Rizokarpaso Primary School for Greek Cypriots explained

Rizokarpaso Primary School is a Greek-Cypriot primary school in Rizokarpaso, in Northern Cyprus. For a number of years it was the only Greek language school in Northern Cyprus. It has regularly appeared in Greek language media because it was reported that primary school teachers had been prevented from teaching there by the government of Northern Cyprus.

Notable cases

Eleni Foka was prevented from returning to her village and the primary school, and therefore applied to the European Court of Human Rights for justice.^[1]

Alexia Koukotsikas and her husband Grigoris Koukotsikas were primary school teachers who taught at Rizokarpaso Primary School in Northern Cyprus who were prevented, together with their children, from returning to their village and primary school by the government of Northern Cyprus.^{[2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9]} The plight of the Koukotsikas family was raised by MEP Dimitris Tsatsos at the European Parliament and in the Parliament of Cyprus by the President of the House of Representatives (Mr Demetris Christofias).^{[2] [10]} The Cypriot Financial Mirror newspaper has recorded that as recently as September 2008, the government of Northern Cyprus has prevented schoolteachers from returning to the primary school in Rizokarpaso.^[11]

See also

• Human rights in Northern Cyprus
• Enclaved Greek Cypriots
• Kormakitis
• Right to education
• Romanian-language schools in Transnistria

Notes and References

1. http://cmiskp.echr.coe.int/tkp197/view.asp?action=html&documentId=837082&portal=hbkm&source=externalbydocnumber&table=F69A27FD8FB86142BF01C1166DEA398649 Press release issued by the Registrar, Chamber judgments concerning Lithuania, Romania and Turkey, Foka v. Turkey (no. 28940/95)
2. http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-//EP//TEXT+CRE+20030901+ITEM-004+DOC+XML+V0//EN One-minute speeches on matters of political importance, MEP Tsatsos
3. http://www1.rizospastis.gr/storyPlain.do?id=1932434&action=print Προς εκδίωξη Ελληνοκυπρίων από την Καρπασία
4. http://www.hri.org/news/cyprus/kypegr/2003/03-09-02.kypegr.html Εκπομπή για ομογένεια
5. http://www.typos.com.cy/nqcontent.cfm?a_id=45574 Το πρώτο κουδούνι στο κατεχόμενο Γυμνάσιο Ριζοκαρπάσου κτύπησε στις 10 το πρωί (English translation: "The first bell of the occupied Gymnasium of Rizokarpaso rang at 10 in the morning")
6. http://www.rizokarpason.com/arthra3.htm Χτήπησε το κουδούνι στο Γυμνάσιο Ριζοκαρπάσου υστερα από 29 χρόνια (English translation: "The bell rang at the Gymnasium of Rizokarpaso for the first time in 29 years"
7. http://www.lobbyforcyprus.org/mediaitem.aspx?id=715 UNFICYP working to solve enclaved school crisis
8. http://www.rizokarpason.com/sxoleia/dimotiko/mathites.htm Τα Παιδιά του Ριζοκαρπάσου (with photographs of the teachers, Mr & Mrs Koukotsika, at an event organised to honor them)
9. http://www.makarios.eu/cgibin/hweb?-A=380,printer.html&-V=makarios Κατεχόμενα: Αυτοψία στον τόπο του εγκλήματος, by Makarios Drousiotis
10. http://www.cyprusembassy.net/home/index.php?module=article&id=1559 House President condemns Turkey occupation regime
11. http://www.financialmirror.com/News/Cyprus_and_World_News/11314 School year begins in Cyprus primary education