Thousands of Britons with holiday and retirement homes in northern Cyprus face eviction after the Court of Appeal upheld a decision that a British couple must surrender disputed land.
David and Linda Orams spent their savings on a villa and pool in Lapta, eight miles from Kyrenia. They have spent six years fighting a legal battle but must now give back the property to the original owner, Meletios Apostolides, a displaced Greek Cypriot.
About 5,000 Britons live on land in northern Cyprus once owned by Greek Cypriots who fled to the south when Turkey invaded in 1974. About 167,000 of them were forced to leave their homes in 1974 and 1975. Many believe that thousands of Britons who bought land were aware that it belonged to Greek Cypriots.
Britons living in northern Cyprus insist that they bought property in good faith. They say they were assured by local estate agents that it was safe to buy on exchanged land because the Greek Cypriots had been recompensed with land in the south.
“Obviously it’s a blow,” Mrs Orams, of Hove, East Sussex, said yesterday. “We’re going to study the judgment and we’ll consider whether there’s anything further to be done. Failing that, we’ll have to take steps as far as possible, given the political situation in Cyprus, to comply with the judgment.”
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Mr Apostolides said: “I’m thrilled. This case has gone on for nearly six years, it was about time for it to come to an end. It was a very good decision, it is a victory for European laws and regulations. I believe it’s a very important decision for all Cypriots and a decision that protects the individual rights of people against any unlawful authority.”
Asked if Mr Apostolides will claim against the Orams’ assets in Britain, including their home in Hove, Constantis Candounas, his solicitor, said: “We have to wait to see what the Orams’ reaction will be, how they want to go about it, whether they’ll call Apostolides to hand the property [in northern Cyprus] over, whether they will pay the damages, whether we will have to take legal action to enforce the judgment. It remains to be seen.”