TLF Special: Why the Turkish Cypriot Elections Are Important, Amidst Nuremberg-Style Laws in Turkey?

by Dr. Nikolaos Stelgias

You can read the article in Turkish following this link

You can read the article in Greek following this link

The shadow of history often falls on contemporary politics, and few historical parallels are as chilling as the Nuremberg Laws of Nazi Germany. Enacted in 1935, these laws systematically stripped Jewish citizens of their rights, defined citizenship by blood, and criminalized relationships between Jews and non-Jews. They were the legal scaffolding for the Holocaust, a stark reminder of how quickly a state can codify hatred and discrimination into law. Today, a similar, deeply concerning legal trajectory is emerging in Turkey, casting a long shadow over the upcoming elections in the Turkish Cypriot community.

This historical echo is brought into sharp relief by Turkey’s proposed 11th Judicial Package. As reported by The Levant Files, this draft legislation introduces severe penalties, including prison sentences, for expressions deemed “contrary to biological sex and general morality,” and significantly complicates the process for gender reassignment. The proposed amendment to the Turkish Penal Code, which criminalizes the public expression of LGBTQI+ identities and even same-sex engagement ceremonies, is seen by critics as a move to impose a narrow, conservative social agenda that disregards individual autonomy. By seeking to legally erase and punish a segment of its population under the guise of protecting the “family institution,” this package represents a profound and authoritarian blow to human rights, drawing comparisons to the systematic marginalization inherent in the Nuremberg-era legislation.

This authoritarian drift is occurring against a backdrop of severe economic turmoil. Alarm bells are ringing for the Turkish economy, with the government forced to double its inflation forecast, a clear admission that its battle against soaring prices is failing. The country is grappling with stubbornly high inflation and a currency crisis, leading to a growing chorus of dissent from prominent business leaders. This confluence of political repression and economic instability creates a volatile environment, one where the ruling power may seek to consolidate control and distract the populace through increasingly illiberal measures.

It is this very instability—both political and economic—that makes the upcoming elections in the Turkish Cypriot community so critical. The Turkish Cypriot community is inextricably linked to Turkey, a connection forged by the de facto partition of the island in 1974. The economy of the internationally unrecognized Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) is deeply dependent on Ankara, notably through its use of the Turkish Lira. Consequently, the economic turmoil in Turkey translates directly into hardship for Turkish Cypriots, with inflation and currency devaluation eroding their purchasing power and financial stability.

The elections for the new Turkish Cypriot leadership represent a stark choice between two fundamentally opposing worldviews for the future of the community and the island.

On one side is Ersin Tatar, the current president, whose vision is for a two-state solution. This position, which aligns closely with Ankara’s current foreign policy, effectively means the final, permanent partition of Cyprus. Tatar represents the close ties with Turkey’s ruling conservative coalition, a relationship that has seen Ankara intervene in the political developments of Northern Cyprus, imposing its preferences for key governmental positions since 2021. His victory would cement the community’s political and ideological alignment with the increasingly anti-democratic and conservative trajectory of the Turkish government.

On the other side is Tufan Erhürman, the leader of the center-left Republican Turkish Party (CTP) and a former Prime Minister. Erhürman advocates for a UN framework-based federal solution, albeit with stick conditions such as a clear time framework and clarification of the final status of Turkish Cypriots. With his social-democrat profile, Erhürman rejects anti-democratic interventions from Ankara and projects a secular, modern Turkish Cypriot identity, pursuing closer relations with the European Union and its liberal values. However, as a classical social-democrat candidate, he avoids systematically to touch class-based inequalities and uncertainties in his own island, and his conditions for a federal solution remain a point of uncertainty for the Greek Cypriot side.

The choice facing Turkish Cypriots is not merely about the Cyprus Problem; it is a referendum on their identity and their future political alignment. Will they choose a path that ties them closer to an increasingly authoritarian and economically fragile Turkey, or will they opt for a secular, liberal, and European-oriented future, even if it means navigating a complex and uncertain path toward reunification? The outcome of this election will not only determine the fate of the island but will also serve as a crucial barometer for the struggle between democratic values and authoritarian influence in the Eastern Mediterranean.