Sovereignty as Spectacle: Turkish Cypriot Researcher Critiques Grand Opening of the Northern Cyprus New "Republican Campus"
Hatay, a noted peace researcher affiliated with the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO), argues that the openings were not merely about inaugurating buildings but about constructing symbols of dominance under the guise of sovereignty. Hatay describes the events as meticulously staged platforms for political agendas. "Today in Northern Cyprus, it wasn't just buildings that were opened; symbols were constructed, roles were assigned, and once again, domination was legitimized under the name of 'sovereignty,'" he stresses.
According to Hatay, the Külliye (Presidential Complex) and Teknofest served as dual stages for power projection and preparation for a new political era. He contends that the events effectively launched the re-election campaign of the Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar, reminiscent of the 2020 opening of Varosha (Maraş) as a political trump card during elections. Hatay notes that Erdoğan's speeches reflected a calculated shift in tone: measured and diplomatic during the Külliye opening but overtly political at Teknofest, where he targeted the Cyprus Turkish Secondary Education Teachers' Union (KTOÖS), marginalized opposition voices, and listed Turkey's investments in the TRNC as a catalog of hegemony rather than development. "The language of investment here was not about progress but about submission. Each item was a building block of domination," Hatay asserts.
Central to Hatay's critique is the narrative of "sovereign Northern Cyprus" propagated during the events, which he sees as a veneer for deepening asymmetric dependency on Turkey. He argues that Turkey's absolute influence was cloaked in the rhetoric of "brotherhood," "support," and "investment," with the Külliye symbolizing a temple and Teknofest a ritual of allegiance. "Those who boycotted were marked for excommunication," Hatay warns, highlighting the exclusionary nature of the spectacle.
Hatay also points out the orchestrated nature of the audience at these events, claiming that the crowds were not representative of the local Turkish Cypriot population. Instead, he alleges that the Külliye opening drew a largely imported audience of AKP (Turkey's ruling Justice and Development Party) supporters and voters, bused in for the occasion, while Teknofest attendees predominantly comprised AKP-affiliated families and their children participating in the festival's competitions. "There was a crowd but no sense of belonging," Hatay observes, underscoring the limited participation of local Turkish Cypriots.
In this staged political theater, Hatay sees Ersin Tatar positioned as a president and the local guardian of a centralized regime's will over the island. He argues that political options for Turkish Cypriots are being narrowed, with dissenting voices systematically sidelined and rendered ineffective. This critique aligns with Hatay's broader research on de facto state-building in the TRNC, as explored in works like Sovereignty Suspended*, co-authored with Rebecca Bryant, which examines the complexities of sovereignty and dependency in the region.
The grand opening of the Republican Campus, intended as a celebration of progress and sovereignty, has instead sparked a deeper debate about power, representation, and the future of Turkish Cypriot identity. For critics like Hatay, the event was less a milestone of independence and more a performance of control, raising critical questions about who truly holds sovereignty in Northern Cyprus.