This thesis explores popular perception of &#039 / Turkish Cypriotness&#039 / in relation to Greek Cypriots and T&uuml / rkiyeliler in the framework of struggling political discourses proposing conflicting identities to the population in the northern part of Cyprus. Purpose of the study is to understand dominant elements in self-representations of &#039 / native&#039 / Turkish Cypriots in the context of relatively new reality, namely, the partition of the island and immigration from Turkey. In other words, this study focuses on images of &#039 / Turkish Cypriots&#039 / and of their &#039 / Others&#039 / - Greek Cypriots and T&uuml / rkiyeliler- in popular discourse. For the purpose of understanding the self-perception of identity among &#039 / native&#039 / Turkish Cypriots, in-depth interviews were conducted in different cities of the northern part of the island. As a result of analyses of these narratives, the relational and precarious nature of identificatory practice is pointed. Moreover, problems relating to dominant perception of &#039 / Turkish Cypriotness&#039 / marked with hierarchical exclusion of T&uuml / rkiyeliler is stressed. It is concluded that popular perception of &#039 / Turkish Cypriotness&#039 / signals the fact that, more than opening space for a transnational attachment, Cyprus-centered identity fosters exclusivist approach towards T&uuml / rkiyeli &#039 / Other&#039 / .

This study explores how Turkish Cypriot identity is defined by Turkish Cypriot opinion leaders and Turkish Cypriot media in view of the longstanding interethnic dispute prevailing in the island. After a short historical review of the problem with reference to interethnic conflict and theoretical considerations pertinent to identity formation, short theoretical account of media and opinion formation, the state of the press in TRNC is displayed. This is followed by the analysis of the indepth interviews conducted within a sample of opinion leaders in TRNC and the press content in the Northern Cyprus at times which can be considered as turning points in the course of the unification negotiations. As for a conclusion, in the light of the findings, the question of whether or not the controversy around the national identity is self reproducing is tried to be answered.

This thesis is an attempt to inquire the origins of the Cyprus conflict by analyzing the historical developments that laid the ground for the inter-communal dispute in the late 1950s, while focusing on the structural dimension of the rise of ethnonationalisms in the island. The special emphasis is given to the British period 1878-1960 in the historical analysis since the ethno-religious identity consciousnesses of the Greek and Turkish Cypriot communities in the island started to turn into ethnonational ones and later into antagonistic nationalisms during this era. The study&rsquo / s underlying premise is that although different identity perceptions existed much earlier among the two communities of the island, the inconsistent policies of the British administration that shifted in accordance with its interests in the Mediterranean region enabled the emergence of a conducive environment for the politicization and manipulation of these diverse identity perceptions. The Greek and Turkish nationalisms gained strength in this era and gradually transformed into antagonistic nationalisms motivated by different political goals about the future of the island. These developments would be the main reason of the inter-communal violence in Cyprus that arose in late 1950s and also in the following years till the permanent territorial partition in 1974.

The Cyprus problem has now been an ongoing dispute for 40 some years. The two main ethnic communities, Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot, has since the unrest following independence in 1960, been separated both in space and mind. A military coup, supported by Greece, followed by a Turkish invasion, caused a violent division of the island in 1974, a division that remains today. The UN has facilitated dialog and negotiation between the communities since the establishment of UNFICYP in 1964.The objective of this study is to identify whether the parties have been and are aiming for long-term or short-term perspectives in negotiation. With the help of the theoretical framework of Conflict transformation, resolution and management the study aim to answer the question – What signs of conflict transformation could be identified within the high level peace negotiation process in Cyprus?The study will be done through a process tracing case study of the peace negotiations in the Cyprus conflict. The study aims at depicting the negotiation process from 1974 and onwards. This by exploring UN position papers, resolutions and reports together with descriptions and statements from the negotiating parties.The study found that the phases of negotiation have differed considerably over time and that a general shift from conflict management to conflict transformation did appear.

Conflict in deeply divided societies often has a profound impact both on the societies in which the conflict is located, and on the surrounding states and societies. Constitutional engineers working in such societies are inevitably attracted to power-sharing as a means of stabilising inter-group relations. Consociational democracy is a form of power-sharing democracy which is particularly attractive for a divided society, because its demands on the society are relatively few. It aims to separate the communities in the conflict as much as possible, while emphasising elite co-operation in the formal institutions of government. A difficulty with consociational democracy, however, is that the elite co-operation it requires to function is also required for the system to be adopted, yet will not necessarily be present. Cyprus is an excellent example of the difficulty of gaining agreement on a consociational regime for a divided society. In 1963, the consociational Republic of Cyprus collapsed as a result of mistrust between Greek and Turkish Cypriots. In 2004, a consociational system of government was designed for Cyprus by a team of UN experts under the direction of then-Secretary-General, Kofi Annan. The system of government was rejected in April 2004 at a referendum, and, consequently, was not adopted. This thesis examines why Cyprus has thus far been unable to adopt a political settlement. Failure is as hard to explain as success. Success may have many fathers and failure none, but there are as many possible causes of a failure as of a success. There is also the difficulty of the counter-factual: what facts would need to be different to produce success where experience is only of failure. The thesis systematically examines possible causes of failure, including the idea of consociational democracy itself, the particular consociational designs proposed for Cyprus, and the influence of historical aspirations and experiences. Particular attention is paid to the idea that there may be key factors which must be present before a consociational solution can be adopted. The factors, selected for this case study for their apparent relevance to Cyprus, are elite co-operation, segmental isolation, a balance of power between the disputant groups, and the ability of the international community to offer incentives for compromise. It is argued that these factors, especially elite relations and the complex web of causes which determine these, are central to an explanation of the Cyprus experience.