No intercommunal problems existed between the Greek and Turkish Cypriots until the 1950s when the British pitted Turks against Greeks in their divide and conquer methodology (as they did in India/Pakistan and South Afrika).

In 1964, just a short time after independence, the Turkish Cypriot ultranationalist in their plans drawn up in th 50s with Turkey to lay the grounds for partition and anexation instigated attacks against Greek Cypriots killing many civilians and the Turkish airforce bombed Cyprus resulting the intervention of then President Johnson of the United States which stopped the attrocities and invasion by Turkey.

In 1974 when the junta attempted to kill President Makarios, Turkey invated (on July 20 1974) using the Treaty of 1959 which provides that Greece, Turkey, and Britain are to guarantee to sovereignty and integrity of the Republic of Cyprus. Within 4 days of the Turkish invasion the puppets of the Athens Junta, as well as the Athens Junta itself fell apart and were arrested.

The legal goverment of Cyprus was restored and Democracy was restored in Greece. Yet Turkey proceeded in a campaign of ethnic cleansing, colonization, cultural destruction, rape and pillaging.

Dozens of UN Security council and General Assembly resolutions condemned unanimously Turkey’s attrocities and humar rights violations and called for the immediate and unconditional withdraw of the Turkish occupation troops and the settlers, and the safe return of all refugees to their homes.

http://www.hri.org/Cyprus/Cyprus_Problem/UNresolutions-list.html
http://www.zmag.org/content/showarticle.cfm?SectionID=11&ItemID=2417

It was Turkey which forced the Turkish Cypriots from their homes and the Turkish colonizers who outnumber the Turkish Cypriots with their crime forced nearly half of the Turkish Cypriots to leave Cyprus after Turkey invaded.

The fact is, before the Turkish invasion Greek and Turkish Cypriots lived intermigled in peace and harmony. Turkish Cypriots visited my village which happens to have been entirely Greek, and my father had Turkish Cypriot friends from nearby villages. Even today, if you ask Greek and Turkish Cypriots if they want to live together they would say yes and the Turkish Cypriots would state openly thet they prefer to live with the Greek Cypriots than the Turks from Turkey.

You indicate that you spend a lot of time in the occupied part of Cyprus (in which 80% of the population was Greek before the invasion). Have you asked your hosts why the refugees are not allowed to return to their homes, Why 99% of the Christian churches and cemetaries have been vandalized and destroyed? and why the names of the cities, towns and villages have been changed?

The Turkish Cypriot side was most certainly trying to pick a fight. Let me remind you the conclusion of the then UN representativee in Cyprus Galo Plaza “The Turkish Cypriot community follows a policy of self isolation”, one that aims to divide the island and create the impression that division is necessary.

The first victim of itercommunal violence was a Greek Cypriot in 1957.

The majority of the Greek Cypriots fought against EOKA b and the coup and then had to fight the Turkish invasion as well.

At the time, there were three countries involved. Greece which ateempted a coup, Turkey which invaded and Cyprus. Both Turkey and Greece were run by military Hunda’s while Cyprus has a representative presidential democracy.

After the Invasion/coup the Greek cypriot side arrested and imprisoned the EOKA b terrorists. Those responsible for the coup in Greece are still in jail. On the contrary, the Turkish terrorist organization TMT was running the governement of the Turkish Cypriots via one of its founding members, Mr Rauf Denktash.

If one is truly objective and enlightened one should pursue a solution to the Cyprus problem that is just. I am sure u agree such a solution should at the very least guarantee basic human rights (property, movement, voting) all of which are today freely available to the Turkish Cypriots but not the Greek Cypriots.

Best Regards
Christos

Interesting about the Zurich agreement, I’ll look more into that.

The notion hat the Greeks caused the invasion is absolutely ridiculous and can come only from a pro-Turkish apologist.

Even before the Turkish invasion the Turks had TMT (a classified terroist organization) operating in Cyprus as the Greeks had the EOKA b counterpart. These small groups instigated intercommunal violence but neverhteless counted for less than a few percent of the population.

If u want to actually “measure” misery somehow, a lot more Greeks were killed, tortured raped etc at the hands of the Turks in Cyprus.

The basic fact remains that Turkey occupies a part of another country, which is illegal and against International law of which Turkey itself is a signatory.

As far as your assertion that Bru=itain and England had the obligation to protect a m inority you are dead wrong, though noble goal. Their obligation which comes from the Zurich agreement was to intervene and reestablish constitutional order. Turkey has done exactly the oposite. They have ethnically cleansed the northern part of the Island from its Greek inhabitants, imported 100000 Turksih settles, gave them the stolen properties of the refuygees and established a pupped regime.

You are living proof that the illusion of knowledge is worse than ignorance.

Best regards and hopes you will spend some more time reading about the subject (how about “Hostage to History” by Christopher Hitchens?).

Christos

The UN sponsored plan of 2004 is even worse from the 1959 Zurich agreement…
The only thing it does guarantee is that the two sides will not be able to decide on anything. Furthermore The Annan’s plan target [sponsored by Britain and Turkey] is to ensure that eventually there will be two states on Cyprus but with the Greek side in a much more weak position.

Trully again, why nobody speaks of the UN plan provisions? Why nobody enters into a real dialogue into what this plan really says?

If you do, you will see it is a completely non-workable solution. It may give land back to the greek Cypriots but this thru a very slow process which in the meantime will be surpassed by the political problems doomed to emerge because of the solution non-equality. Again the same mistake? Why?

The answer is given in my previous comment.

ps. I am also optimistic about a peaceful solution thru a fair UN plan accepted by both sides.

Both sides have indeed suffered and not always been willing to compromise. However, I’m quite optimistic now as the chances for solving the Cyprus problem are now better than ever. However, again, the Greeks are working against a solution as it was they who overwhelmingly rejected reunification whereby the Turks voted overwhelmingly for it. Granted, I can understand their concern, when one looks at what has happened in Germany, but they are equally guilty in terms of not finding a solution.

Your effort to present the story from a one side apprpach [Turkish] is very well done.

Surely the Greek side has done many mistakes over the years but surprisingly not harming the Turks [in the long-run] but rather herself and the Greek Cypriots directly. Do you have any example of a country where the minority of 18% has the right to exercise veto in any Goverment decision?

The ill-made decisions of Zurich in 1959 were made [by Britain] this way to result in conflict between the two communities and eventually caused the Turkish invasion that followed the many mistakes by the then ruling Greek Junta side.

Turkey is still under the ‘fear’ of the Greeks after the 1919-21 invasion of mainland Turkey. But I think the people of both countries have paid enough for the mistakes of their politiicans and military leaders.
If you take just the numbers, the Greeks have paid a much bigger ‘prize’ despite the smaller population.

Greece counts at least 2.5 milion refugees since 1915 and Turkey 1.2 million. Greece on the average has and had a population of 1/6 of Turkey. This shows which country has suffered the most.

Coming back to Cyprus why nobody speaks any more about the 240000 Greek-Cypriot refugees who were displaced after the Turkish invasion in 1974? If Turkey wanted a fair solution to the Cyprus problem could have suggested a fair UN sponsored plan.

But unfortunately Turkey wants to exercise full control over Cyprus. This way we approach the Cyprus problem in its real context. The Turks probably like the Greeks never wanted a fair solution to the problem.

But if the 2 countries are going to seek a peaceful future between them, someone must make compromise. In the Cyprus problem the Greek side has suffered the most for the past 31 years. I strongly believe it is time for the Turkish side [Turkey] to enter in a true negotiation that will ensure long lasting peace and equality on the basis of the rights of a minority, as it is the case.

-.Andreas