Nicosia: The goal of a solution to the Cyprus problem that will free Cyprus from anachronistic guarantees and occupying forces remains 'non-negotiable', the President of the House of Representatives Annita Demetriou said on Friday, emphasizing that efforts towards freedom, reunification, and justice will not be abandoned. Speaking yesterday evening at the annual religious commemoration event and anti-occupation rally organized by the 'ASSIA' Cultural Association, at the Church of St Andrew the Apostle in Platy Aglantzias, Nicosia, Demetriou stated that "with realism, perseverance, and political will" efforts are being made to create the conditions that will allow negotiations to resume, based on the agreed United Nations framework and in accordance with the principles and values of the European Union.
According to Cyprus News Agency, Demetriou highlighted the aim to return to dialogue that will lead to the resolution of the Cyprus problem, to the liberation and reunification of the homeland. She mentioned that the vision is for a free, modern, and democratic Cyprus, which will be a pillar of stability and security in the Eastern Mediterranean and the European Union.
Referring to the issue of the missing persons, the President of the House of Representatives said that "ascertaining the fate of even our very last missing person is a top priority." Efforts are continuing to secure the opening of the Turkish army's archives and to allow exhumations at sites where there is evidence that missing Greek Cypriots are buried. Ascertaining the fate of missing persons "is a duty we owe to history, to the families, and to human dignity," she underlined.
Demetriou made special reference to the events that followed the entry of Turkish troops into Assia on 14 August 1974, speaking of "violence, barbarity, and endless atrocities," including murders, beatings, rapes, and abduction of civilians. She stated that 84 people from or living in Assia were recorded as missing, while the remains of 70 of them have been found, with evidence pointing to their violent murder. As for another 19, the search for the truth continues.
She also mentioned the abduction of a group of around 70 men from Assia and the surrounding villages, who were forcibly removed from their homes and taken to different locations where they were murdered. "These are not just numbers. They are people; they are lives that were violently cut short; they are families who have had to learn to live with loss and uncertainty," said Demetriou.
She noted that for some families, the answer as to the fate of their loved ones came through the identification of their remains, while for others the wait continues. 'Time cannot ease the pain of an absence when there is no answer,' she added.
Demetriou also emphasized the importance of preserving the memory and history of the occupied community, noting that Assia "is not just a place that has been lost" but a place that continues to exist "in the memory, in the hearts and in the hopes of its people." She added that the duty to future generations is "to hand down to them a united, free, and peaceful homeland," noting that, together with Greece, "our strongest and most enduring ally," the struggle would continue "until our land is liberated."
Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when Turkey invaded and occupied its northern third. Repeated rounds of UN-led peace talks have so far failed to yield results. The latest round of negotiations, in July 2017 at the Swiss resort of Crans-Montana, ended inconclusively.