The wounds of the 1974 Turkish invasion remain open. On Eleftherias Street in the community of Deneia, Myroulla Nikolaou was building the house that would be her family’s home.

Work on the house was nearing completion; their wedding was scheduled for September of that same year, and the couple was set to move into their new home.

“My father started building the house when I was 14 years old. He was a carpenter, and little by little—bit by bit—we gathered the materials; since we were poor, we built it ourselves.”

But the war changed their plans. They were still a young couple who never got to enjoy the house and the fruits of their family’s labor. 

During the second invasion, the village was bombed, and the residents fled. The heroic defense by 22 soldiers forced the Turkish forces to retreat, and the village remained free.

A few months later, when they returned to Deneia, the community was part of the buffer zone, and the presence of a peacekeeping force was deemed necessary.

In 1980, the house was converted into a UN outpost. Three kilometers away, on the opposite mountain, are the outposts of the Turkish invaders.

“I didn’t want to give up my house; I was crying—I’d rather leave it there to fall into ruin, even if it meant it was my responsibility—but I didn’t want to give it up. my brother-in-law and the former village head were telling me to give it up so that other villagers could live there, and this and that, I was 17 years old—I was young. With all that coming at me from every side, what was I supposed to do? I was young, and there were some things you just had to accept.”

The contract

According to official documents, the contract bears the number UNFICYP M-24. It was signed between the then-director of the Department of Public Works—acting as a representative of the Republic of Cyprus in an intermediary capacity—and Ms. Myroula’s husband.

“As clearly stated in the signed contract, the agreed rent of £20 per month will be withheld by the Government until the amount of £1.242, which has already begun to be spent on completing your unfinished residence.”

The tenant, as stated in the lease, is obligated, among other things, to: “ to return the premises at the expiration of the lease in the same good condition in which he received them, except for normal wear and tear and damage resulting from events beyond his control.

“And they said that as soon as they got the house, they’d hand it over to me, but where are the results? They didn’t do a thing.”

And the owner, for his part, was required to: 

“Paint the premises and maintain them in good and sound condition (including painting) to the full satisfaction of the Director of the Department of Public Works.”

“They paid me 20 pounds a month for 10 years, and after 3 years, they came and asked me for money because they were going to fix the roof, and they deducted it from my rent. And when I asked them why they deducted it, they told me, ‘We fixed the roof—who else is going to fix it?’ And I said to them, ‘You give me 20 pounds a month, and after three years, you want me to give you everything I’ve earned for the roof?’ That’s how it was.”

According to Ms. Myroulla, in 2012 the guard post was dismantled, the United Nations withdrew, and the house was left to fall into disrepair. The family was informed months later, when they sought answers regarding the non-payment of rent. The house, she claims, was not handed over to the owner as stipulated in the agreement. Fourteen years later, the barbed-wire fences are still there. So are the guard post and the prefab structures in the back yard.

“They didn’t get a permit to put the prefab structures back.”

For its part, the Department of Public Works notes that the property was returned to the owner in 2014 and, according to the recorded data, the owner does not appear to have carried out any maintenance work, and therefore it is reasonable to expect extensive damage to the building.

Regarding the prefabricated structures and the UN observation post, the UN was asked (since 2015, with a recent reminder in 2021) to remove them and repair the damage, but they have failed to do so.

Nevertheless, in this specific case, the lessee (TDE) is obligated to return the premises upon expiration of the lease in the same good condition as when it was received, with the exception of normal wear and tear and any damage for which the tenant is not responsible.

Today, swallows are the only permanent residents of the house. The place is littered with bird droppings. A soiled and damaged sofa sits at the entrance to the house, and many windows are completely unusable.

“Since 2012, when they left, and in 2014, when the Public Works Department came to assess the situation and see if they could fix it, they told me it would cost too much money, because back when we built it, there was very little money to build a house, and now it costs a lot. And that’s where we left it. Nothing else.”

What feelings does this situation evoke in you?
It makes you sad—to have your own house and not be able to use it, not even to give it to one of your children. Who can restore the house to the way it was?

The owner’s request

The stance of the United Nations, as well as the inaction of the relevant authorities in taking timely action, stand in the way of fulfilling Mrs. Myroulla’s request to restore her home.

What are you asking of the government?
To restore our house to its original condition so that it can be livable. We don’t want them to use the most expensive materials—we just want it to be livable.

The community leader of Deneia is also standing by her side; he learned about the story of Mrs. Myroulla’s house when she went to pay her taxes.

“What we are asking for is the restoration of the house—the complete restoration of the house—and the complete redress of this injustice; nothing else.”
Charalambos Alexandrou, Community Leader of Deneia

The statement from UNFICYP

Ten minutes after our arrival to cover the story, a UNFICYP teamarrived at the scene, asked for our identification, and prohibited us from conducting the report because, as we were told, we were inside the buffer zone. Let us remind you that the entire town of Deneia is located within the no-go zone.

“You realize that what just happened right before our eyes is unacceptable; we’re about 30–40 meters away from the second-to-last house in the village, and they’re coming to evict us—I just don’t get it, The entire community is located in the no-build zone; we have plans to expand the residential zone further down, but this behavior means we cannot expand.”
Charalambos Alexandrou, Community Leader of Deneia

Our group’s actions— the license plates of our vehicles, and the community leader’s identification details were recorded by members of the peacekeeping force; however, their behavior did not pose any threat. Shortly thereafter, a member of the UNFICYP police arrived, and we informed him of the purpose of our presence in the community. 

“As a community, we try to maintain the best possible relations with the peacekeeping forces, but sometimes we feel that they are against us. Not only do we have the occupying army against us, but we also feel that the UN is against us.”

Every year around this time—that is, during the summer— the peacekeeping force’s patrols and checks intensify due to frequent Turkish harassment of Greek Cypriot farmers in the buffer zone.

Watch Olga Konstantinou’s report: