In the advance copy of UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’s report submitted on July 3rd to the UN Security Council on his mission of good offices in Cyprus, he emphasised an increase in civil society groups and initiatives that organized and called for change in Cyprus.
The Security Council had requested the Secretary-General to submit a report on good offices, in particular on progress towards reaching a consensus starting point for meaningful results-oriented negotiations leading to a settlement.
In the resolution, the Council encouraged the leaders of the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot communities to provide written updates on the actions that they had taken in support of the relevant parts of the resolution since its adoption.
“AN INCREASE IN CIVIL SOCIETY GROUPS AND INITIATIVES”
The report states: “Overall, despite frustrations and disillusionment with the possibility of successful negotiations leading to a comprehensive settlement in Cyprus, there was an increase in civil society groups and initiatives that organized and called for change. This included the Bicommunal Peace Initiative United Cyprus, the Cyprus Peace and Dialogue Centre and Determination for Peace (Apofasi Irinis) and a civic initiative for an updated process design (“C-Up”). In addition, the Cyprus Women’s Bi-communal Coalition, a group supported by the Irish Embassy, was officially launched in April 2024, aiming to ‘champion the critical involvement of women and inclusion of a gender perspective in the Cyprus peace process.’”
Voice Cyprus News covered each activity exclusively here: