July 20 is a day of self-awareness and national reflection, said the Minister of Finance, Constantinos Petrides, who attended, on behalf of the President of the Republic, Nicos Anastasiades, the memorial service for those who fell during the Turkish invasion of Cyprus in 1974. On his part, the Deputy Minister of National Defence of Greece, Nikos Hardalias, who represented the Greek Government, said that the sacrifice of the fallen is “our ultimate legacy.”
The memorial service, led by Paphos Bishop Georgios, was held on Wednesday at the Cathedral of Apostle Barnabas, in Nicosia.
House President, Annita Demetriou, the Presidential Commissioner, Fotis Fotiou, leaders and representatives of parliamentary Parties and candidates running for the Presidency of the Republic, Nicos Christodoulides, Averof Neofytou, Andreas Mavroyiannis and Charalambos Aristotelous, were among those who attended the memorial service.
Constantinos Petrides stated that today is the anniversary of an ill-fated day. “We honour the victims, Greeks and Cypriots, who fell for this place, but until today they have not been vindicated”, he added. At the time of Petrides’ statement, a group of young people were chanting slogans against a Federal solution. From his part, the Minister of Finance indicated that “today is not a day of slogans or many words, but of self-awareness, of national reflection, to see how we can get out of the impasse”. It is a great honour to have the political and military leadership of Greece with us so that we can give this message together, he concluded.
The Deputy Minister of National Defence of Greece, Nikos Hardalias, who represented the Greek Government, said that forty-eight years later, the sacrifice of the fallen is our ultimate legacy. “It is our daily commitment and duty, for the blue of our sea, our sky, our flag, our country, to be immortal,” he added.
The Bishop of Paphos, Georgios, who delivered the memorial speech, characterised July 20 as a dreadful day for Cyprus and the entire Hellenism. “Forty-eight years later”, he continued, “today we are witnessing an unacceptable and sad situation, a quagmire to which we were led by the tactics of the Turkey but also by the inability of our side to rise above the ephemeral and effectively organise its struggle for liberation”.
The effective way out of the quagmire in which we find ourselves and the thwarting of the Turkish plans at the expense of Cyprus imply an awareness of the situation, however difficult it may be, as well as assuming our responsibilities towards history and our homeland, indicated the Bishop of Paphos. “We should admit our mistakes, in order not to indulge in mutual accusations and blaming, but to avoid repeating them,” he concluded.
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.
Source: Cyprus News Agency