No special promotions for children of fallen soldiers in police force

Justice Minister Costas Fitiris announced on Monday that the Cyprus police will not grant honorary or special promotions to serving officers who are children of missing or fallen soldiers. Responding to an inquiry by AKEL MP Christos Christofides, the Minister stated that current police legislation and regulations contain no provisions for such preferential treatment.

This decision highlights the long-standing legal and constitutional conflict regarding special treatment for victims and their families in the public sector. The Minister emphasized that previous legislative efforts to provide favorable hiring or promotion schemes for victims and children of entrapped persons have consistently been struck down by the Supreme Court. Specifically, laws introduced in 1997 and 1998, which aimed to reserve 10 percent of public sector vacancies for these groups, were ruled unconstitutional in 2002 and again in 2006 for violating the principle of equality protected under Article 28 of the Constitution.

As it stands, the government maintains that no legal mechanism exists to allow for such advancements without violating constitutional requirements, effectively closing the door on the requested honorary promotions within the police hierarchy.