Law enforcement in Northern Cyprus

Last updated

Law enforcement in Northern Cyprus is administered by the Republic's Security Council and the Ministry of the Interior, to whom the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus's police force, the Directorate General for Police, reports. The commander of the police service of this de facto independent republic sits on the Republic's Security Council along with representatives from the Ministry of Interior, Foreign Affairs and Defence, the armed forces and the President.

The police force is regulated under Section 118 of the Constitution:

The establishment, duties, powers and responsibilities of the Police Organization shall be regulated by law. The police are charged with performing their duties within the framework of the Constitution and laws with due respect to the principles of a democratic State under the rule of law and to the fundamental rights of citizens. [1]

The emergency number for the police force in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus is 155.

Notes

  1. Constitution of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus Archived 2007-09-28 at the Wayback Machine Part IV: The Executive, Chapter 1: President of the Republic, Police Organization: Article 118 Retrieved 30 May 2007


Related Research Articles

The Republic of Cyprus is a unitary presidential representative republic, whereby the President of Cyprus is both head of state and head of government. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the parliament. The Judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislature.

Politics of Turkey Political system of Turkey

The politics of Turkey take place in the framework of a presidential republic as defined by the Constitution of Turkey. The President of Turkey is both the head of state and head of government.

Turkish Armed Forces Combined military forces of Turkey

The Turkish Armed Forces are the military forces of the Republic of Turkey. They consist of the Army, the Navy and the Air Force. The Gendarmerie and the Coast Guard, both of which have law enforcement and military functions, operate as components of the internal security forces in peacetime, when they are subordinate to the Ministry of Interior. In wartime, they are subordinate to the Army and Navy. The President of Turkey is the military's overall head.

Coast guard Maritime security organization of a particular country

A coast guard or coastguard is a maritime security organization of a particular country. The term embraces wide range of responsibilities in different countries, from being a heavily armed military force with customs and security duties to being a volunteer organization tasked with search and rescue without law enforcement authority. A typical coast guard's functions are distinct from those of the navy and the transit police.

Commander-in-chief supreme commanding authority of a military

A commander-in-chief or supreme commander is the person that exercises supreme command and control over an armed forces or a military branch. As a technical term, it refers to military competencies that reside in a country's executive leadership – a head of state or a head of government.

General Staff of the Republic of Turkey position

The General Staff of the Republic of Turkey presides over the Armed Forces of the Republic of Turkey, comprising the Land Forces, Naval Forces, Air Force and Special Forces. The General Command of the Gendarmerie and the Coast Guard, which operate as parts of the internal security forces in peacetime, are subordinate to the Army and Navy Commands, respectively, in wartime, and both have law enforcement and military functions.

Border guard Government service concerned with security of national borders

A border guard of a country is a national security agency that performs border security, i.e., enforces the security of the country's national borders. Some of the national border guard agencies also perform coast guard and rescue service duties.

Government of Turkey Government of Turkey

The Government of Turkey is a unitary government established by the Constitution of Turkey as a constituted governing authority of a parliamentary democratic republic, constitutionally called the Republic of Turkey. The term can mean either the collective set of institutions or specifically the Cabinet.

Security Forces Command

The Security Forces Command is the military and security force of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, whose independence is recognized only by Turkey and which the United Nations considers to be a Turkish-occupied territory. It is a 9,000 strong force primarily made up of conscripted Turkish Cypriot males between the ages of 18 and 40. It is a combined arms force, with land, air and naval elements.

Law enforcement in Turkey is carried out by several departments and agencies, all acting under the command of the President of Turkey or mostly the Minister of Internal Affairs.

London-Zürich Agreements

The London and Zürich Agreements for the constitution of Cyprus started with an agreement on the 19 February 1959 in Lancaster House, London, between Turkey, Greece, the United Kingdom and Cypriot community leaders. On that basis, a constitution was drafted and agreed together with two further Treaties of Alliance and Guarantee in Zürich on 11 February 1959.

Human rights in Cyprus are protected by the constitution of the Republic of Cyprus. However, there have been reports of violations of the human rights of minorities, democratic freedom, rights of detainees, freedom of religion, rights of women, freedom of press and the freedom of speech.

Cyprus Police

The Cyprus Police is the only National Police Service of the Republic of Cyprus and is under the Ministry of Justice and Public Order since 1993.

Law enforcement in Azerbaijan comes under the control of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Azerbaijan, which administers the National Police of the Republic of Azerbaijan. Admitted to the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) on 30 January 1992, with an OSCE office opening in Baku on 16 November 1999, and as a member of INTERPOL, the National police force is well integrated into the law enforcement network of European countries.

Foreign relations of Northern Cyprus

Northern Cyprus is recognised only by Turkey, a country which facilitates many of its contacts with the international community. After declaring independence from the Republic of Cyprus, Northern Cyprus' relations with the rest of the world were further complicated by a series of United Nations resolutions which declared its independence legally invalid. A 2004 UN Referendum on settling the Cyprus dispute was accepted by the Turkish Cypriots but rejected by the Greek Cypriots. After that, the European Union declared its intentions to assist in reducing the economic isolation of Northern Cyprus and began giving aid to the territory. However, due to pressure from Greece and the Republic of Cyprus, this aid coming from EU funds cannot be used on Greek Cypriot land and property nor on public bodies. As a result, these funds can be used only on 29 percent of people on the island of Cyprus.

Law enforcement by country

In many countries, particularly those with a federal system of government, there may be several law enforcement agencies, police or police-like organizations, each serving different levels of government and enforcing different subsets of the applicable law.

The Constitution of the Republic of Cyprus provides for freedom of religion, and the Government generally respected this right in practice. There were few reports of societal abuses or discrimination based on religious belief or practice, and prominent societal leaders took positive steps to promote religious freedom.

Turkish Federated State of Cyprus

The Turkish Federated State of Cyprus was the name of a state on the region of Northern Cyprus declared in 1975 and existing until 1983, that was not recognized by the international community. It was succeeded by the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, which is equally only recognized by the Republic of Turkey.

Human rights in Northern Cyprus are protected by the constitution of Northern Cyprus. However, there have been reports of violations of the human rights of minorities, democratic freedom, freedom from discrimination, freedom from torture, freedom of movement, freedom of religion, freedom of speech, right to education, right to life, right to property, and the rights of displaced persons. The rights of Greek-Cypriots displaced by the 1974 Turkish invasion of Cyprus, notably their rights to property and right of return, is one of the focal points of ongoing negotiations for the solution of the Cyprus question.

Law enforcement in Syria

Law enforcement in Syria is carried out by police forces for general policing duties; internal security duties are carried out by several intelligence agencies. The Political Security Directorate is one of these agencies and is under the guidance of the Ministry of Interior. The Directorate operates independently and generally outside the control of the legal system to repress internal dissent and monitor individual citizens. Syria has been an INTERPOL member since 1953. Since the outbreak of the Syrian Civil War, much of Syria has been outside the control of the Syrian government. Currently, the Asayish are responsible for policing in Rojava, the Turkish-backed Free Syrian Police in areas under the Turkish occupation of northern Syria, and various Syrian opposition groups around Idlib