The big mobilization of AKEL took place on Sunday at the Deryneia roadblock with the slogan "We are marching for a Solution and Reunification".
Speakers at the event were the General Secretary of the CoE. of AKEL Stefanos Stefanou, the Co-Chair of the Left Group in the European Parliament Martin Schirdewan and on behalf of the Platform "This country is ours", the President of DEV-IS Coral Asim.
Also present at the event were the Former President of the Republic of Cyprus and dozens of Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot parties, trade unions, youth organizations, movements and initiatives.
Among them were the Turkish Cypriot parties Sol Hareket, KSP and YKP, the bi-communal platform "This country is ours", EDON, POGO, EKA, the Choir for Peace in Cyprus, the Cyprus Song Association, the Pancyprian Council Irini, the platform of Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot Teachers, the Bicommunal Initiative "United Cyprus", the Labor Democracy and the Left Wing.
Joint announcement of e / k and t / k bodies that participated in the process for solution and reunification
A joint statement was issued by dozens of Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot bodies, who participated on Sunday in the march for solution and reunification organized by AKEL in Deryneia.
The joint statement was issued on the initiative of the Bicommunal Initiative "United Cyprus" and states, among other things, that "it is a common decision of Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots, in Cyprus and abroad, to mobilize and resolutely overcome the negative atmosphere. which has been created by the current leadership on both sides to demand immediate and concrete positive steps for the resumption of substantive negotiations on the agreed basis for reunification ”.
The organizations also state that “we continue to encourage the Secretary General. to do what is possible for the resumption of the negotiation process based on the convergences achieved until the end of the Cyprus Conference in Crans Montana and the 6-point framework that was proposed then ".
In addition, as essential steps to improve the negotiating climate, the actors call for: "an immediate moratorium on all actions in the Eastern Mediterranean that tend to exacerbate the unstable situation in the region, Implementation of UN Security Council resolutions on Famagusta, including the proposal for a bi-communal technical committee of experts and representatives for the design and development of the closed areas of Famagusta with a view to its return to its pre-1974 inhabitants under interim administration the facilitation of contacts between Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots at various levels, including roadblocks and bi-communal cooperation in relation to the challenges posed by the pandemic ”.
The Cyprus issue is in its worst phase, said AKEL Secretary General on the way to a solution and reunification
We came to fuel the hope for a solution, which we must not let go, said on Sunday the Secretary General of AKEL, Stefanos Stefanou, in his speech at the Cultural Center of the Municipality of Famagusta in Deryneia, as part of the process for solution and reunification. stating that the Cyprus issue is in its worst phase.
Mr. Stefanou said that in order to get out of the impasse and reach a solution, it is not enough to denounce Turkey and its illegal occupation. "We must point out, he said, how the Greek Cypriot side should handle the situation and what specific initiatives it should take in order to push things - as long as it goes through its own hand - to break the deadlock," he said.
It is our position, he said, which is confirmed by the latest developments, that we must continue to persistently seek the resumption of negotiations from the point that was interrupted in 2017, at the base of the Guterres Framework and preserving all convergences. This was the position of UN Secretary General for four years. This is the common ground that is being sought today. If we do not insist on this position, the impasse will simply intensify, given the large differences that exist between the two sides, said Mr. Stefanou.
It is known, he said, that AKEL disagrees - and criticizes - N. Anastasiadis for his manipulations and for the so-called "new ideas". These cancel out, he said, key convergences and clash with the position to resume negotiations from the point where they were suspended.
It is our view, said Stefanos Stefanou, that the President's policy leaves room for Turkey at no political cost to promote division and to feed back the stalemate. This situation gives an opportunity to third parties to promote "new ideas" and derailing the solution to the confederation, he said and stressed that our criticism of N. Anastasiadis is not from the opposition but said it is an attitude of patriotic responsibility towards our country and people. us, he added.
It is a cry of agony, he said, for the developments and the gloomy prospect that is being formed. Yes, we are anxious, he said, others may be comfortable with the gradual slippage into division. We will never compromise with it, because we know that division is a permanent source of danger. "We do not want - and we have no right - to leave such a legacy to future generations," he said.
The Cyprus issue is in its worst phase and this, believe me, he said, is not a figure of speech. "It is a cold and nightmarish reality. A reality shaped by the protracted impasse and the bargaining chip. "From the insistence of Turkey and the Turkish Cypriot leadership for a two-state solution, he said, from the illegal opening of part of the enclosed area of Famagusta and the creation of new ones in it," he said.
"Even the difficulty in issuing a tripartite announcement in New York and the appointment of a UN Special Envoy reflects the magnitude of the stalemate," said Stefanou.
It is very easy for me, but also completely honest, he said, to talk for hours about the unprecedented intransigence and the generally dichotomous behavior of Turkey and Ersin Tatar. AKEL does not miss the opportunity to do so, because the causes of the problems and the illegalities must be denounced, he said and stressed that the current course also has this character.
Mr. Stefanou noted that "we are united, stubborn and inspired by the prospects of seeing our homeland united again, without separation barbed wire".
It is tragic, he said, the path to the final division of our place to find us sitting comfortably on the sofas of our homes. And it is also tragic to let the memory fade as we surrender to oblivion.
Varosi is ringing the alarm bell for us, he said, but the messages are coming from everywhere. From every corner of our occupied land and from every point of free Cyprus: Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots to unite our voices and demand solution, reunification, peace.
The path for the solution and the reunification that we are carrying out, said Mr. Stefanou, we want to show again the way to those who insist on envisioning a common homeland within the Bi-Zonal Bicommunal Federation with political equality, as described by the UN.
We want, he said, to show the way again to those who know that the only way to secure the future of our children and grandchildren is to live again in a free, common homeland, co-managed by Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots. He added that this is our vision and that is why we will continue to fight. We will never compromise with the division, he continued.
"In the struggle for solution and reunification, with half our hearts here and the other half behind the roadblocks, we walked together the path of hope for a just and sustainable solution. Together we will continue to walk the same path, he said and stressed that this homeland belongs to us, it is ours. "We have the right to envision it - and to want it - whole, free, peaceful and prosperous", said Mr. Stefanou.
The future of Cyprus is peace and prosperity, said Martin Sirdevan, the path to solution and reunification
The future of Cyprus is not division but peace and prosperity, said Martin Sirdevan, Co-Chair of the Left Group (EEC / BPA) in the European Parliament, speaking as part of the process for the solution and reunification organized by AKEL.
He stressed that the EU must send a very clear message to Turkey - an EU candidate - that it must stop obstructing a solution and the reunification of Cyprus. That the occupation of Cyprus - but also of any other country in this case - in the 21st century, is an anachronism and must end.
He also said that the violation of the status quo in Varosi is a blatant violation of the relevant resolutions of the UN Security Council "and our group has repeatedly condemned it. These actions and challenges must end. "Varosi must be returned to its legal residents," he stressed.
"I walked with you and felt your will and determination to hear your voice loud and clear, demanding a solution and reunification. "I promise you that this is the voice I will convey to the European Parliament," said Mr Sirdevan.
He added that "we in the Group of the Left in the European Parliament have been monitoring the situation in the Cyprus issue all these years" and noted that "AKEL comrades inform us and warn us about the worrying developments and together we act for the solution and reunification".
"The threat of permanent division hovering over Cyprus would be a catastrophic prospect for Cyprus and its people - both the Greek Cypriots and the Turkish Cypriots - but also for the peoples of this troubled region of the Eastern Mediterranean and the Middle East. He said.
He added that "such a development would be unacceptable for the European Union" and stated that he firmly believes that the European Union has a responsibility towards the Republic of Cyprus, as well as towards any other Member State, but not just to express its solidarity, which is the minimum he should do.
He said that at the request of the UN Secretary-General, the negotiations should continue from where they left off in Crans Montana. He also noted that there is an agreed framework - that of the Bi-zonal, Bicommunal Federation with political equality, as defined by the UN.
