Cyprus-Forum.com

[kurupetos]

I thing we should have a poll to decide which of the two men is which. I could guess which one is TC and which GC, but it would have to be a guess!

It's a good idea

No, I have a better idea How about a poll if that woman behind them is GC or TC? Only hint is her butt. That's more fun!!!

[halil]

Author’s dismay as Mehmet censored from schools
By Stefanos Evripidou

A SECTION of society, including some of its educators, is evidently not ready for reconciliation with the Turkish Cypriots, said Nearchos Georgiades yesterday, author of the short story that caused a storm in a teacup last month.

Georgiades came to this conclusion after observing people’s reactions to the inclusion of his short story “Mehmet’s Last Wish” in the education syllabus.

Last month, the Education Ministry compiled a list of publications providing alternative historical views for teachers to use as points of discussion in the classroom, including “Mehmet’s Last Wish”.

The list is part of the Education Ministry’s new policy goal of promoting peaceful co-existence and reconciliation in schools.

However, its inclusion sparked an outcry from head of the primary teachers’ union (POED), Demetris Mikellides who condemned the new reading material as provocative. Mikellides called it a distortion of history, referring to the bit in Georgiades’ short story, where EOKA gave orders to destroy mosques.

The union chief was slammed by his Vice President, Lazaros Avraam, who accused Mikellides of isolating two three phrases from every text and commenting on them as if on behalf of the union.

“It would be much more appropriate for him to clearly state his opposition to the goal of peaceful co-existence instead of playing with words,” said Avraam.

Eventually, some of the materials were withdrawn from the list. Without commenting on their content, the Education Ministry agreed that the materials should have been discussed in the relevant committee before the list was drawn up.

Having come under sustained attack for attempting to modernise the history books, it seems the ministry wants to avoid opening another front with the more reactionary elements in education circles.

By acknowledging that the list was drawn up without prior agreement of the relevant committee, the ministry hopes to draw a line over the issue.

However, the Union of Cypriot Writers, of which Georgiades is a member, criticised the removal of certain “sensitive” materials from the list of publications, arguing that “preventive censorship has no place in democratic societies”.

Georgiades argued that the short story, first published 20 years ago, was actually based on real events.

“It is a true story as I lived it about the close friendship of Phivos (my brother) and Mehmet. Set in 1957/58, it talks about a Turkish Cypriot boy, Mehmet who moved to Lefka because of the troubles at the time.

“When the doctor told him he would die from a heart condition, his last wish was to meet the only Greek Cypriot who treated him well, my brother. We older Greeks used to keep him out of our circle because he was a Turk.”

Georgiades defends the short story against criticism that it “distorted history”, saying he only wrote about what happened.

“These were colonial times and a friend and I put the Greek flag on our school to close it. Then we broke into the Turkish Cypriot school, which was also a mosque and broke the windows.

“Many years later, my friend told me the reason we did it was because EOKA, which his brother belonged to, had told him do it.”

The author was adamant that he looked at both nationalist organisations, Volkan and EOKA, through the same objective lens.

“The story basically describes the background leading to the first partition in 1963. It’s a story about the friendship of two children and their innocence in a murderous environment. It’s not about who was right or wrong. Both communities used to have bad words to describe the other. But it’s also a self-critique for the responsibilities of both sides for the bloodshed that came to pass many years later,” said Georgiades.

Asked to comment on the fierce reaction to his story, 20 years after its publication, he said: “I did not submit the story to the ministry. But it seems Cypriot society is divided on the issue of co-existence.

“I believe a part of Cypriot society and the primary teachers’ union is not mature enough to accept the progressive ideas of reconciliation in the story. It is two three steps ahead of what some teachers are prepared for,” he added.





Copyright © Cyprus Mail 2008

[Nikitas]

“Many years later, my friend told me the reason we did it was because EOKA, which his brother belonged to, had told him do it.”

Eoka told the brother, who then told the friend who then told the author. This is double hearsay.

The author means to say he was dumb enough to vandalise the school and then sought excuses. Note that he did not know even of the hearsay until many years later. AT THE TIME he was doing it he did not know of any orders from anyone. Yet he does not assume responsibility for his decision and his actions. What an asshole!

This is the problem, that the author does not have the balls to accept responsibility. It has been the problem all along with Cypriots.

This would make a great book on civic education if properly handled and detached from the nationalist context. But it is not a history book.