The Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Refugees, Trapped Persons, Missing Persons, and Victims, Nikos Kettiros. Speaking on the “Alpha News” program in response to the new report by the Audit Office, he referred both to the shortcomings documented in the payment of honorary benefits and to the State’s broader obligations toward the victims of 1974 and their families.
Presenting the report’s findings, the Audit Office’s press spokesperson, Giota Michael, stated that in 2025, a total of 852 individuals received at least one of the benefits examined for prisoners of war. The audit identified eight cases in which the payment of benefits was not adequately documented, while serious deficiencies were found in the military registration records. He clarified that in some cases, individuals not included in the relevant records were found to have indeed been prisoners of war, a fact that demonstrates the unreliability of the records. “The problem is that there is no unified and fully harmonized regulatory framework,” he noted, emphasizing the need for a comprehensive re-examination of beneficiaries.
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Read more: Eight cases with “gray areas” regarding prisoner-of-war benefits; 852 beneficiaries under scrutiny
For his part, Nikos Kettiros called it unacceptable that, despite repeated discussions before the Appeals Committee, there is still no complete and reliable registry. As he explained, the data maintained by the Red Cross, the National Guard, and the relevant benefit payment agencies had not been cross-checked with one another, despite the complaints that had been raised before Parliament. “Therefore, for all these 52 years, the agencies failed to do the work they were supposed to do,” he noted, adding that the Committee had requested the intervention of the Audit Office, as it did not have access to the relevant records.
The Committee Chair placed particular emphasis on the human dimension of the issue, referring to the people who were held in prisons in Turkey and subjected to torture and humiliation during the Turkish invasion of 1974. He emphasized that the demands of the captives, the victims, and the families of the missing are not limited to financial claims, but primarily concern their dignified treatment and care. “The demands are not financial,” he emphasized, explaining that many of these people, due to their age and the injuries they bear, now require home or institutional care, yet the state has not responded to the extent that it should.
Nikos Kettiros also referred to the wives of the missing and the fallen, who were forced to raise their children on their own, sometimes working two or three jobs, as well as to the children who grew up without their fathers. He made special mention of the victims of sexual violence during the invasion, noting that many people still carry deep psychological trauma and bear the social stigma of that period. He argued that the State must acknowledge its long-standing failures and assume its share of responsibility. “Even now that we’ve delayed this, if we need to apologize on behalf of the State, we must do so. Not ‘if’ we need to—we need to and must apologize,” he stated emphatically.
Regarding the next steps, the Committee Chair announced that next Tuesday, November 3, a meeting will be held with the participation of all relevant agencies to review the findings and establish a timeline for implementing the Audit Office’s recommendations. For her part, Giota Michael noted that the Ministry of Defense has reported corrections to the Prisoner of War Registry and a further review of eligible beneficiaries, clarifying, however, that the Audit Office has not yet confirmed the completion of the required corrective actions.
