Interpreting Student Rights in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus Constitution

This article does not constitute legal advice and if you’re looking for legal advice consult a registered legal practitioner. With this caveat out of the way, the aim of this article is to give insight to international students on their rights contained in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) Constitution. The article does not exhaust all rights contained in the Constitution but seeks interpret key rights affecting international students in TRNC. This insight is limited because rights contained in most Constitutions are usually interpreted by the courts through judgments especially the highest court of the land. However, since most of the judgments from the TRNC courts and the TRNC Supreme Court are in Turkish, the interpretation of rights will be limited to the Constitution which is available in English without the aid of judgments from the TRNC courts. This is equally applicable to legislation passed by the TRNC Parliament which gives effect or affects the rights contained in the Constitution. Due to the fact that TRNC legislation is in Turkish, it is difficult for me to apply the subsidiarity principle in analyzing rights afforded by the Constitution. The subsidiarity principle states that a person who claims that a right contained in the Constitution has be infringed must rely on legislation protecting that right instead of relying on the Constitution directly and may only rely on the Constitution when there is no legislation or court decision protecting that right. ?

Can the police/university/hospital/landlord discriminate against international students?

With the rise in hostility towards international students, it is important to be well informed of your rights to mitigate abuse at the very least. It is imperative to note that the TRNC Constitution is the supreme law of the land and any legislation passed by Parliament is subject to the Constitution. Article 7 of the TRNC Constitution provides for the supremacy of the Constitution and this entails that it is binding on everyone within TRNC including organs of the State. Article 8 of the Constitution provides for equality before the law and states that “Every person shall be equal before the Constitution and the law without any discrimination. No privileges shall be granted to any individual, family, group or class.” This provision is of utmost importance to international students as it provides for freedom from discrimination on different grounds including racial discrimination which has often plagued international students.?

Article 8(2) goes on to state that “The organs and the administrative authorities of the State are under an obligation to act in conformity with the principle of equality before the law and not to make any discrimination in their actions.” It is important to give an expansive interpretation to this provision and this entails that State institutions such as the police, immigration authorities, and public hospitals as well as private institutions providing a public service (education, healthcare and housing) including universities, private hospitals and private individuals such as landlords are prohibited from discriminating against international students. For instance, in situations where there is a dispute between an international student and a local/citizen (Turkish/Turkish-Cypriot) which requires the intervention of the police such a road accident where it is not apparent who is on the wrong, the police officer is prohibited by the Constitution from discriminating against the international student. However, it should be noted that there are rights only provided to citizens and not foreigners such as voting rights. Additionally, it should be acknowledged that student rights contained in the Constitution are not absolute and may be restricted as per Article 13 of the Constitution in accordance with international law. The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) provides for the rights which must be granted to all persons without discrimination between citizens and?foreigners. In essence, what this entails is that although there are certain rights that can only be enjoyed by citizens, fundamental rights being interpreted in this article are enjoyed by both Turkish-Cypriot citizens and international students.?

Can you be deported if you are found to be HIV positive?

Article 16(2)(e) of the Constitution gives the police powers to detain anyone likely to spread an infectious disease. This provision in conjunction with Article 6(1)(c) of the Aliens Law and Immigration Law has often been used to detain and deport international students infected with an infectious disease such as HIV, Hepatitis B and C, and Tuberculosis. Although in an earlier article I argue that the policy to deport students infected with HIV is discriminatory and undermines human rights, it seems students infected with HIV are still being deported. Voices of International Students in Cyprus (VOIS Cyprus) report in their 2022 second quarter Human Rights Violations Report that at least one student was detained by the police and deported on the basis of HIV status. Furthermore, a health report by VOIS Cyprus indicates that there is a policy by government to deport HIV+ students.?

What happens upon arrest/detention and what are my rights??

Article 16(2) of the Constitution gives police powers of arrest and detention. Article 16(3) provides that arrest should be accompanied by an arrest warrant but this provision requires further explanation in relation to international students. Arrests following an investigation are normally supported by an arrest warrant issued by a judge.?This entails that where the police have been monitoring and investigating the illegal activities of a student they may be able to support an arrest with a warrant. However, if a police officer has reasonable grounds to suspect that a student has committed a serious crime, that student may be arrested without a warrant on the spot. For instance, lack of a student permit could give rise to an arrest on the spot without an arrest warrant. Article 16 (5) states that “Every person arrested or detained shall be informed, at the time of his arrest, in a language which he understands of the reasons of his arrest or detention and shall be allowed immediately to have the services of a lawyer to be chosen by him or by his relatives.” This provision is straightforward and although it provides that the individual should be informed in a language which he understands of the reasons of his arrest, a practical interpretation must be given to this provision and English might be sufficient.

Upon arrest, a student will normally be taken to a police station for questioning and Article 16(6) of the Constitution provides that a student taken into custody without a warrant must, within twenty-four hours, be charged with the offence, be released upon certain terms pending the investigation, or be brought before a judge for an extension of their detention whilst additional investigations take place. The latter is the most common procedure. Article 16(7) provides that the detention pending investigation cannot exceed three months. This entails that where a student is arrested on suspicion of committing a crime, the student should be released within three months if the police fail to produce evidence to support the charge. The U.K Foreign and Commonwealth Office have information for UK Nationals detained in police custody and this information might be helpful to students in understanding what normally happens upon arrest.?

Can the police enter and search my house/apartment???

Article 20 of the Constitution provides that the police are prohibited from entering any dwelling house, searching and confiscating property in the house without a warrant. However, Article 20(2) provides exceptions to this where the police may enter an apartment/house without a warrant if national security or public order is at risk. This provision may be subject to abuse as the police may use the pretext of maintaining public order to enter the apartments of students without authorization by law.??

What avenues can I use to enforce my rights as a student?

Traditionally recourse to an infringement of a right contained in the Constitution is through the courts. However, this process is often drawn out and too expensive for students to pursue. An alternative is launching a complaint through the Ombudsman’s Office. Article 114 of the Constitution creates an office for the Ombudsman which is empowered to investigate and report on organs, authorities and public enterprises which have administrative and executive powers.

Any individual who claims that he/she was treated unjustly may apply to the Ombudsman by filling and signing the standard complaint form. Section 15 of the Ombudsman Law empowers the Ombudsman to conduct enquiries either on the basis of individual complaints or on his/her own initiative. According to Section 15(2) and 15(3) of the Ombudsman Law, the Ombudsman carries out a preliminary investigation whether the case in question is before the Courts or whether it is being investigated by the Police Authorities. If it is so, the Ombudsman sends a written response to the complainant and informs him/her that the complaint shall be dealt with only after the conclusion of the investigation by the Attorney-General’s Office or the police authorities. This route also has its own shortcomings as the Ombudsman does not have the power to investigate key state institutions such as the police as well as private institutions such as universities. Another shortcoming is that any decisions made by the Ombudsman are advisory only and the office cannot automatically overturn a decision of the court or other state institutions under its purview. The Ombudsman is obliged to investigate the matter and write an opinion about the issue. A final option is contacting VOIS Cyprus which might assist in enforcing your rights.