Information on the number of passports issued by the Republic of Cyprus to Turkish Cypriots was revealed

The Turkish Cypriot newspaper ‘Yeni Duzen’ revealed that from 2004 until September 14th  2009, the Republic of Cyprus issued 60108 identity cards to Turkish Cypriots, 42846 passports and 60135 birth certificates, Yeni Duzen is attributing its information to a source in the Ministry of Interior of the Republic of Cyprus. According to an interview of Neoclis Silikiotis (Minister of Interior) in the same newspaper he stated that the numbers are overblown. The minister has also explained under which conditions a Turkish Cypriot can obtain citizenship of the Republic. A person is considered Turkish from Turkey if both parents are from Turkey. In case a Turkish person married a Turkish Cypriot in Turkey then their children are entitled of Republic of Cyprus citizenship, but if they were married in Northern Cyprus then they are not since that would mean that one of the parents is illegally staying in Cyprus.