Southern Cyprus

On 11 July 2002, the House approved more than 50 bills, including the controversial law raising the age of consent for heterosexuals to 17, to avoid having to reduce the age for homosexuals to 16 [R1.1].

The Criminal Code, Chapter 154, Article 154 provides that the age of consent for sexual activity is seventeen (17) years of age [R1.2].

Previously:

On 04 July 2002, the House decided to defer discussion of reducing the age of consent from 18 to 16 despite an attempt from House Legal Affairs Committee Chairman Panayiotis Demetriou to convince the plenum to treat the matters as urgent and vote on it immediately [R1.3].

Southern Cyprus

In November 2008, Interior Minister Bagherian granted resident status to Mehdi Kazemi [R1.1].

In July 2008, the Commissioner of Administration in Cyprus warned that Mehdi Kazemi, 20 a gay Iranian man, faced death in his homeland if he was deported [R1.2].

Northern Cyprus

Discrimination in the work place against openly gay men or women is most likely to be encountered [R1.1].

In the 1990s some tourists suspected of homosexuality or being infected with HIV were been refused entry or quickly deported [R1.2].

Southern Cyprus

In 2004, discrimination in employment based on sexual orientation was made unlawful [R2.1].

Southern Cyprus

In 1998, Cypriot Greek Orthodox Archbishop Chrysostomos said he will defrock a gay priest who has AIDS [R1.1].

Southern Cyprus

Consensual sex between same-sex couples was decriminalised in the Greek, southern half of Cyprus 1998 [R1.1] as a consequence of the 1993 judgment in the case of Modinos v. Cyprus [C1.1].

Previously:

In July 2002, the House decided to discuss the issue next week despite an attempt from House Legal Affairs Committee Chairman Panayiotis Demetriou to convince the plenum to treat the matters as urgent and vote on it immediately [R1.1].

In 2000, parliament finally replaced the reference to "unnatural licentiousness" with the phrase "intercourse between men" [R1.2].

In July 1998, amendments to the laws saw a ban on advertising for a gay partner, prohibitions on gay "indecent" proposals and higher penalties to sex offences that are homosexual in nature [R1.3].

In May 1998, the parliament of the Republic of Cyprus voted May 21 to change its law criminalizing consensual homosexual relations between adults, with some repressive elements [R1.4].

In November 1997, the government called for the House Foreign Affairs Committee to vote to legalise gay-male sex [R1.5].

Northern Cyprus

The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, Criminal Code, Chapter 154 provides -

Article 171. Whoever –

(a) has sexual intercourse against the order of nature with any person, or

(b) allows sexual intercourse against the order of nature with a male,

commits a heavy crime and is punished with up to five years imprisonment.

Article 173. Whoever attempts to commit one of the crimes mentioned above in art. 171, commits a heavy crime and is punished with up to three years imprisonment [R2.4].

There are plans to repeal these articles, but such a reform has not occurred as of publication of this report [R2.4].

On 12 April 2013, it was reported that the Prime Ministry's European Union (EU) Coordination Centre had drawn up an amendment to repeal Articles 171, 172 and 173 of Chapter 154 of the TRNC Penal Code that prohibit male same-sex acts [R2.3].

In December 2011, Turkish Cypriot leaders reportedly had bowed under pressure from MEPs and agreed to decriminalise homosexuality. Dervis Eroglu, president of the Turkish Cypriot government, said he would sign a repeal of the ban 'without delay' [R2.2].

In October 2006, Turkish controlled Northern Cyprus announced plans to decriminalize homosexuality [R2.1].

2A. Courts & Tribunals

On 01 August 2012, the European Court of Human Rights was reported to have registered the case of H v. Turkey seeking to decriminalise homosexuality in Northern Cyprus [R2A.3].

On 07 February 2012, the Human Dignity Trust filed a case against Turkey in the European Court of Human Rights seeking to decriminalise consensual sex between same-sex couples in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus [C2A.2], [R2A.1].

Southern Cyprus / Northern Cyprus

Cyprus only recognizes a marriage between a man and a woman. The nation does not recognize same-sex marriages, civil unions or domestic partnerships [R1.1].

Southern Cyprus / Northern Cyprus

The army does not accept people who are openly homosexual. [R1.1].