Cyprus-Forum.com

[reportfromcyprus]

During the 2004 referendum a psychologist commented that Cyprus was like a community with schizophrenia and split personality.

I see it more like a country going through a serious identity crisis. Are we Europeans, Greek, Turkish, Cypriots? We need to accept that we all have different ethnic backgrounds but to live in peace and prosperity, acknowledge and tolerate our differences.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Identity_c ... psychology)

That's link on how important identity is to the individual and therefore to the community.

Question is, how can we best reconcile the different identities in Cyprus and avoid more fighting and bitterness?

[reportfromcyprus]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Identity_c ... psychology)

that link isn't working, copy paste it into browser to read the definition.

sorry

[Alexis]

I see it more like a country going through a serious identity crisis. Are we Europeans, Greek, Turkish, Cypriots? We need to accept that we all have different ethnic backgrounds but to live in peace and prosperity, acknowledge and tolerate our differences.

It's hardly surprising given ever since time immemorial we were always pidgeon-holed (either by ourselves or the powers that be) ethnically. The 'homogenisation' (as I like to call it) of 1923 also did not help. It polarised our society even more and (with the help of the incumbant power of the time) we were led to believe that we were 'property' of either Greece or Turkey. This legacy is still prevalent today.
Cyprus never had a chance.
Even so there are plenty of forward thinking Cypriots out there.

[Piratis]

During the 2004 referendum a psychologist commented that Cyprus was like a community with schizophrenia and split personality.

Probably thats because he was crazy.

Most Cypriots on both sides voted in the referendum in a perfectly logical way. The Annan plan was a a pro-Turkish plan made by the Anglo Americans (Turkey's allies) and it satisfied the 99% of the Turkish demands while not only it didn't solve the problems of Greek Cypriots, on the contrary it legalized the crimes against us.

Therefore most TCs voted in favor of that plan since it suited them and most GCs voted against that plan since it didn't solve their problem.

The result of that referendum was perfectly logical and it could be very very easily predicted by anybody with more than a gram of brain. (in fact we all knew what the result would be months before). The schizophrenics are those that expected a different result.

As far as the "identity crisis" goes, there isn't any. In Cyprus we have Cypriots with Greek, Turkish or other ethnic background, and the great majority (of GCs at least) feel as Europeans as any other European.

The way you put the question is as if we have to choose between being European, or being Greek(or Turkish etc) or Cypriot. This is not the case. We are a European country with people from different ethnic backgrounds. As simple as that, and it is nothing strange or unique either.

The only thing that could be misunderstood as "identity crisis" is the claims of the pseudo state, that on one hand they already have a separate country which they fully support, and on the other hand what they support is unification. Obviously this 2 claims are contradictory, but the reason is not identity crisis but their political games.

[reportfromcyprus]

That's interesting, Piratis, and I can appreciate your perspective and understand your reasons for saying that there isn't an identity crisis in Cyprus.

However, a person in an identity crisis isn't going to necessarily know that he/she is going through one. Therefore, an action may appear entirely logical even though it is self-destructive or pushing the envelope in some way or another.

What is ultimately sacrificed is the condition of wholeness and a feeling of belonging and safety.

A fractured society is exactly what we have in Cyprus. There is more drug misuse, more crime, and more insecurity than ever. If we take 2004 out of the equation and say there's another referendum tomorrow, the result will be the same, because the question of identity, of wholeness and of reconciliation has not been settled.

[Alexis]

That's interesting, Piratis, and I can appreciate your perspective and understand your reasons for saying that there isn't an identity crisis in Cyprus.

However, a person in an identity crisis isn't going to necessarily know that he/she is going through one. Therefore, an action may appear entirely logical even though it is self-destructive or pushing the envelope in some way or another.

What is ultimately sacrificed is the condition of wholeness and a feeling of belonging and safety.

A fractured society is exactly what we have in Cyprus. There is more drug misuse, more crime, and more insecurity than ever. If we take 2004 out of the equation and say there's another referendum tomorrow, the result will be the same, because the question of identity, of wholeness and of reconciliation has not been settled.

So are you equating the lack of support for the AP with the increase in crime and drug misuse?

[cosmic]

I cannot help feeling that those who investigate these matters fail to understand what they are saying. After all any individual must at any one time belong too, and have affinity with a great number of different groups at the same time. These include

Their own family
Extended family
Friends
Clubs
Neighbourhood
Ethnic group
Church congregation
Religious affiliation
Village
Country
Continent

Etc etc (planet). People cope – the only ones who need to label and categorize people, are those who seek to exercise control over them

[reportfromcyprus]

That's interesting, Piratis, and I can appreciate your perspective and understand your reasons for saying that there isn't an identity crisis in Cyprus.

However, a person in an identity crisis isn't going to necessarily know that he/she is going through one. Therefore, an action may appear entirely logical even though it is self-destructive or pushing the envelope in some way or another.

What is ultimately sacrificed is the condition of wholeness and a feeling of belonging and safety.

A fractured society is exactly what we have in Cyprus. There is more drug misuse, more crime, and more insecurity than ever. If we take 2004 out of the equation and say there's another referendum tomorrow, the result will be the same, because the question of identity, of wholeness and of reconciliation has not been settled.

So are you equating the lack of support for the AP with the increase in crime and drug misuse?

No, I meant the AP just as an example which highlighted the identity crisis and lack of wholeness in our society.

It exposed the crisis but didn't cause it.

Society's problems are not separate from the political problems though, there's a lot of proof that because of the split and lack of cooperation between our communities, that crime has risen and drugs are flooding the market.

[reportfromcyprus]

I cannot help feeling that those who investigate these matters fail to understand what they are saying. After all any individual must at any one time belong too, and have affinity with a great number of different groups at the same time. These include

Their own family
Extended family
Friends
Clubs
Neighbourhood
Ethnic group
Church congregation
Religious affiliation
Village
Country
Continent

Etc etc (planet). People cope – the only ones who need to label and categorize people, are those who seek to exercise control over them

Yes, your point is excellent. Still, why is it that some societies function together and others, like Cyprus, don't?

I'm not seeking to control, only to understand and debate.

[Piratis]

That's interesting, Piratis, and I can appreciate your perspective and understand your reasons for saying that there isn't an identity crisis in Cyprus.

However, a person in an identity crisis isn't going to necessarily know that he/she is going through one. Therefore, an action may appear entirely logical even though it is self-destructive or pushing the envelope in some way or another.

That's interesting, reportfromcyprus, and I can appreciate your perspective and understand your reasons for saying that, but you are crazy. A crazy person isn't going to necessarily know that he/she is one.

A fractured society is exactly what we have in Cyprus. There is more drug misuse, more crime, and more insecurity than ever. If we take 2004 out of the equation and say there's another referendum tomorrow, the result will be the same, because the question of identity, of wholeness and of reconciliation has not been settled.

There is an increase of crime, drug abuse etc all over the world. In the case of Cyprus globalization is the reason and not an "identity crisis".

Imagine if in Cyprus foreigners were a tiny minority, we had only state TV channel, there was no internet - and in general globalization didn't touch our island. Those negative things would not exist (and many positive things would not exist either)