Northern Cyprus parties call for boycott of 6 December elections

The Cyprus Peace and Solidarity Movement, which includes the United Cyprus Party (BKP), the New Cyprus Party (YKP) and the Arif Hasan Tahsin Foundation, has called for a boycott of the elections scheduled for 6 December. The groups say the vote will not reflect the will of Turkish Cypriots. The joint decision was announced at a press conference held at the BKP headquarters.

A joint declaration read by Şener Elcil, head of the board of trustees of the Arif Hasan Tahsin Foundation, claimed that people had been moved onto the island in violation of the 1949 Geneva Convention, that more than 100,000 people had been granted citizenship, and that Turkish Cypriots had been reduced to a minority. It said 103,000 Turkish Cypriots holding Republic of Cyprus citizenship were eligible to vote in the June 2024 European Parliament elections, while the number of voters in the TRNC was around 225,000.

BKP leader İzzet İzcan said the elections no longer reflect the will of Turkish Cypriots and claimed that Turkey interferes in parliamentary and general elections in northern Cyprus, adding that there is no democratic environment. YKP Secretary General Murat Kanatlı said the process is run on instructions from Turkey and that the party decided not to field candidates in order not to legitimize it.