Turkish-Cypriot economist Mertkan Hamit believes that his recent entry ban at Ankara’s Esenboğa Airport is part of a wider Turkish policy aimed at silencing supporters of a federal settlement in Cyprus.
Speaking to the Cyprus News Agency, Hamit stressed that the incident “was not an isolated case.” “I don’t believe this process is directed only at me. It forms part of a broader policy against dissenting voices,” he said.
Earlier, when Hamit landed in Ankara, officials informed him that he was barred from entering Turkey under the G-82 and N-82 codes and summarily deported to the island’s Turkish-controlled north.
He spent the night under the supervision of migration authorities in a dormitory-style room with Uzbek and Kyrgyz passengers. He was returned on a morning flight with “INAD” (Inadmissible Passenger) stamped on his boarding pass. “Maybe being Cypriot is enough,” he commented wryly.
Hamit noted that his troubles had begun inside the terminal, where he paid 500 Turkish lira for an iced coffee—effectively €10 under what he called a “fictional” exchange rate of €1 = ₺50. “It seems the ‘Ercan republic’ has not only adopted the euro but imposed an extra devaluation on the lira,” he quipped.
Concluding his statement, Hamit said: “Even if they string barbed wire across the middle of the island or hand out senseless penalties to force their will, the reality on the ground won’t change. Cyprus is an island, and there are still two other airports where coffee is far cheaper.”
Well-known for collaborative research with international institutions on the Turkish-Cypriot economy, Hamit is an active commentator on social and economic affairs in local media and on social platforms.
Photo: Wikimedia Commons