Cyprus-Forum.com

[pitsilos]

Turkey is at risk of losing the Turkish Cypriots
Greek Cypriots often say “my country is under occupation” or “our ancestral homes lie in the occupied areas,” however the people living under everyday occupation are the Turkish Cypriots. With little or no support from the Cypriot government, Turkish Cypriots who truly believe in a united Cyprus are left to single-handedly deal with the chauvinism and daily interference in their political, economic and social affairs by the occupying Turkish military. Nowhere can you go in Northern Cyprus without coming across the presence of Turkish troops and the nationalistic symbols and flags that they adorned our country with.

Driving across the country from Famagusta to Lefke one is constantly reminded of their presence in numerous army camps and a huge flag and slogan on the southern side of the Kyrenia mountain range. The symbols not only reflect the folly of our situation, where Turkish Cypriots now have their ‘own state’ founded without popular will but the fact that Turkish Cypriots are like guinea pigs politically and economically isolated from the entire world because of a state originally set up by General Kenan Evren and the power hungry Mr Denktash.

The giant now luminous mountain flag that lies almost above the Nicosian skyline sadly does not represent the Turkish Cypriot community as it should do, but an artificial state imposed by Turkey. The fact that ‘our’ flag lies in a Turkish military zone and was put their by them with little access to the Turkish Cypriots, means that it is impossible to remove it and replace it with a dove without creating a situation that resembles the American revolutionary war! Of course Cypriots would rather sit in their village Kahve’s than metamorphasize the likes of Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin. Getting a flag up is easy in Northern Cyprus but removing it later is impossible it seems.

What’s more sad about the flag is the reaction it has caused in the Republic of Cyprus all that is left of our once unified and culturally diverse state. Rather than oppose foreign nationalisms in Cyprus because of their destructive ad divisive nature, on the streets of Limassol, Lakatamia, Lefkara and Paphos one ca see national flags of Greece flying everywhere beside heroic nationalistic slogans. Their enthusiasts say “If they (the Turkish Cypriots) fly Turkish flags then we should be able to fly Greek flags.” The government of Cyprus, which permits this is clearly not behaving like a government for all Cypriots, but is actually kicking pro-reunification Turkish Cypriots in the teeth and pushing them further and further away.

In the South such activities can be curbed by a government that is officially a Cypriot government, but in the North, often Turkish Cypriots have little control over the raised flying Turkish flags or even the TRNC ones, as I have mentioned it is easy to put up a flag but difficult to bring it down or move it without creating conflict. So why it that the Cypriot government is permitting the flying of Greek is flags on Cypriot soil, if it claims to be inclusive? How can it allow Greek nationalistic symbols on walls under which the Cypriot National Guard exercises? What has happened to the Cypriot state? Since when has it become a Greek Cypriot state?

It is not only nationalistic symbols however that are the problem, the occupying Turkish military also attempts to intrude in Turkish Cypriot civilian politics, albeit less directly nowadays, thanks to the EU factor. In fact it has done it so many times, that people often laugh if you say “the military try to interfere in our politics.” Everybody has accepted the interference exists, whether they like it or not.

With no respect for the Turkish Cypriot community and its right for self-determination, the Turkish military on the island put opposition leader Özker Özgür under house arrest in 1985, while in the Denktash-Eroglu presidential election of 1998, Eroglu who had gained 38% rather suspiciously dropped out before the second round. To ensure it can prevent ‘non-desirable’ pro-reunification parties from reaching power, the military even supported for many years the importation of voters from Anatolia, 6000 of whom had been grated citizenship over-night in order to vote and thus disenfranchise the Turkish Cypriot voters.

All this stems from a country that claims to have ‘saved’ the Turkish Cypriots from extinction. By setting up an unrecognised state which precipitated economic sanctions, and by bringing mafia-run casinos and prostitution joints to little Northern Cyprus, livelihoods were destroyed and crime rates rose so high that Turkish Cypriots for three decades left in their thousands. The answer of the Denktash administration and the military at the time to this alarming migration was, “Turks go Turkish come”. When Turkish Cypriot journalists like Kutlu Adali opposed this, he was assassinated.

For some the presence of the occupation army is a necessary security measure against potential Greek attacks and necessary to defend human rights. But how long can that argument be valid? Cyprus today is not as it was in the summer of 1974. In today’s EU Cyprus with over two million tourists a year, the main preoccupation on most people’s mind are how best to capitalise on the tourism trade and hit a fortune.

All you have to do is wonder the streets of South Nicosia to see both the abundance of multi-national shops and diversity of foreign resident workers. Over 60,000 Eastern European, Sri Lankan, Thai, Filippini and Indian people, not forgetting Western Europeans have made Cyprus their home also. Beside the ruins of mud-brick farm houses one can luxurious resorts and retail parks selling everything you can buy in the West. The rural village Cyprus of family vendettas and the evil eye has long since disappeared. Who is the Turkish army protecting us from? Perhaps a bunch of tourists wearing panama shoes and straw hats?

Regardless of what happened in the 1960s and 1970s, with the disenfranchisement of the Turkish Cypriots for thirty years, the importation of settlers and criminal gangs who control brothels and casinos, and the occasional past act of gerrymandering aimed at keeping Ankara supported government in power, (which is the reason Mr Denktash stayed in power so long), one is compelled to ask, exactly who are the Turkish army protecting? Reducing the Turkish Cypriots to an insignificant minority beside the settlers has left Turkish Cypriots wondering, are they protecting ‘us’ or their own strategic interests?

For those who argue that Turkey spilled blood in Cyprus, my answer is, every country, many smaller than Turkey spilled blood in every corner of the world, Portugal in East Timor, the Dutch in Java, the Americans in Vietnam, the British and French in every continent, often where their was little or no cultural affiliations to the European powers in question. Governments and military leaders have long used their civilian males to fight wars that they have painted as moral acts but are really for quite unethical and unmoral reasons. Soldiers in the First World War were often told “Dolce es decorum pro patria mori”, which translates as “It is sweet and wonderful to die for ones country.”

No doubt many Turkish soldiers who gave up their lives believed they were helping Turkish Cypriots, no doubt others wanted a slice of action, but what is clear after 30 years is that Turkey the government and military has managed to isolate further the Turkish Cypriot community, attempted to starve them of power within their own country ad the Cyprus questions remains as usual unresolved. Our ‘saviours’ the Turkish military who play such a key role in a Cyprus solution today are at risk of losing the Turkish Cypriots due to the after taste of their own treatment of this community over three decades and after their lies are now becoming exposed.

http://www.toplumpostasi.net/index.php/cat...eName/Ana_sayfa

[humanist]

Pitsilos, I tend to agree with your post. But I do believe that the majority of Turkish Speaking Cypriots support the situation as is and probably and rightly so believe that they have been saved by the Turkish army/ government.

The posts on this forum would indicate this.

Furthermore, you make a vaild point about the Greek flag flown in the south. What the hellis that all about? If there is one thing I find offensive when am in Cyprus is the Greek flag flown and at time outnumbers the beautiful Cyprus flag. I would suggest that Papadopouls instructs for this not to happen if it truly suports a Unified Cyprus. Some people in Cyprus happen to speak Greek and be a Greek Orthodox religious background that certainly does not make us Greek.

Furthemore, the RoC needs to spend some money towards repair of Turkish Speaking Cypriot properties in the south for those who wish to immigrate south and join in the social, economic and mulitcultural society that Cyprus is becoming. Howevernot without first making changes to the laws that make it illegal for discrimination and abuse towards all of its citizens but primarily the Turkish Speaking citizens. Turkish ought to become a compolsory subject in schools as should Greek and all children ought to be encouraged to learn both languages if it can happen in other nations it can happen in Cyprus and then and only then will this beautiful Island see paeace harmony and an influx of Cypriots now living overseas moving back.

[miltiades]

Humanist wrote:
""""I would suggest that Papadopouls instructs for this not to happen if it truly suports a Unified Cyprus. Some people in Cyprus happen to speak Greek and be a Greek Orthodox religious background that certainly does not make us Greek. ""
"
My dear friend I agree totaly that the Cyprus government ought to be more" Cypriot" than it currently is and discourage the hoisting of Greek flags , a very difficult task given the misconceptions surrounding the issue.
Your choice of words "Some people happen to speak Greek " is a little unreal since they dont just " happen to speak Greek " their language and mother tongue is Greek , just as the Turkish language is the mother tongue of the T/Cs.

[eracles]

Pitsilos, I tend to agree with your post.

Furthermore, you make a vaild point....

Pitsilos didn't write it. The link ais at the bottom of the article. the fantastic Ana Sayfa wrote it.

[zan]

My comments from another forum


My thoughts on the article are that it is written with purpose and not just reported. It has an aim to discredit the Turkish soldiers and does so perfectly. That does not mean that none of it is true and in a way it does some good for the Turkish Cypriots in as much as it will help to accelerate the process, that it briefly mentions, is already happening. The Turkish Cypriots are finally starting to wake up and starting to demand that they control their own destiny. This in turn is giving our government a wake up call to take control.
There is though a big mistake being made in that article about the interests of Turkey in Cyprus. Turkey will never give up those interests and must be catered for in all of this. We as Turkish Cypriots must give assurances to Turkey that her interests are safe in our hands and whether you like it or not she will be a close ally with the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. Again yes, there is a large presents of the army all over the north but we are effectively at war, and until the Republic of Cyprus sees fit to lifting some these conditions, as in embargoes, and recognises our needs then this state of readiness will persist and occupation will be an often used word. There has been little change in the stance of the Republic of Cyprus since the beginning of this mess so what change do they expect from our side.


Now to the question of what is happening on the ground. If the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus was as bad as this reporter makes it out to be then where is all the condemnation by the Turkish Cypriots themselves. Where are the demonstrations? If you want to follow the over exaggerated conspiracies of DP then those in Cyprus cannot demonstrate because they are afraid well then where are the damning posts on this or any other forum. Why are there no demonstrations in the streets of London or New York or Sidney? There are plenty of remarks from a few Turkish Cypriots that want unification and nothing but unification but where are the rest. Why don’t you stop thinking that there are spooks around every corner and scaring yourself silly and even you might see things more clearly.

[eracles]

Turkey will never give up those interests and must be catered for in all of this. We as Turkish Cypriots must give assurances to Turkey that her interests are safe in our hands and whether you like it or not she will be a close ally with the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.

Why? What do you understand the Turkish interests to be? The Turkish Cypriots? What interest does Greece have in the south? Is the RoC government under pressure from Greece?

[zan]

Turkey will never give up those interests and must be catered for in all of this. We as Turkish Cypriots must give assurances to Turkey that her interests are safe in our hands and whether you like it or not she will be a close ally with the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.

Why? What do you understand the Turkish interests to be? The Turkish Cypriots? What interest does Greece have in the south? Is the RoC government under pressure from Greece?

Oh come on eracles, do you really believe that Greece has completely washed its hands of Cyprus.

[humanist]

Miltiadis, thank you for your coments. I used the word some because not all Cypriots speak Greek some speak Turkish and others speak whatever, not sure what language the Maronite Community Speak, for example.

[Strahd]

Now to the question of what is happening on the ground. If the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus was as bad as this reporter makes it out to be then where is all the condemnation by the Turkish Cypriots themselves.

Well, I will only stay on this comment and someone should explain to you that in military authoritarian regimes like that of the self proclaimed Turkish protectorate of northern Cyprus there are ways to silence people.

[ken910]

u guys are dreaming if u think tc would ever want a united cyprus without turkeys guarantee