Joannou v. Turkey: An Important Legal Development and a Missed Opportunity

Abstract

This article analyses Joannou v. Turkey, the latest judgment of the European Court of Human Rights addressing the issue of forced displacement in Cyprus. Situating Joannou within the Court's forced displacement jurisprudence, which relates both to the Cypriot and other frozen conflicts, it argues that the case is an important legal development and, at the same time, a missed opportunity. On the one hand, Joannou builds on existing case law by offering additional guidance for the development of the Immovable Property Commission, the body set up to remedy displaced Greek Cypriots. On the other, it argues that both the Court and the Republic of Cyprus missed an opportunity to use the case as a springboard for improving the procedures followed and the remedies provided by the Commission.