The Orams Case
"PAPADOPOULOS HAS SHOT HIS OWN LEG"
Latest News: ORAMS WON THE CASE (6 SEPTEMBER 2006)
Orams has won their High Court battle against Greek Cypriots.
The judgment allows others in the same position to invest in TRNC without the threat of enforcement of judgments rendered in the Republic of Cyprus in the EU.
Property prices are expected to rise between 20 and 30 percent in the next few months.
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Orams' Lawyers during press conference in Colony Hotel
Orams' Lawyers celebrating victory at Dragon Restaurant
Mrs Cherie Blair defends British Orams couple (1 April 2006)
Mrs Cherie Blair, the wife of the British Prime Minister Tony Blair, is among the lawyers who will be defending the British Orams couple who had build a house in the property of the Greek Cypriot refugee Meletis Apostolides at the occupied village of Lapithos.
The wife of the British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Cherie Blair has undertaken the defense of the British Orams couple which lives in the TRNC. Cherie Blair will defend the property right of the couple against the Greek Cypriot administration. The British couple, which will be defended by a group of six lawyers with the participation of Cherie Blair, had been taken to court by the Greek Cypriot administration with the pretext that it had build a house in northern Cyprus on the land of a Greek Cypriot.
One of the Turkish defense lawyers of the case, Hasan Vehib has noted that the Greek Cypriot administration made an irregularity in the case and said that the case was contrary to the EU laws.
Vahib stressed that the participation of Cherie Blair in the case is a big gain for them, as she proved her success in cases regarding human rights in Britain. Saying that the Greek Cypriots intent to win the case, use it as a precedent and make it a tool of politics, Vahib noted that if necessary Cherie Blair might go to the TRNC.
The Orams Case - Enforcement of Decisions in the UK relating to Property in Cyprus
The enforcement in the UK of a judgment delivered by a court of another EU country is controlled by the Brussels Convention on Jurisdiction and Enforcement of Judgments.
In the case of Linda and David Orams, the lawyer for Meletis Apostolides, the original Greek Cypriot owner of the land upon which Mr and Mrs Orams have built their house, has obtained an order from the Nicosia District Court in South Cyprus, which is now an EU country, ordering the Orams to demolish the house and pay compensation.
Due to the fact that the South Cyprus administration does not have control over the Northern part of the island, it is not possible for this judgment to be enforced against the Orams directly in Northern Cyprus. The Orams cannot directly be prevented from using/enjoying this property and cannot be forced to demolish it. Instead, the lawyer for Mr Meletis Apostolides is relying on the Brussels Convention to enforce the judgment against the Orams and their assets in the UK.
The Brussels Convention provides, as a basic principle, that any court judgment given in any EU country must be recognised in all other EU countries. However, the Convention also provides certain restricted grounds upon which a court can deny the judgment recognition. The most important of these grounds is the so-called public policy ground. If the UK courts decide it would be against public policy to recognise the judgment in the UK, there can be no enforcement in the UK. It is the opinion of the firm that this ground should and most likely will be applied in this case and the application for recognition of the judgment of the Greek Cypriot court will be struck out by the UK courts.
Given the complex political situation in Northern Cyprus, it can be argued that a solution to the property issues cannot be achieved on a case by case basis. To permit such a judgment to be recognised and enforced, would be to undermine the whole effort of the United Nations attmepts to reunite Cyprus and solve the political issues as a whole. Such a decision would be a green light for all Greek and Turkish Cypriots alike to claim compensation on an individual basis and then seek to enforce this decision in the courts of other countries. This case by case approach will serve only to complicate the factors dividing the island, leaving some property disputes settled while others remain unresolved. Moreover, since enforcement can only be obtained in the event that the defendants are domiciled in an EU country, it will be mainly non-Cypriot users of disputed land who are singled out i.e. British and other EU citizens, leading to discriminatory results.
Finally, the Orams, who purchased the property in good faith for a legitimate purpose and who are entitled to obtain a title deed recognised as valid and constitutionally protected under the laws of the TRNC, cannot and should not be singled out for the result of a political situation which is entirely beyond their control.
We also recommend that you read this article:
TRNC Title Deed Problem - Is it safe to buy property in Northern Cyprus?
Unity Ltd. OFFERS TO FULLY SUPPORT ORAMS (21 August 2005)
Dear Mr. and Mrs. Orams,
You have out full support, and we would like to let you know that if you are willing, we would like to buy the house from you; we have already contacted your lawyer Mr. Mentes Aziz about the subject. You might be frustrated of facing the Greek government organised threatens. Don't worry, turkish Cypriots will never let you down, after being subjected to such bully boy tactics.
We are making this offer to you in order to prove that:
- Turkish Cypriots will never give up on their rights; we are ready to fight for another 40 years.
- Turkish Cypriots are the true owners of the lands in North Cyprus.
- The decision of any greek court cannot be applied in North Cyprus; we have our own government and our own court.
- It is 100% safe for any individual (citizen or non-citizen) to own a house in North Cyprus.
We assume that you would like to live in peace in Northern Cyprus and enjoy your retirement without the worry of lengthy legal battles. In the event you sell your property to us, you end the legal battle but you are also seen to be defeated by the Greek Cypriots. No nation has the right to dominate and dictate.
So, we offer you the right to live in the house after we buy it, at a reasonable rent and also the right to repurchase the house at a future date whenever you feel comfortable. We want you to live in North Cyprus.
We have had a lot of experience within the last 40 years, therefore, we know very well how to deal with the attacks of the "greek politicians". We know very well that "property rights" is an absolute right, but we also know that "living rights" is even stronger than that. Because of this, whatever legal or political tools he may try to enforce, it will not work and Mr. Papadopulos will never be able to get any land back unless he gives all the lives back.
As Turkish Cypriots, we have been facing the discriminative attacks from the Greek side for several years. Therefore, we know how dirty the Greek politicians play the politics game. The Greek leader Mr. Papadopulos is perhaps the worst among all. He put on his best performance whilst on television shedding theatrical tears in order to convince his people to refuse the unification plan of the United Nations. Unfortunately he managed by 75%. It is unbelievable that he is still trying to force the world to put emabrgoes on the turkish Cypriots who accepted the plan by 65%. He cheated the EU by promising that he would support the UN plan, however after getting into the EU, he refused the plan. Now, he is trying to use the EU as a weapon to prevent the world from investing in North Cyprus. He believes that by economically weakining us he will be able to force us to the solution in his mind.
If he lives long enough, of course, Mr. Papadopulos too will understand that Cyprus is our home as well. "We were born here, we live here and we will die here." Our fathers' generation were unsuccesful in reaching a solution and to date a solution is yet to be agreed. However our children will one day live in peace with their Greek friends. We have no doubt that one day Greek and Turkish Cypriots will live in peace in their home land - the birth place of Aphrodite; the goddess of love.
North Cyprus Properties (Unity Ltd.)
No reproduction of this article without written permission is allowed.
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