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. The majority Sunni Muslims, the minority Greek, and the Maronite Orthodox Christians worship freely. Restrictions exist on travel to and from the South.
Trade unions are independent.