1960 Constitution of the Republic of Cyprus  
 

The Constitution, summarized below, entered into force on 16 August 1960, when Cyprus became an independent republic.   
The State of Cyprus 

The State of Cyprus is an independent sovereign Republic with a presidential regime.

The Greek community comprises all citizens of the Republic who are of Greek origin and whose mother tongue is Greek or who share the Greek cultural traditions or who are members of the Greek Orthodox Church.

The Turkish community comprises all citizens of the Republic who are of Turkish origin and whose mother tongue is Turkish or who share the Turkish cultural traditions or who are Muslims.

The official languages of the Republic are Greek and Turkish. The Republic shall have its own flag of neutral design and colour, chosen jointly by the President and the Vice-President of the Republic. The Greek and Turkish communities shall have the right to celebrate respectively the Greek and Turkish national holidays.  
The President and The Vice-President 

Executive power is vested in the President and the Vice-President, who are members of the Greek and Turkish Communities respectively, and are elected by their respective communities to hold office for five years. The President of the Republic, as Head of State represents the Republic in all its official functions; signs the credentials of diplomatic envoys, and receives the credentials of the foreign diplomatic envoys; signs the credentials of delegates for negotiation of international treaties, conventions or other agreements; signs the letter relating to the transmission of the instruments of ratification of any international treaties, conventions, or agreements; confers the honours of the Republic. The Vice-President of the Republic, as Vice-Head of the State, has the right to be present at all official functions; at the presentation of the credentials of foreign diplomatic envoys; to recommend to the President the conferment of honours on members of the Turkish Community, which recommendation the President shall accept unless there are grave reasons to the contrary.

The election of the President and the Vice-President of the Republic shall be direct, by universal suffrage and secret ballot, and shall, except in the case of a by-election, take place of the same day but separately. The office of the President and of the Vice-President shall be incompatible with that of a Minister or of a Representative or of a member of a Communal Chamber or of a member of any municipal council including a Mayor or a member of the armed or security forces of the Republic or with a public or municipal office.

The President and Vice-President of the Republic are invested by the House of Representatives. The President and the Vice-President of the Republic, in order to ensure the executive power, shall have a Council of Ministers composed of seven Greek Ministers and three Turkish Ministers. [It was stipulated that one of the three major ministries, Defence, Finance, or Foreign Affairs, should be held by a Turkish Minister.]

The Ministers shall be designated respectively by the President and the Vice-President of the Republic who shall appoint them by an instrument signed by them both. The President convenes and presides over the meetings of the Council of Ministers, while the Vice- President may ask the President to convene the Council and may take part in the discussions.

The decisions of the Council of Ministers shall be taken by an absolute majority and shall, unless the right of final veto or return is exercised by the President or the Vice-President of the Republic or both, be promulgated immediately by them. The executive power exercised by the President and the Vice-President of the Republic conjointly consists of:

  1. determining the design and colour of the flag;
  2. creation or establishment of honours;
  3. appointment of the members of the Council of Ministers;
  4. promulgation by publication of the decisions of the Council of Ministers;
  5. promulgation or publication of any law or decision passed by the House of Representatives;
  6. appointments and termination of appointments as in Articles provided; (g) institution of compulsory military service;
  7. reduction or increase of the security forces;
  8. exercise of the prerogative of mercy in capital cases;
  9. remission, suspension, and commutation of sentences;
  10. right of references to the Supreme Constitutional Court and Publication of the Court Decisions; and 
  11. address of messages to the House of Representatives.

The executive powers which may be exercised separately by the President and Vice-President include: designation and termination of appointment of Greek and Turkish Ministers respectively; the right of final veto on Council decisions and on laws concerning foreign affairs, defence or security; the publication of the communal laws and decisions of the Greek and Turkish Communal Chambers respectively; the right of recourse to the Supreme Constitutional Court; the prerogative of mercy in capital cases; and addressing messages to the House of Representatives.
 
The Council of Ministers 
The Council of Ministers shall exercise executive power in all matters, other than those which are within the competence of a Communal Chamber, including the following:
  1. general direction and control of the government of the Republic, and the general direction of general policy;
  2. foreign affairs, defence and security;
  3. foreign affairs, defence, and security;
  4. co-ordination and supervision of all public services;
  5. supervision and disposition of property belonging to the Republic;
  6. consideration of Bills to be introduced to the House of Representatives by a Minister;
  7. making of any order or regulation for carrying into effect of any law as provided by such law; and
  8. consideration of the Budget of the Republic to be introduced to the House of Representatives.
     
The House of Representatives 

The legislative power of the Republic shall be exercised by the House of Representatives in all matters except those expressly reserved to the Communal Chambers.

The number of Representatives shall be 50, subject to alteration by a re- solution of the House of Representatives carried by a majority comprising two-thirds of the Representatives elected by the Greek Community and two- thirds of the Representatives elected by the Turkish Community.

Out of the number of Representatives, 70% shall be elected by the Greek Community and 30% by the Turkish Community separately from amongst their numbers respectively, and, in the case of a contested election, by universal suffrage and by direct and secret ballot held on the same day.

The term of office of the House of Representatives shall be for a period of five years.

The President of the House of Representatives shall be a Greek, and shall be elected by the Representatives elected by the Greek Community; and the Vice-President shall be a Turk and shall be elected by the Representatives elected by the Turkish Community.
 
The Communal Chambers 

The Greek and Turkish Communities respectively shall elect from amongst their own members a Communal Chamber. The Communal Chambers shall, in relation to their respective Community, have competence to exercise legislative power solely with regard to the following:

  1. all religious, educational, cultural, and teaching matters;
  2. personal status; composition and instances of courts dealing with civil disputes relating to personal status and to religious matters; and
  3. imposition of personal taxes and fees on members of their respective Community in order to provide for their respective needs.
     
The Public Service and The Armed Forces 

The public service shall be composed as to 70% of Greeks and as to 30% of Turks.

The Republic shall have an army of 2,000 men, of whom 60% shall be Greeks and 40% shall be of Turks.

The security forces of the Republic shall consist of the police and gendarmerie and shall have a contingent of 2,000 men. The forces shall be composed as to 70% of Greeks and as to 30% of Turks.
 
    
 

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