TRNC Presidency names five members of civil society dialogue committee

The TRNC Presidency has announced the names of the Turkish Cypriots who will join the steering committee of the Civil Society Consultation Mechanism: Ipek Borman, Erol Kaymak, Meltem Onurkan Samani, Arif Osum and Candoğan Özkan.

The composition was announced on 27 August, the day after Tufan Erhürman and Nikos Christodoulides met in the buffer zone. The talks at the UN residence lasted almost three hours; the leaders also agreed to meet once a week, and more often if necessary.

Five people from the Republic of Cyprus have joined the committee; their names were announced by a government spokesperson on the same day. The steering committee has ten members in total — five from each side.

The Civil Society Consultation Mechanism is a platform through which non-governmental organisations from the two communities participate in the negotiation process. The body is being established as part of the UN secretary-general’s roadmap, outlined following his visit to the island in July.

The leaders’ next meeting is scheduled for 2 September at 15:00 in the buffer zone. In early September, the UN secretary-general’s personal envoy, Maria Angela Holguín, is expected to arrive on the island.