The judiciary is independent, and trials are fair. Civilians deemed to have violated military zones are subject to trial in military courts, which provide due process rights. In 1995, the TRNC allowed for the first time an investigation into the whereabouts of five American citizens of Greek Cypriot descent who disappeared during the 1974 invasion. Ethnic violence in 1996 killed four unarmed Greek Cypriots in the UN-controlled buffer zone. The private press includes newspapers and periodicals that carry a range of viewpoints.
Broadcast media are government-owned and offer some pluralistic views.
Outstanding property claims arising from the division and population exchange in 1974 remain an obstacle to peace and demilitarization on the island. Approximately 85 percent of the land in the north continues to be claimed by its original Greek Cypriot owners. In 1996, the European Court for Human Rights at Strasbourg held Turkey directly responsible for denying a Greek Cypriot refugee unconditional access to her property in the North since 1974. In these rulings, the Court recognized Ankara, not the TRNC, as having control of the North and treated the internationally recognized Cypriot Republic as the sole legitimate government on the island. According to the Financial Times, property fights are weak within the TRNC itself, and some residents accuse politically connected persons of illegally appropriating land.