Public Attitudes Towards Peace: The Greek-Cypriot Position

In 1974, Turkey divided Cyprus by military force into the north and south, giving the Turkish Cypriots full control of the north. Since then, the United Nations (UN) has attempted to resolve the Cyprus problem, but diplomatic efforts have always fallen short. In 2004, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan proposed a plan that would reunify Cyprus. In a public referendum that followed, about two-thirds of Turkish Cypriots voted for the plan; however, three-quarters of Greek Cypriots rejected the plan. To help illuminate Greek-Cypriot public opinion, a telephone survey is conducted with 150 randomly selected Greek-Cypriot citizens (with a response rate of 87%). Results demonstrate that about four-fifths of respondents do not mistrust Turkish Cypriots and believe they can peacefully coexist with them. Still, 43% of respondents report that Greek Cypriots as a group are not very well prepared to reunify with Turkish Cypriots. Perception of ethnocentrism for both sides is found to be at comparable, mediocre levels. Narrative analyses suggest that the Annan Plan be revised to assure, among other things, (1) complete and timely demilitarization of the island, (2) removal of all Turkish settlers, (3) containment of extremist elements from both sides, and (4) fiscal backing from the international community to the Turkish-Cypriot side. The social and political implications of the findings, study limitations, and some future research needs are highlighted.