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A British woman who alleges she was gang-raped in Ayia Napa has won a “monumental victory” over Cypriot authorities after the European court of human rights (ECHR) ruled they did not properly investigate the case.
The woman, who was 18 and on holiday at the time, told Cypriot police in July 2019 that she had been raped in a hotel room by several Israeli males.
Ten days later the woman was questioned again, with only two short breaks over six hours and no lawyer or welfare services present. She signed a retraction at 1.15am and was arrested for “committing public mischief”.
The Strasbourg-based court, which referred to the Briton as “X” in its judgment, said: “The Cypriot authorities failed in their obligation to effectively investigate the applicant’s complaint of rape and to adopt a victim‑sensitive approach when doing so.”
It noted “numerous shortcomings” in the investigation and awarded the student €20,000 in damages.
“In conclusion, the court observed that the case revealed certain biases concerning women in Cyprus which impeded the effective protection of X’s rights as a possible victim of gender-based violence,” the judges said.
The Briton had resorted to the continent’s highest human rights body after the Cypriot attorney general, the island’s top legal authority, rejected her lawyers’ request to open a new inquiry with external investigators who could consider the rape complaint “fairly and dispassionately”.
The EHCR judgment was hailed as a “huge vindication” for the Derbyshire student.
The British barrister Michael Polak, who heads the London-based legal aid group Justice Abroad, and represents the woman, said: “The result couldn’t be better. It’s a monumental victory for our client but also for the rights of women, other victims of sexual violence, and their access to justice.”
Lawyers in Cyprus who had represented the complainant said the European tribunal’s decision was a triumph against a system that frequently did not take victims seriously.
“This is a big win,” said Nicoletta Charalambidou, a leading human rights lawyer in Cyprus. She observed that the credibility of victims of rape in the country was “very often questioned by a system built on patriarchy and discrimination against women and girls”.
In 2019 the woman was made to give testimony over several hours in the absence of a lawyer or psychologist. She described how she had been attacked by the tourists while she and her boyfriend had been having consensual sex.
She claimed the night began to go horribly wrong when the other men, at her partner’s behest, barged in, attacking her “one by one”.
The Briton’s defence team argued that her decision to withdraw the complaint was made under duress after seven hours of police questioning and accepted despite their client’s highly distressed state. “Overnight, she was turned from being treated as a victim into a suspect,” Polak told the Guardian.
The retraction allowed the alleged assailants, who were aged between 15 and 22 and included the sons of senior Israeli officials, to immediately return home.
Womens’ groups in Cyprus and Israel deplored the handling of the case. Activists from both countries who gathered outside the courts as legal proceedings unfolded said the Briton had fallen victim to a macho culture and to the desire of the two eastern Mediterranean nations to maintain close diplomatic ties.
Polak said Thursday’s landmark ruling reinforced the fundamental principle that allegations of sexual violence should be properly investigated “without institutional obstruction”.
“Our client has shown immense resilience in her pursuit of justice,” he said. “We hope this outcome will empower others to speak out against such offences and demand accountability from authorities.”
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Information and support for anyone affected by rape or sexual abuse issues is available from the following organisations. In the UK, Rape Crisis offers support on 0808 500 2222 in England and Wales, 0808 801 0302 in Scotland, or 0800 0246 991 in Northern Ireland. In the US, Rainn offers support on 800-656-4673. In Australia, support is available at 1800Respect (1800 737 732). Other international helplines can be found at ibiblio.org/rcip/internl.html
