Does Cyprus Need a Truth and Reconciliation Commission?

Abstract

One of the unexplored questions in Cyprus relates to the means of reconciliation, prior to or in conjunction with a political settlement to the Cyprus problem. Now that bodies of the missing persons in Cyprus are finally being exhumed and identified through DNA testing, it is reasonable to ask whether there is a need to consider the
establishment of bodies authorised to seek both truth and reconciliation. The short answer is ‘no’. The Reconciliation Commission that was envisaged in the failed Annan Plan would serve the end of reconciliation better than a full blown truth and reconciliation commission. The paper explores the matter and potential problems, offering some suggestions for a more fruitful future Reconciliation Commission that goes beyond the confines of the original mandate (as described in the Annan Plan) to write an official historical text to embrace the wider challenge of contributing to the construction and maintenance of a viable society and polity. Further, now that a settlement on the island is less imminent given the rejection of the Annan Plan, there is also a need to consider pursuing reconciliation independent of a comprehensive settlement.