The pandemic is also causing delays in the work of the CMP
Statement by Skevi Koukouma, AKEL MP after the visit of the Parliamentary Committee on Refugees, Enclaved People in the occupied areas, Missing Persons and War-stricken People to the Anthropological Laboratory of the Committee on Missing Persons in Cyprus (CMP)
30Tth March 2021
“The Parliamentary Committee on Refugees, Enclaved People in the occupied areas, Missing Persons and War-stricken People visited the premises of the Anthropological Laboratory of the Committee on Missing Persons and had a meeting with its three members.
During the meeting, the Parliamentary Committee was briefed on the progress of the CMP’s work, which, as has been ascertained, has faced long delays. Unfortunately, the pandemic and subsequent restrictive measures have led to additional problems and the loss of almost five months of working time, although the CMP’s work has resumed in early March.
According to statistics, in 2020, 25 identifications were made, the remains belonging to 10 people were found through exhumations, while the percentage of exhumations in which remains were found is 11%. It was reported that in the period ahead the identification of another 35-40 missing persons will be completed.
The Parliamentary Committee stressed the need to increase the number of units engaged in excavation, but also in the number of experienced and qualified researchers. At the same time, all measures should be taken for excavations to be carried out in all the places that the occupying army has designated as military zones, since only in 8 of the 30 points that was agreed, have excavations been carried out.
We also asked to be briefed on the issue of the moving of the remains of missing persons from the village of Ashia to an area in Dikomo, for which efforts should be made to secure as soon as possible a separate fund, apart from the CMP budget, given that it seems there is a possibility for the project to proceed.”
