Republic of Varosha

The **Republic of Varosha** is a resort city-state in south-eastern Europe, bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the east, and the Republic of Cyprus to the north, south and west.

## History

During it's original life as a suburban city in Cyprus during the 70's, Famagusta was the number one tourist destination in the country. To cater to the increasing number of tourists, many new high-rise buildings and hotels were constructed. During its heyday, Varosha was not only the number one tourist destination in Cyprus, but between 1970 and 1974, it was one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world, and was a favourite destination of celebrities such as Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton, Raquel Welch, and Brigitte Bardot.

## 1974 to 2016

Prior to the Turkish invasion of Cyprus, the city of Varosha had a population of 39,000. Following the Turkish invasion of Cyprus on 20 July 1974, the Greek Cypriot army withdrew its forces to Larnaca. The Turkish army advanced as far as the Green Line, which is the present day border between the two communities. Just hours before the Greek Cypriot and Turkish armies met in military combat on the streets of Famagusta, the entire population fled, fearing a massacre. Many refugees fled south to Paralimni, Dherynia, and Larnaca. Paralimni has since become the modern day capital of the Famagusta province.

When the Turkish Army gained control of the area during the invasion, they fenced it off and have since barred admittance to anyone except Turkish military and United Nations personnel. The people living in Varosha hoped to return to their home when the situation calmed down, but the resort was fenced off by the Turkish military.

The UN Security Council Resolution 550 of 1984 ordered for Varosha to be handed over to the administration of the United Nations, and was to be resettled by no other people than the inhabitants who were forced out. The Turkish state did not comply, but has held Varosha as a "bargaining chip" ever since in the hope of persuading the people of Cyprus into accepting a settlement of the Cyprus issue on their terms.

One such settlement plan was the Annan Plan, which the vast majority of Greek Cypriots rejected as unfair. It provided for the return of Varosha to the original residents, but this never happened because the plan was rejected by Greek Cypriot voters in a referendum, as the overall plan was considered unacceptable. The UN Security Council Resolution 550 states that it "considers attempts to settle any part of Varosha by people other than its inhabitants as inadmissible and calls for the transfer of this area to the administration of the United Nations". Since 1974, entry to the district is forbidden by Turkey with the exception of TSK personnel and the students of the girls' dormitory there.

The European Court of Human Rights awarded between €100,000 and €8,000,000 to eight Greek Cypriots for being deprived of their homes and properties as a result of the 1974 invasion. The case was filed jointly by businessman Constantinos Lordos and others, with the principal judgement in the Lordos case dating back to November 2010. The court ruled that, in the case of eight of the applicants, Turkey had violated Article 1 of Protocol 1 of the European Convention on Human rights on the right of peaceful enjoyment of one's possessions, and in the case of seven of the applicants, Turkey had violated Article 8 on the right to respect for private and family life.

As nobody had inhabited the area and no repairs had been carried out, all of the buildings continued to fall apart. Nature was reclaiming the area, as metal corroded, windows broke, and plants worked their roots into the walls and pavement. Sea turtles were seen nesting on the deserted beaches.

## 2016 to present

In July 2016, the Japanese conglomerate Kabushiki Gaisha ABS bought Varosha from the Turkish government and the Turkish Armed Forces for a large sum of money, and began redeveloping it as a resort. However, by August, it was announced that the Tokyo Metropolitan Government was going to govern Varosha as a republic city-state (similar to Macau, Singapore, Monaco or Hong Kong). ABS since sold all of its stake in the local government to maintain corporate neutrality. The new president was named as Tahire Aoi Kartal.

Varosha was initially not recognized as a country by the United Nations or any country, but soon was recognized after a few days, receiving recognition from the 5 main "veto power" UN members, "at least 170" other countries, all of the Russian Federation, the international Roman revivalist and reconstructionist organization Nova Roma, and the unrecognized nations of Abkhazia, Northern Cyprus, the State Kingdom of Marduk, Molossia, Sealand, Seborga, Lakotah, Palestine and Nagorno-Karabakh. Varosha was admitted to the UN a few weeks later.

The actual city that was bought from Turkey will act as the "City of Varosha" and the republic's capital, whilst the expanded radius of development outside of the pre-existing city limits will be referred to as the "Greater Varosha Area".

The Tokyo Metropolitan Government announced that it will establish an open "Schengen" border with Cyprus, and allow for visa-free travel between Varosha, Cyprus and Greece.

## National Anthem

In September of 2016, the Kerry brothers wrote Varosha's official national anthem, *The Song of Our Paradise*. It was recorded by the Dokuz Eylul University Symphony Orchestra in İzmir, Turkey and featured choir singers from over 100 countries. It is a BMI tune.

Unofficial anthems include the Hymn to Liberty, Ístiklâl Marçi and Kimigayo, the national anthems of Greece, Turkey and Japan respectively. "Kimigayo" remains the most frequently used, owing to Varosha's government by Japan.

## Invasion of North Korea

In September of 2016, in response to the September 2016 North Korean nuclear test, Varosha, with it's newly created military, invaded North Korea. Kim Jong-un was imprisoned in the Central Jail of Nicosia in Nicosia, south of the Green Line, and the other members of the North Korean government began rehabilitation.

The statues of Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il on Mansu Hill in Pyongyang are currently being moved to add statues of Tahire Aoi Kartal and Yuriko Koike next to them, as part of a new "Then and Now" presentation.