The 60th anniversary of the establishment of the Turkish Cypriot courts and the commencement of Supreme-Court-quality judgments is being celebrated with international events and conferences.

A conference entitled “the Intersection of Constitutional Freedom of Expression and Social Media”, with participation from many courts in Türkiye and Azerbaijan, is being held.

President of the Supreme Court, Bertan Özerdağ, stated that their aim is to commemorate the services provided by the Turkish Cypriot judiciary over the past 60 years and the individuals who contributed to these services, to build a collective memory, and to further establish the institutional identity on a stronger foundation.

Speaking to Turkish News Agency Cyprus (TAK) on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the commencement of Supreme-Court-quality judgments, Özerdağ also addressed various current issues.

Özerdağ noted that the presidential election held on October 19 was the fastest-announced election result in the TRNC’s history. He expressed his belief that it would be highly beneficial to initiate work with the relevant institutions on updating voter lists. He stated that meetings had been held with the Ministry of the Interior, the Civil Registry Department, the Digital Transformation Office, the Personal Data Protection Board, and their own institution through a joint working group.

Addressing the shortcomings of court buildings across the country, Özerdağ stated that the goal is to complete the Supreme Court building within January–February. Touching on the emerging legislative needs, Özerdağ said, “We have many laws awaiting in parliament regarding our legislative needs.”

“OUR PAST MUST BE CONNECTED TO A DOCUMENTARY-QUALITY HISTORICAL MEMORY”

President of the Supreme Court, Bertan Özerdağ, said, “We believed that our past needs to be connected to a documentary-quality historical memory, and we have initiated work on this matter.”

Referring to the period in Cyprus from the Ottoman era up to the year 1964, Özerdağ stated that more concrete steps began to be taken in 1965 for Turkish Cypriots to establish their own courts.

“When we examined past judgments, we determined that the first Supreme-Court-quality decisions were issued in 1965,” he said, noting that these appeared in the form of an Appeals Commission in “civil and criminal cases”.

Özerdağ stated that after the enactment of the Courts of Justice Law in 1968, this structure continued under the name Supreme Court and he added that the first President of the Supreme Court was Necati Münir Ertegün.

“With the establishment of the Turkish Cypriot Federated State, the 1975 Constitution and the Supreme Court acquired constitutional status for the first time,” he noted, adding that with the 1985 Constitution and the establishment of the TRNC, the Court took on its current characteristics, duties, and powers.

“CONFERENCE TO BE HELD ON ‘THE INTERSECTION OF CONSTITUTIONAL FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION AND SOCIAL MEDIA’”

Özerdağ noted that, for the 60th anniversary of the Turkish Cypriot judiciary, the Supreme Court will, for the first time, hold an international conference and events on November 7–8–9, and said, “We will have guests from abroad, including from courts in Türkiye and Azerbaijan.”

Özerdağ said the conference on “The Intersection of Constitutional Freedom of Expression and Social Media” will be held at the Cratos Premium Hotel in Kyrenia on Saturday, November 8.

“WE PLAN TO ESTABLISH A SMALL MUSEUM IN THE NEW SUPREME COURT BUILDING”

Özerdağ stated that they plan to establish a small museum in the new Supreme Court building and emphasised that he attaches great importance to institutional development, structure, and historical heritage.

Özerdağ explained that their aim is for the Turkish Cypriot people to recognize the developments in the country’s judiciary over the past 60 years, the services it has provided, to commemorate the individuals who contributed to these services, and to build this memory for the future so that the institutional identity becomes further established and its historical foundations are placed on a stronger basis.

“OUR AIM IS TO SEE HOW WE CAN IMPROVE THIS WORK”

Özerdağ stated that he believes they successfully completed the presidential election, and said, “Every election process sheds light on what we have done, what we have been unable to do, our mistakes, our shortcomings, what further improvements can be made, and the points we can reach.”

Expressing that after the election, all district election boards conveyed to them the problems experienced or the issues they observed, Özerdağ noted that they carried out an evaluation regarding these matters.

Özerdağ said, “Although our current state is successful, our aim is to see how we can improve this work…” and stated that during the election period many issues arose concerning the voter lists, and that they took note of these matters with seriousness and care.

Özerdağ stated, “We were informed about individuals of very advanced age who were still shown as living and still appeared on the voter lists. At that time, we also focused on this matter with great care and conducted investigations. We identified those we could, and removed those who needed to be removed from the voter lists.” He added, however, that it was not possible to locate all of them within that period.

UPDATING VOTER LISTS

Özerdağ stated that another issue conveyed to them during the election period was “voter cards being left at or sent to an address for multiple people, or for voters whom the actual residents using or living at that address did not know.” He added that they took the necessary notes regarding this matter.

Özerdağ said they believe it would be very beneficial to initiate a joint effort with the relevant institutions to update the voter lists, and noted that they held a meeting with a working group that included the Ministry of the Interior, the Civil Registry Office, the Digital Transformation Office, the Personal Data Protection Board, as well as themselves.

He stated that this meeting will be expanded to include municipalities and mukhtars, adding: “We will work on how we can update ourselves, down to the finest detail, regarding the accuracy and authenticity of our data.”

“THE AIM IS TO MINIMIZE THE PROBLEMS THAT ARISE”

Özerdağ stated that their aim is to minimize the problems that have arisen, and continued:
“Within the scope of the MAKS Project, our goal is to clarify addresses, determine who resides at each address, address the issue of residence certificates issued by mukhtars, and ensure that we maintain better communication with the civil registry in updating address and voter information. This is a very important matter for us, and we are addressing it with great sensitivity. Our aim is for every voter to be recorded in the voter lists in the most accurate way…”

Özerdağ noted that the issue cannot be resolved in a single day, adding that it is a matter that requires a comprehensive effort and the establishment of a proper implementation framework.

“IT WAS THE ELECTION IN WHICH THE FASTEST RESULTS IN THE TRNC WERE ANNOUNCED”

Özerdağ stated that the presidential election held on October 19 was the election in which the fastest results in the TRNC were announced, and he shared the charts comparing the 2020 and 2025 elections.

Özerdağ stated that in the 2025 presidential election, all ballot box results were announced at around 19:30 p.m., whereas in the 2020 presidential election this occurred at about 22:10 p.m.
He noted that, compared to the 2020 election, all ballot box results were announced approximately two and a half hours earlier.

“WE NEED TO INCREASE OUR PERSONNEL, JUDGES, BUILDINGS, AND VEHICLE CAPACITIES”

Özerdağ stated that in order to speed up the judiciary and resolve the “disputes” before them with greater capacity, it is necessary to increase personnel, judge, building, and vehicle capacities. He noted that they have been advancing and accelerating their work on these matters seriously.
Emphasizing that the current capacity is insufficient and that congestion has arisen within the judiciary, Özerdağ said, “This congestion leads to delays in justice.”

Özerdağ stated that the construction of the Supreme Court building will provide them with a significant opportunity, adding that the Nicosia District Court will gain the chance to expand into the areas that will be vacated.

“FOUR NEW JUDICIAL POSITIONS ANNOUNCED”

Özerdağ stated, “With our move in 2026, it will become visibly clear that the number of judges at the Nicosia District Court has increased and that cases there can be heard more quickly.” He added that, for this purpose, in line with the decision taken by the Supreme Council of Judicature, they have opened four new judicial positions.

Özerdağ said they will complete the vacancy process and appoint the judges in 2026, adding that with these appointments they will be able to establish a second Assize Court in Nicosia.
He continued, “With the newly appointed judges, cases here will be distributed among more judges, making it possible for cases to be heard more quickly. Our goal is to appoint more judges to family and eviction cases and to produce faster outcomes in these matters.”

“THERE IS A BUILDING PROBLEM AT THE KYRENIA DISTRICT COURT”

Özerdağ stated that there is a building problem at the Kyrenia District Court and reiterated their request for the Akçiçek Hospital building to be allocated to them.
He noted that they have been making this request for a year, adding, “We were verbally told that it would be given to us, but no concrete step has yet been taken by the state.”

“THE FAMAGUSTA ASSIZE COURT HOLDS ITS SESSIONS IN ISKELE”

Özerdağ pointed out that the Famagusta Assize Court has for years held its sessions at the İskele District Court due to lack of space, saying, “This is not an acceptable situation for me.”
He continued: “Imagine if the Famagusta Hospital were located in İskele… This would mean that citizens must travel from one district to another to receive health services. Likewise, because there is no proper courthouse in their own district, the people of Famagusta must go to İskele—a smaller district—to receive ‘judicial services’.” Özerdağ emphasized that lawyers, citizens, witnesses, and families are suffering from this situation.

“THE PEOPLE OF FAMAGUSTA HAVE THE RIGHT TO RECEIVE JUDICIAL SERVICES IN THEIR OWN DISTRICT”

Stating that he expects this “anomaly” to be remedied immediately, Özerdağ continued as follows:

“There is vacant state land next to the Famagusta Court. We have requested this in writing at least three or four times. Although we were verbally told that it would be allocated, the fact that it still has not been granted is, in my opinion, a major delay. The people of Famagusta have the right to a larger courthouse there. The people of the region have the right to receive judicial services in their own district, and they should not be deprived of this. We intend to begin the construction of our courthouse immediately once the relevant land is allocated. We believe that this should not be delayed.”

Özerdağ noted that constructing a new building takes about one or two years after the land is allocated.

Stating that the necessary steps must be taken as soon as possible before further delay occurs, Özerdağ said, “This is one of the issues to which I am most sensitive.”

Özerdağ emphasized that the courts of Kyrenia and Famagusta do not have even a single day to lose.

“THE COMPLETION OF THE SUPREME COURT BUILDING IS TARGETED FOR JANUARY–FEBRUARY”

Stating that the completion of the Supreme Court building is targeted for January-February, Özerdağ said: “Of course, it is a very comprehensive building. Therefore, certain matters and processes can take time, but I can say that it is a magnificent structure.”

Özerdağ said that he believes the Supreme Court building will be a fully equipped, technologically advanced facility that will serve the public for many years and will constitute a highly valuable contribution in terms of the judiciary.

“WE HAVE MANY LAWS PENDING IN PARLIAMENT REGARDING OUR LEGISLATIVE NEEDS”

Touching on their legislative needs, Özerdağ stated: “We have many laws pending in Parliament related to our legislative requirements. These fall under the Courts Law and concern issues such as ‘increasing the number of judges, creating new courts, the employment rights of judges, and the archiving system.’"

Özerdağ explained that these matters have been discussed for a long time in Parliament or within the executive branch, yet no conclusion has been reached, and emphasized that they must be enacted as soon as possible.

“Because delayed legislation constantly pushes us backward in relation to the issues we aim for and desire. If this law were passed today, we would be able to implement it immediately. If it passes a year later, that year is a loss for us. During that time, our problems only increase,” said Özerdağ and he added that they must be given the support necessary to act very swiftly on legal matters as well.