The Communal Chambers were two parallel legislative bodies in

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is geo ...

; one for the

Greek Cypriot Greek Cypriots or Cypriot Greeks ( el, Ελληνοκύπριοι, Ellinokýprioi, tr, Kıbrıs Rumları) are the ethnic Greek population of Cyprus, forming the island's largest ethnolinguistic community. According to the 2011 census, 659,115 r ...

community and one for the

Turkish Cypriot Turkish Cypriots or Cypriot Turks ( tr, Kıbrıs Türkleri or ''Kıbrıslı Türkler''; el, Τουρκοκύπριοι, Tourkokýprioi) are ethnic Turks originating from Cyprus. Following the Ottoman conquest of the island in 1571, about 30,00 ...

community. The Greek Chamber was abolished in 1965.

History

The Chambers were established under the 1960 constitution,Historical Review
Parliament of Cyprus with the first elections held on 7 August 1960. The Patriotic Front won a large majority in the Greek chamber and the

Cyprus Turkish National Union The Cyprus Turkish National Union ( tr, Kıbrıs Milli Türk Birliği, KMTB) was a conservative political party representing the Turkish minority in Cyprus led by Fazıl Küçük.Marshall William Conley (1967Political Community and Social Confli ...

won all the seats in the Turkish chamber.Yitzhak Oron ''Middle East Record Volume 1, 1960'' The Moshe Dayan Centre, p225 Following the withdrawal of the Turkish community from national politics in December 1963, in March 1965 the remaining Greek members of the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

passed a law abolishing the Greek Communal Chamber and transferring its responsibilities to the House of Representatives. A new

Ministry of Education and Culture The Ministry of Education and Culture is a Cabinet position in the governments of several nations. In some nations the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Culture are separate departments; in others, the Ministry of Education and Culture als ...

was established to take responsibility for educational and cultural issues. In 1967 members of the Turkish chamber joined with the 15 Turkish former members of the House of Representatives to establish a new Turkish Cypriot Legislative Assembly. The chamber was never officially dissolved, although its powers have not been exercised in the Republic of Cyprus since the 1974 division of the island.

Powers

Article 87 of the constitution outlined the responsibilities of the chambers:Constitution of Cyprus
President of Cyprus

References

{{reflist Historical legislatures Politics of Cyprus 1960 establishments in Cyprus 1965 disestablishments in Cyprus