A Perth woman is trying to take on the Turkish Government after losing land and property during the occupation of northern Cyprus in the 1970s.
Maria Norwell, 81, inherited a home and a large swathe of land in Kyrenia in northern Cyprus from her parents.
But she has been unable to claim this inheritance because the area of the island is occupied by Türkiye as a self-proclaimed republic.
‘It was terrible’
Ms Norwell, who is one of six children, lived in Cyprus until she was 14 years old.
Her father had come from nothing, but rose through the ranks working closely with the British.
He ended up becoming a wealthy businessman and bought up property and orchards in the area.
However, during riots and unrest in 1957 in a battle for Cyprus to gain independence from the UK, her father was shot dead.
Ms Norwell believes he was targeted because of his close affiliation with the British colonialists.
She and her older sister were sent to the UK after her father’s murder.
But 17 years later came the Turkish occupation of northern Cyprus.
In 1974 a Greek military coup aimed to unite the entire island with Greece.
This lead to an invasion from Türkiye, and the country has been split in two ever since.
Ms Norwell could only watch on from her new home in Scotland as her family fled their home in Cyprus.
She said: “My mum, like most people, didn’t want to leave her house.
“She had to go to Nicosia instead.
“One of my cousins ended up getting shot and some of my friends were beheaded.
“It was terrible.”
Calls for compensation from Turkish Government
Turkish forces took over Ms Norwell’s family home and built property on their land.
After her mother’s death, Ms Norwell inherited the plot – but has not been able to claim it.
She now wants to be compensated by the Turkish Government for this loss.
She said: “The Turkish Government is under pressure from human rights groups.
“They brought out a commission which allows people who lost land during the war to apply for compensation.
“It is a significant amount of land in a prime area, it is not just a little patch of ground I inherited.”
The Immovable Property Commission was set up in 2006 after input from the European Court of Human Rights.
This commission looks to financially compensate those who were forced from their homes in northern Cyprus in 1974.
Over 7,200 applications have been made so far and £382.5 million has been awarded to over 1,300 people.
Hopes for a resolution for her family
Four years ago Ms Norwell got herself a Turkish lawyer and applied to get compensation through this commission – but has not heard anything since.
She said she wants to get this issue sorted quickly for her daughters before she dies.
Ms Norwell said: “It would be nice to get the compensation while I am still alive.
“I don’t know if anyone else will be able to do anything about it.
“Türkiye is under pressure, but I don’t think they have any intention to give me anything.
“They have compensated many people over the years, but this is now the fourth or fifth year of me waiting.”
Pressure on the UK Foreign Office
Ms Norwell is now working with John Swinney MSP and Pete Wishart MP to try for a resolution.
The UK Foreign Office, the Turkish Government and the Turkish Embassy in London were approached for comment.
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