A/HRC/40/22 I. Introduction 1. The present report was prepared by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) pursuant to resolutions 4 (XXXI), 4 (XXXII) and 1987/50 of the Commission on Human Rights and decision 2/102 of the Human Rights Council. 2. As at 30 November 2018, Cyprus remained divided, with a buffer zone maintained by the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP). In its resolution 2430 (2018), the Security Council extended the mandate of UNFICYP for a further period ending on 31 January 2019. Noting the lack of progress towards a settlement since the conclusion of the Conference on Cyprus in July 2017, the Security Council welcomed the appointment of United Nations consultant Jane Holl Lute to engage in in-depth consultations on the way forward, and urged all the participants involved to engage constructively in the consultations and to renew their political will and commitment to a settlement under the auspices of the United Nations. In October 2018, following consultations and discussions with the leaders of the two communities, the Secretary-General reported on his mission of good offices, the Office of the Special Adviser to the Secretary-General on Cyprus. He noted that prospects for a comprehensive settlement remained alive, and that he would instruct Ms. Lute to continue discussions (S/2018/919, paras. 25–27). 3. To prepare this report, in the absence of a presence in Cyprus, OHCHR relied on a variety of sources with particular knowledge of the situation of human rights on the island, and on the recent findings of international and regional human rights mechanisms. UNFICYP, the Secretary-General’s good offices mission, the secretariat of the Committee on Missing Persons in Cyprus, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and various stakeholders were consulted in the preparation of the report. II. Challenges for the implementation of international human rights standards 4. United Nations human rights mechanisms have voiced concern at the factors and difficulties impeding the implementation of international human rights standards on the whole island, owing to its continued division. 5. During the reporting period, the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women was the only such mechanism to address Cyprus. 6. In its concluding observations of July 2018, the Committee noted that the State party did not exercise control over all parts of its territory and was thus unable to ensure the practical realization of women’s rights in areas not under its effective control. The Committee expressed concern that the political situation continued to pose a challenge to the implementation of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. It recommended that the State party undertake an impact assessment of the protracted conflict and the continued division of Cyprus on the enjoyment by women and girls of their rights (CEDAW/C/CYP/CO/8, para. 7). 7. In its common core document submitted to the United Nations in February 2018, the State party indicated that, due to the continuing illegal Turkish occupation, the Government of the Republic of Cyprus was prevented by armed force from exercising its authority and control and ensuring implementation and respect of human rights in the occupied areas (HRI/CORE/CYP/2018, para. 54). 8. As was observed by the Secretary-General, the de facto division of the island, which has persisted for decades, has been characterized by the lack of direct communication between the opposing forces, police services and civilian authorities (S/2018/676, para. 5). In that context, UNFICYP pursued its functions pursuant to Security Council resolution 186 (1964) and subsequent Security Council resolutions. That included work to maintain calm and stability in and around the buffer zone, to keep tensions low through active engagement with the two sides and to build confidence through various intercommunal initiatives. Moreover, UNFICYP sought to respond to new challenges, including by increasing the 2