Speech by Stefanos Stefanou, AKEL C.C. Spokesperson at the memorial service of the Heroes of Nisou village
AKEL C.C. Press Office, 29 July 2018, Nicosia
The Republic of Cyprus in its relatively short history has experienced many tragedies with our people suffering heavy losses. There isn’t a single community in our country that has not shed its share of blood in these tragedies. One of the local communities that has paid such a heavy loss is Nisou (Note: a progressive town just outside Nicosia).
Today we remember and pay tribute to the heroes of Nisou. Nisou has Nine Heroes and Martyrs: Yiorgos Xenophontos and Stavros Christodoulou, who fell defending their homeland during the inter-communal clashes in 1964. Varnavas Kouvaros, Costakis Lambrou, the brothers Yiorgos and Sotiris Socratous Nikolaou who fell during the Turkish invasion of 1974.
The names of Yiorgos Kyprianou, Paraschos Christou and Antonis Theodoulou, who for years were on the missing persons list, were later added to the list of Heroes of Nisou. Their remains were identified, verified and they were buried with all the honor their sacrifice deserves.
There is still one name on the list of missing persons – Paraschos’ brother, Ionas Christou. His family continues to live the martyrdom of suffering and the anxiety of waiting to learn what happened to Ionas. The families of the missing persons whose remains were identified and verified went through this suffering. This agony is experienced by all the families who have not yet learned the fate of their loved ones. It is an inalienable right of the relatives of our missing persons to learn about the fate of their loved ones. We will continue to struggle and stand on the side of the families of our missing people so that they can exercise this right.
The sacrifices of our Island’s heroes recall the most tragic aspects of the history of the Republic of Cyprus. All the heroes defended with meagre and inadequate means at their disposal the freedom and territorial integrity of our Homeland and therefore deserve all every honor and respect.
The inter-communal clashes of 1963-64 were the precursors of the 1974 tragedy. Turkey and the then Turkish Cypriot leadership played a key role in their outbreak. By boycotting the operation of the state, they aimed to turn independence into a stepping stone to partition.
However, the policy of the Greek Cypriot Right that also did not accept the independence and the burial of Enosis (Note: the union of Cyprus with Greece) also contributed to this situation, despite the fact that it was also the signatory of the Zurich-London Agreements. With its policy, the Greek Cypriot Right facilitated Turkey’s policy of promoting partition.
We didn’t arrive at the Turkish invasion of 1974 by accident. The invasion was an integral part of NATO’s plans to partition Cyprus. These plans included the execution of a coup d’état too. The coup and invasion are the two sides of the same NATO plan. If the coup hadn’t taken place place, as everything demonstrates, the invasion wouldn’t have happened.
We in AKEL will never cease reminding the people of the grave responsibilities of the British-Americans and NATO for the Cyprus tragedy.
We will never stop denouncing Turkey for the crimes it committed in Cyprus.
Turkey isn’t the only one guilty for the loss of our sons. NATO is guilty. The nationalist-chauvinists in both communities are guilty. The culprits of the junta of Athens and EOKA B are also guilty.
AKEL will never cease highlighting and denouncing the role of the Athens Junta. We will never cease pointing out and denouncing the grave responsibilities of EOKA B.
For us in AKEL the defence of historical truth is an obligation to our Heroes. We will never permit the logic that everything began on 20th July 1974 to prevail, which is often heard by government officials in anniversary events and memorial services. The government and ruling forces obviously do not like it at all when we refer to the betrayal of the coup and, moreover, to the Cypriot coupists.
We wonder why?
The coup d’état not only offered the pretext to Turkey to invade, but undermined every plan for an organized resistance to the invasion. Units of the National Guard, which had been assigned the task of fighting Turkey’s landing in the first critical hours, were transferred far away on orders issued and the Turkish army landed undisturbed on the coast of Kyrenia.
When the coupists decided to call people up, disorganization and panic were prevalent. Our sons were sent to the battle front without even rudimentary means to fight, given that the coupists looted army depots, and this fact alone greatly increased the number of human losses.
The coupists of EOKA B, who, during the days of the coup were parading as “patriots” arresting, beating and killing people of the Left and resistance fighters supporters of President Makarios when the Turkish army of Attila landed vanished to save their own skin. Many of them rushed to hide in the Troodos mountain range, while others continued their coupist activity and actions, by continuing the arrests of democrats – even when the Turkish army had already set foot in Cyprus. Many of them are living among us and playing the role of respectable citizens without ever apologizing for the terrible pain and destruction they have caused. It’s bad enough that no one has been punished for their crimes, they are even trying to falsify the historical truth by shifting responsibilities elsewhere.
Compatriots,
None of our young people wanted to become a hero. Neither their parents, nor their wives, children, relatives and friends wanted heroes. None of them! The Heroes of Nisou came from poor families. Besides, poverty was afflicting the vast majority of our people. Some were married with children, others were unmarried, others were doing their compulsory military service, and others were reservists. All of them, however, were starting their lives with their youth blossoming. They wanted to enjoy life. Everyone wanted to have opportunities to make something of their lives, to have a home and a family, to prosper. Their dreams, however, were cut short because of the tragedies of 1963-64 and 1974.
It is our debt towards the Heroes of Nisou, but also to all the Heroes, to continue the struggle for liberation from the Turkish occupation. It is a debt we owe to the young people who, whether in 1964 or in 1974 left behind parents, wives and children, left dreams behind to defend our homeland, betrayed by the coupists and who were exposed to the Turkish Army’s atrocities.
To end the occupation, for the occupying troops to go, to put an end to the unacceptable system of guarantees and intervention rights, to restore human rights and fundamental freedoms, in order to reunite our country and people, it is imperative to solve the Cyprus problem.
Especially now that the prospect of resuming the negotiations has slowly begun to emerge, we must focus on this struggle. With consistency to the agreed basis of the solution, making use of the convergences that have been achieved, with negotiation on the basis of the Guterres framework, we can reach an agreed solution if of course Turkey cooperates.
It is at the negotiating table where each side’s intentions, positions, stand and general behavior, including the Turkish sides will be tested. The fate of the Cyprus problem will be judged at the negotiating table, and that is the reason why we must focus on resuming the dialogue, above all the President of the Republic, who is handling the Cyprus problem.
Our wish and aspiration is that this time the negotiations will lead to s solution, to liberation and reunification. Only then will our dead be able to rest in peace. It is then that the refugees will return to their occupied areas; that the enclaved people will get rid themselves of the immense pain they are going through and both the Greek Cypriots and the Turkish Cypriots will be meet again in a free, united, peaceful and common homeland.
That is when the sacrifices of our brave young men will be vindicated, who gave their lives so that we can breathe an air of freedom even within a semi-occupied homeland.
Only then will the sacrifices of the Heroes of Nisou be vindicated!
May their Memory live on forever!
Honor and glory to our heroes!
