THE GREEK-CYPRIOT REFUGEES - PERCEPTIONS OF RETURN UNDER CONDITIONS OF PROTRACTED EXILE

Authors
Citation
R. Zetter, THE GREEK-CYPRIOT REFUGEES - PERCEPTIONS OF RETURN UNDER CONDITIONS OF PROTRACTED EXILE, The International migration review, 28(2), 1994, pp. 307-322
Citations number
44
Categorie Soggetti
Demografy
ISSN journal
01979183
Volume
28
Issue
2
Year of publication
1994
Pages
307 - 322
Database
ISI
SICI code
0197-9183(1994)28:2<307:TGR-PO>2.0.ZU;2-0
Abstract
Constituting a crucial element in the search for a permanent solution to the Cyprus problem, the needs and aspirations of the 180,000 refuge es are examined in this article. Of the three durable solutions to ref ugee crises, repatriation has consistently been advocated as the only option for the Cypriot situation. Contrasting the images of temporarin ess and permanency of exile, the article examines the extent to which die refugees, in the light of the dramatic social and economic changes that have taken place in the refugee community since the exodus of 19 74, might perceive of return as their sole feasible or potential objec tive. The article argues that the ambiguous identity of the refugees, as both insiders and outsiders, and the protracted political uncertain ty of their status give contradictory messages about the likely scale, processes, and success of their return.