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Government
On the 5th of August 2011, the President of the Republic, Mr. Demetris Christofias, exercising the powers vested in him by the Constitution, appointed a new Council of Ministers.
The composition of the new Council of Ministers is the following:
Minister of Foreign Affairs, Erato Kozakou-Marcoullis
Minister of Finance, Kikis Kazamias
Minister of Interior, Neoklis Sylikiotis
Minister of Defence, Demetris Eliades
Minister of Education and Culture, Giorgos Demosthenous
Minister of Communications and Works, Efthymios Flourentzos
Minister of Commerce, Industry and Tourism, Praxoula Antoniadou
Minister of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Environment, Sophocles Aletraris
Minister of Labour and Social Insurance, Sotiroula Charalambous
Minister of Justice and Public Order, Loucas Louca
Minister of Health, Stavros Malas
Cyprus is an independent sovereign Republic with a presidential system of government.
Under the 1960 Constitution, executive power is exercised by the President (Head of State
and Government), elected by universal suffrage for a five-year term of office, through a
Council of Ministers appointed by him. The office of the Vice-President, to be held by a
Turkish Cypriot as provided by the Constitution, remains vacant because of the refusal of
the Turkish Cypriot leadership to participate in the government of the Republic of Cyprus.
For the same reason, the ministries and public service positions allocated to Turkish
Cypriots are, out of necessity, held now by Greek Cypriots. More information on the
presidency and the government ministries is provided on the websites below:
Presidency: www.presidency.gov.cy
Ministry of Foreign Affairs:www.mfa.gov.cy
Ministry of Defence:www.mod.gov.cy
Ministry of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Environment: www.moa.gov.cy
Ministry of Justice and Public Order:www.mjpo.gov.cy
Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Tourism:www.mcit.gov.cy
Ministry of Labour and Social Insurance: www.mlsi.gov.cy
Ministry of Interior: www.moi.gov.cy
Ministry of Finance:www.mof.gov.cy
Ministry of Education and Culture:www.moec.gov.cy
Ministry of Communications and Works: www.mcw.gov.cy
Ministry of Health: www.moh.gov.cy
Legislature
Legislative authority is exercised by the House of Representatives. Its members are
elected for a five-year term. At the time of its establishment the House consisted of 50
members, 35 of whom were to be Greek Cypriots and 15 Turkish Cypriots. Through a
constitutional amendment in 1985, the number of seats was increased to 80 - 56 allocated
to Greek Cypriot members and 24 reserved for Turkish Cypriot deputies.
Following parliamentary elections held on 21 May 2006, the seats in the House are
allocated as follows: AKEL 18; Democratic Rally 18; Democratic Party 11; Social
Democrats Movement 5; European Party 3; and the Ecological Environmental Movement
1. Mr Demetris Christofias, the General Secretary of AKEL, was re-elected President of
the House for a second consecutive term. However, following Mr Christofias’ election as
President of the Republic on 24 February 2008, Mr Marios Garoyian, leader of the
Democratic Party, was elected President of the House of Representatives on 6 March 2008.
Given the vacancy in the Vice-President’s office, the House President serves as acting
President of the Republic in the event of absence of the latter abroad.
Following the withdrawal of the Turkish Cypriot members in 1964 the House has been
functioning only with the Greek Cypriot members. According to the 1960 Constitution the
Maronite, Armenian and Latin communities, who opted to belong to the Greek Cypriot
community, also elect representatives who attend meetings without a right of participation
in the deliberations. They are consulted in matters concerning particular affairs of their
respective religious groups.
Judiciary
The administration of justice is exercised by the island's separate and independent
judiciary. Under the 1960 Constitution and other legislation in force, the following judicial institutions have been established:
The Supreme Court of the Republic, The Assize Courts and District Courts.
Independent Officers and Bodies
There are also independent officers and bodies which do not come under any ministry:
the Attorney-General and the Auditor-General who head the Law Office and Audit Office
respectively; the Governor of the Central Bank of Cyprus; the Ombudsman (Commissioner
for Administration); the Public Service Commission; the Education Service Commission;
the Planning Bureau; the Treasury; the Commission for the Protection of Competition;
the Office of the Commissioner of Electronic Communications and Postal Regulation; the
Cyprus Energy Regulatory Authority; the Cyprus Agricultural Payments Organisation; the
Office of the Commissioner for Personal Data Protection; the Cooperative Societies
Supervision and Development Authority; the Internal Audit Service; the Office of the
Commissioner for State Aid Control; the Tenders Review Authority; the Law Commissioner;
the Tax Tribunal; the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission; and the Radio and
Television Authority; the Reviewing Authority of Refugees and the Commissioner for the
Protection of Children’s Rights.
For further information and updates please refer to:
Press and Information Office: www.moi.gov.cy/pio
House of Representatives: www.parliament.cy
Ministry of Foreign Affairs: www.mfa.gov.cy
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