Migrant Cities: Nicosia, Cyprus

1. Migrant Cities: Nicosia, Cyprus Nicosia City Report(north & south) Dilek Behcetogullari

2. Researchers: Olga Demetriou & Mete HatayInternational Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO)PRIO Cyprus Centre

3. Background • Cyprus’ location key to migration flow: easily reachable from Turkey, Syria, Lebanon, Israel and good connections with Egypt and Greece • Main feature of political map is inter-communal conflict (border set up in current form in 1974 and remained closed until 2003) • Differing economies between the two sides but overall higher living standards compared to non-EU neighbors

4. Historical overview • Existence of different cultures throughout history (Lusignan, Venetian, Ottoman & British) • Independence in 1960, conflict from 1963, war in 1974, separation and self-declared state in the north • Conflict caused considerable out-migration and large constituencies in Britain and Commonwealth (e.g. Australia)

5. Current Context • Increase of migration post-1989 • Sharp increase post-accession to the EU (on both sides) – south has one of highest percentages of asylum applications in Europe (relative to population) • Pressure in recent years to adopt more stringent human rights standards resulted in review and changes to policy both north and south • Highest migration percentage in north from Turkey; in south from SE Asia, E. Europe, Africa, central Asia

6. Methodology • Interviews with ten (10) individuals took place in each community (north & south) • Interviews were recorded and took from 30 minutes up to 2 hours • Information supplemented with statistical data

7. Legal status and relation with authorities: north • Ties to Turkey play a determining role – large proportion of migrants from south and south-east Turkey • Migrants from Turkey comprised of; professionals, manual laborers and students (5 universities) • Manual labor migration strictly regulated since 2005 and there are no enforcement of laws on working hours • Housing for lower-class migrants in old Nicosia is of poor quality: crowded in rundown buildings • Expulsion is often the result of complaining about conditions, so much remains unreported

8. Legal status and relation with authorities: south • Limited access to public services apart from particular sections • Education the most accessible – multiculturalism in schools dealt with on a superficial level • Non-Greek speaking schools mostly private but minority schools also open to migrant children Social services provision problematic – few migrants can access them (e.g. to receive welfare benefits • Migrant categories receive different types of labor contracts (domestic workers, artistes, unskilled laborers, refugees) • Many undocumented migrants are arrested and held in detention for large periods of time

9. Social and cultural life: north • Integration is partial, most integrated are professionals • Cypriot population view migrants negatively; this is mainly related to view of Turkey in general • References to these migrants in popular discourse have connotations of having ‘drifted’ to the island without free will, or being culturally distant and backwards • Migrant associations are for Turkish migrants - often religious or defined by place of origin in Turkey • Cultural festivals held and well-attended by local establishments • In some respect life in Cyprus is preferred because it has more right. E.g. female students can wear headscarf at university • There is a general lack of awareness of rights

10. Social and cultural life: south • The presence of migrants seems to be becoming more acceptable overall • Border area is popular with migrants; rent is much cheaper and as an area (Old Nicosia) is neglected • Vast majority of migrants do not have voting rights • Contracts for domestic workers disallow unionisation for civil society formation is not allowed • Some social networks are based on religion, others on place of origin and cultural markers such as food and music • Networking with Cypriots is limited, most often focussing on migrants’ issues • Internet and mobile phones provide vital communication channels with home

11. Identity and sense of belonging: north • Sense of belonging related to class, education and contact • Unskilled laborers have little free time and no extra time to spend on practices that might facilitate integration • Migrants who aim to return soon and buy property back home also spend most of the time in the house • More confusion among youth or long-term immigrants • Long-term immigrants (some of whom may have intermarried with Cypriots) express worry about rising levels of xenophobia • At the same time long-term migrants may also express negative feelings towards more recent arrivals

12. Identity and sense of belonging: south • Presence in public spaces noticeable because public space hardly used by Cypriots (e.g. public transport, municipal parks) • Cultural festivals are organized but attended mostly by migrant groups, including big annual “Rainbow” festival celebrating the city’s multiculturalism • Little awareness of rights in general, but where this exists, rights can be accessed and this is significant for integration • Media in general presents stereotypical images but xenophobic stance is beginning to be addressed (positive images of migrants becoming more frequent) • Migrants have very limited involvement in public depictions of migration, and not invited to participate in debates on the issues

13. Indicative quotes: north • “The wages are good but we work 12 or 13, sometimes 14 hours a day, six days a week. We have Sunday off. But we don’t have a vacation, we don’t get time off for holidays” (male, Turkish national, 30 year old, waiter) • “I wish there were a school I would be happy sending my kids to. But they’re not progressive enough and the standards really aren’t high enough. May be my children want to remain in Cyprus, but what if they don’t? They should be prepared for the outside world” (female, returnee from UK, 48 years old, restaurateur)

14. Indicative quotes: north continued.. • “There’s also the same question: Why don’t you like Turks? Hey, I’m also a Turk! It’s not that we don’t like Turkiyeliler, it’s the people from Hatay and Mardin we don’t like” (female, Turkish-Cypriot resident of Nicosia, 28 years old) • “It’s free here. They don’t pay attention to religion and things like that” (female university student from Turkey, on being able to wear the headscarf) • “But here they see us all the same… I’ve actually started feeling Turkish since I came to Cyprus” (female, Kurdish immigrant on having migrated to escape discrimination in Turkey)

15. Indicative quotes: south • “Once my son came back from school [a state kindergarten] and wanted to kick Turks until they left Cyprus” (male, US national, early 40s, lecturer) • “My welfare benefit is my only source for surviving here now. Now I get 322 CYP a month… I pay 100 CYP for the rent of one room in a house, and then I have other expenses like telephone, and these expenses tend to rise. But before they raised the level, I use to get 200 CYP a month and I really suffered then.” (male, Nepalese, mid-40s, asylum seeker) • “In my previous job [at a family house] I used to finish at 3 or 4pm and go to my room to rest. Now with yayá and papoú [the elderly couple she looks after] there is no such rest.” (female, Sri-Lankan, late 40s, domestic worker)

16. Indicative quotes: south continued.. • “Most of my friends go to the Lodge, or Scorpios, or Blinks because they have special nights for R&B so they go on those nights and have fun… There is one place for eating African food in Nicosia but the person who owns it will close it down, so I am thinking for opening one to offer cheap food.” (female, Cameroonian, early 30s, shop assistant) • “My computer is linked to Nova100 in Melbourne, the radio station that I always listen to, and I keep that just to feel that I am at home, I look at Australian newspapers online daily, in the morning when I come to work, I have Facebook and MSN and Hotmail which I daily use to email and chat with my friends in Australia to the level where spiritually I feel as if I never left.” (male, returnee from Australia, late 20s, programme manager)

17. Conclusions: north • Political problem a key issue in analyzing problems relating to migration • Because of non-recognition, government in the north has been slow to take responsibility for protecting migrants’ rights (no international scrutiny) • Demography a matter of big debate - closely related to Turkish policy and negatively affecting views of migrants • Ghettoisation of walled city by unskilled, manual laborers from Turkey adds to discrimination issues – often this section taken as representative of ‘immigrants’ • Xenophobia recently began to be addressed

18. Conclusions: south • Migrants face diverse problems and are not included in debates that affect them • Amongst wider population there is lack of awareness regarding what constitutes “racism” and “discrimination” – thus practices that are discriminatory may be institutionalized (e.g. naturalization levels for non- ‘western’ groups very low) • Basic infrastructure absent (e.g. reliable public transport) • Education has been the first field where issues are being addressed • Access to welfare extremely problematic • Administrative detention also a big area of concern • However, worst aspects of racism (e.g. violence against migrant groups) have not yet been witnessed in southern Nicosia

19. Recommendations: north • Harmonization of laws with EU norms (e.g. on labor and human rights) • Inclusion of immigrants in unions, or unionization of different sectors • Further research – sectoral analysis (studies of labor) • Services to make education more multicultural • Stereotyping in media addressed – “peace journalism” can be extended to include migrant issues

20. Recommendations: south • Research: extend statistical research to include disaggregated data in all fields, not only migrant-related issues • Ensure protection of human rights of migrants, especially regarding administrative detention, treatment by police, operations of agencies that may be involved in trafficking, treatment by employers • Allow unionization of foreign workers (including domestic laborers) and prioritize needs of vulnerable groups (e.g. women, children, victims of torture) • Steer urban planning policies towards addressing migrant needs: improve public transport, parks, road network, housing in old city • Involve migrants in public debate and urban planning • Improve multicultural education and make cultural diversity more visible (e.g. through festivals) • Involve migrant groups in political debate on Cyprus conflict and in cross-border initiatives