocephalous Greek Orthodox Church of Cyprus v. Goldberg & Feldman Fine Arts Inc., 917 F.2d 278, US Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit, Decision of 24 October 1990 By its decision, the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the verdict of 3 August 1989 of the US District Court in Indianapolis. The case involved the ownership of plundered sixth-century mosaics from the Church of Kanakaria in the occupied part of Cyprus. The mosaics had been removed by Turkish antiquities smugglers and sold to an American art dealer for $1.2 million. The mosaics were returned to their legitimate owner, the Church of Cyprus. This decision set an important precedent in the US for the protection of cultural property. Even though it has ratified the 1954 and 1970 UNESCO conventions on the protection of cultural property, Turkey has done little to stop the vandalism, destruction and plunder of Greek Cypriot cultural property in areas controlled by the Turkish army. 6 See Van Coufoudakis, Human Rights Violations in Cyprus by Turkey, Third Edition, (Nicosia: Press and Information Office, Republic of Cyprus, 2009). The Cyprus Question| A brief Introduction 44
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