The institutionalization of protracted ethnic conflicts: A discourse analysis of 'The Cyprus Problem'

On April 24th, 2004, after a long process of negotiation, the two major communities of Cyprus voted on the so-called 'Annan Plan' for a comprehensive settlement to the 'Cyprus Problem.' The Greek Cypriot majority rejected it, while the Turkish Cypriot minority approved it. The Greek Cypriot rejection perplexed the international community and primarily blamed the President of the Republic of Cyprus for the result. Using the main ideas of social constructivism, this paper investigates the idea that the Cyprus Problem has become an integral part of the social and political discourse of the Greek Cypriot society, thereby creating conditions for sustaining the conflict. In other words, the way the conflict is discussed becomes so inured in everyday life and the institutional arrangements of the society (both political and social) that the people living amid those arrangements are unable to think about it from any other viewpoint. The discourse sustains the conflict and constructs a reality of unsolvable problems. In a way, the conflict has become part of the national character and identity of the country. To end it would be to challenge national identity.; Using discourse analysis methods, this dissertation analyzes the evolution of the discourse surrounding "The Cyprus Problem" in the Greek Cypriot community from 1986-2004, the years that marked the most active involvement of the United Nations in the inter-communal negotiation process. Concentrating on the official state discourse, the discourse emanating from the secondary-level education history textbooks, and the discourse of the Autocephalous Orthodox Church of Cyprus, the paper argues that the similarities between these social and political realms suggest that ideas regarding the Cyprus problem have permeated Greek Cypriot society and have affected its collective national identity. This dissertation provides a discussion of some representative emerging groups that offer alternate discourses and the problems they face when they confront the established social and political patterns. Finally, suggestions are offered of how the concept of institutionalization can be useful in examining similar protracted ethnic conflicts and what this means for conflict resolution.