CYPRUS: ORAMS CASE OUTCOME ANXIOUSLY AWAITED

UNCLAS NICOSIA 000107 SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR EUR/SE E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: CY PGOV PREL TU UNFICYP SUBJECT: CYPRUS: ORAMS CASE OUTCOME ANXIOUSLY AWAITED REF: NICOSIA 985 ¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY: Cypriots on both sides of the Green Line anxiously await the European Court of Justice's (ECJ) ruling on the Apostolides-Orams lawsuit, which pits a displaced G/C property owner against a British couple that acquired his land in 2002 and erected a vacation home there (Reftel). Constandis Candounas, the attorney representing Meletis Apostolides, told Emboffs the ECJ would almost certainly rule in favor of the Orams, despite last month's opinion of the Court's Advocate General (AG) in favor of his client and the fact the ECJ historically follows AGs' recommendations 85 percent of the time. Candounas's claim of the hopelessness of his case gives us pause, as it goes sharply against the conventional wisdom we have been hearing from G/C and T/C experts. END SUMMARY. ¶2. (SBU) In a January 30 meeting with Candounas, the attorney told Emboffs he was certain that the ECJ would rule against his client. Candounas explained that at the September 2008 hearing during which the two sides presented arguments to the ECJ, the Court's panel allowed the direction of argument to focus more on political, rather than legal issues. In fact, Candounas asserted that the "irrelevant questions" raised by some of the ECJ justices and the general atmospherics during the trial convinced him that the Court was more interested in preserving the ongoing Cyprus negotiations than it was in delivering justice to the Greek Cypriots. ¶3. (SBU) Candounas further claimed that during the hearing the Oramses' lawyers attempted to persuade the ECJ justices that public policy within the UK almost always followed international public policy, and as international public policy favored a Cyprus solution, the Court should take no action that would interfere with the ongoing negotiations. If the Court were to follow last month's preliminary ruling of the AG who had recommended that the British court be required to enforce the ROC judgment, it would materially affect the ongoing negotiations, particularly on the issue of property, and could damage the chances for a solution. According to Candounas, the ECJ, which is charged with both promoting individual justice and international public policies, seemed receptive to this line of argument. Despite forecasting his own defeat, Candounas claimed he would continue suing current and future occupants of Greek Cypriot properties in the north, especially non-Cypriots. ¶4. (SBU) Comment: Candounas's insistence that his case is already lost leaves us questioning his motives. His prediction contradicts everything we have heard regarding the Court's forthcoming decision, including insight shared by Emine Erk, an attorney representing the Oramses, who claimed that a ruling in favor of her clients seemed highly unlikely after the AG's recommendation. Whatever his motivations, the ECJ will rule on Orams during the Cyprus settlement negotiations and that decision will have a profound influence on the tenor and subtance of the talks. Urbancic