President leads tributes for ‘great TC supporter’ Dr Christian Heinze
TRIBUTES have been paid to German-born lawyer and TRNC supporter Dr Christian Heinze (pictured) following the announcement of his death, aged 91.
Dr Heinze, who was the Assistant to the President of the Supreme Constitutional Court of the Republic of Cyprus between 1961 and 1963, died on June
16 in the Austrian town of Lienz, just seven
months after the death of his wife Ursula.
President Ersin Tatar said that Dr Heinze was a “great supporter of the Turkish Cypriots in their struggle for justice and freedom” and that he will be “missed greatly”.
“Dr Heinze . . . witnessed the historical developments and activities of the Greeks and Greek Cypriots to make Cyprus a Greek-dominated island, including the Greek Cypriot-instigated move ejecting the Turkish Cypriots from all state apparatus,” Mr Tatar said in a written statement.
The President referred to a public online discussion about the Cyprus issue in February this year that Dr Heinze took part in, during which, he said, Dr Heinze expressed his support for a two-state solution.
“He also reminded us as to what sovereignty is, when he said: ‘The word sovereignty should essentially be based on permanently established, superior authority over a territory which is then legitimised’.”
Mr Tatar added that Dr Heinze’s “passing has caused myself and the Turkish Cypriot people great sadness and I send our most sincere sympathies and condolences to his family and friends. May the soul of Dr Heinze rest in peace in heaven.”
A written statement from the Association of Turkish Cypriots Abroad (Atca) said: “It is with great sadness that we have learnt of the passing of Dr Christian Heinze . . .
“Dr Heinze lately took part in the webinar organised by the Council of Turkish Cypriot Associations, British Turkish Cypriot Association and Circle Foundation, which greatly contributed to voicing the injustices faced by Turkish Cypriots and the two-State model as being a basis for a settlement.
“Dr Heinze was not only a great friend of the Turkish and Turkish Cypriot people, he was also a great inspiration, a prominent voice, who stood up for us in our just cause, and who wrote countless books and articles that put forward the case for the Turkish Cypriot people.
“He was also a great supporter of Atca and offered us direction and help in the past in our objective for respect, equality and recognition of our country . . . We will miss him dearly. He will live on in our hearts.
“Atca expresses its deepest sympathy and condolences to his loved ones, family and friends. May he rest in eternal peace.”
A message from a group called “End Isolation of North Cyprus” described Dr Heinze as a “valued lawyer and a dear friend”.
It said that he “witnessed the unlawful and unilateral change of the Constitution by the Greek Cypriots” in 1963 and that he “never lost contact with Cyprus after his duties in the island”.
“Until the pandemic, he visited the island almost every year. Until his final days he followed developments on the island closely.
“With his deep and up to date knowledge and analytical thinking, he shared his unbiased views on Cyprus, which is difficult to come by in international politics.
“He stressed the unlawful confiscation of Constitutional rights of Turkish Cypriots in 1963 by the Greek Cypriots and [the] unlawful isolation of North Cyprus with the support of a ‘family’ of countries close to mainstream Greek and Greek Cypriot politics . . . His Turkish Cypriot friends will always remember him. We express our condolences to his family and friends. May he rest in peace.”