Filenews 11 October 2025
Spanish director David Castillo, who was preparing the documentary "Cyprus: Divided Island", complained that he was "arrested" twice and "banned from entering" the occupied territories during his attempts to film.
According to his statements to the Turkish Cypriot newspaper "Yeni Duzen", Castillo said that his project aimed to present in an impartial way the positions of the two sides on the Cyprus problem and to bring the President of the Republic of Cyprus Nikos Christodoulides and the Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar to a joint interview.
As he stated, while initially there was a positive response from Mr. Tatar's entourage, the proposal for a joint appearance with President Christodoulidis was categorically rejected.
Barriers and ban on entry
The director noted that during their efforts to secure permits for filming, he and his team faced serious obstacles from the "authorities" of the pseudo-state. As he said, he was detained for "interrogation", threatened with arrest and finally informed that he was forbidden to enter the occupied territories.
Despite repeated attempts to contact the Turkish Cypriot leader's office for an official explanation, he received no response.
The shipwreck of the documentary
The documentary was also supposed to include filming in the fenced-off city of Famagusta, however the plan was wrecked after the entry ban. Castillo described his experience as "really sad", pointing out that the decision of the "authorities" undermines the freedom of the press and the effort to present the situation in Cyprus objectively.
