As part of the events, the President of the Republic Nikos Anastasiadis will attend at 9am the special session of the House of Representatives for the black anniversaries of the coup and the Turkish invasion. The session will be chaired by the Speaker of Parliament Giannakis Omirou.
At 10.45 a.m. The President of the Republic will attend the annual national memorial service for the fallen during the coup that will take place in the Holy Temple of God Sophia, in Strovolos, headed by the Archbishop of Cyprus Chrysostom. The memorial service will be attended by, among others, the Speaker of Parliament, the Ambassador of Greece, the Minister of Defense, party leaders or representatives and other state officials.
In 1100 will follow the funeral procession of those who fell during the coup, the resistance police and other victims whose remains were found in a mass grave in the Cemetery of Saints Constantine and Helen and identified by DNA. The funeral will be delivered by the Speaker of Parliament and then the remains will be led, in procession, to the cemetery of Saints Constantine and Helen where they will be buried.
The countdown to the division of Cyprus began when in 1967 a military dictatorship seized power in Greece. Relations between this regime and the President of the Republic of Cyprus, Makarios III, were strained.
With the signal "Alexander entered a hospital", the head of the Greek military forces in Cyprus, Brigadier General M. Georgitsis, announced to the leadership of the Greek junta, on the morning of July 15, 1974, the beginning of the coup against the democratically elected President of Cyprus.
Early Monday morning, July 15, 1974, Makarios was returning to the Presidential Palace in Nicosia from his holiday home in Troodos, where he had spent the weekend. At the time of the coup, Makarios was receiving a group of Greek children from Egypt.
When the fires intensified and the Presidential Palace began firing from the National Guard's armor, Makarios, after first protecting his young visitors, then escaped the only unguarded passage west of the Presidential Palace. He fled to the Kykkou Monastery and then to Paphos. And while the coup plotters considered Makarios dead and constantly announced it through RIK, he was alive and sent a message through an improvised Paphos radio station where he declared to the people:
“Greek Cypriot People! The voice you hear is familiar. You know who is talking to you. I am Makarios. I am the one you chose to be your leader. I'm not dead. I am alive. And I am with you, competitor and flag bearer in the common struggle. The junta coup failed. I was her target and I, as long as I live, the junta in Cyprus will not pass. The junta decided to destroy Cyprus. Here is the division. But you will not succeed. He resisted the junta in every possible way. Do not be afraid. Join the legal forces of the state. The junta must not pass and will not pass. Now the fight is in favor of everything. ”
Makarios boarded a British military plane and flew through Malta to London, where he met with British Prime Minister Harold Wilson and Foreign Secretary James Callahan the following day, 17 July. The United States has called for support for Cyprus' independence and called on all states to do the same, with Secretary of State Henry Kissinger rejecting a proposal to support the ousted Makarios regime.
Using this criminal act as a pretext, Turkey invaded Cyprus five days later. In a two-phase invasion in July and August, despite calls from the UN Security Council [Resolution 353 (1974)] and the speedy restoration of constitutional order on the island, Turkey occupied 36,2 per cent of its territory. of the Republic of Cyprus and forcibly displaced about 200.000 Greek Cypriots from their homes. Another 20.000 Greek Cypriots, who remained in the occupied territories, were eventually forced to flee their homes and seek refuge in areas controlled by the Cypriot government. Until 2008, less than 500 trapped Greek Cypriots remained in the occupied territories.
In an event last night, which was dedicated to the occupied land and to all those who fought and sacrificed for freedom and ideals, the Minister of Defense Christoforos Fokaidis said that the only guide of the Government is the fulfillment of the supreme goal, the salvation of the homeland. that the President of the Republic and the Government are working systematically in this direction, with dedication and perseverance.
This, noted Mr. Fokaidis, is our great debt to future generations.
Parties and organizations, in their announcements, condemn the coup of July 15, 1974, characterizing the anniversary as one of the darkest pages in the recent history of Cyprus. They note that it was the culmination of a premeditated crime that had been planned for years. The fascist coup of the junta and EOKA II attempted to overthrow and assassinate Makarios and resulted in the barbaric invasion of the Turkish Attila, they note, adding that the unholy action of the coup plotters was the reason that Turkey was waiting to invade and conquer Cyprus.
Events by parties and organizations
Demonstrations condemning the black anniversary are also taking place in various cities of free Cyprus. According to information from the parties, the following events are planned.
At 11:00 a.m. AKEL Limassol will hold a picket on the occasion of the anniversary of the coup, which will start at the Pattiheio Theater in Limassol and will end at the Court Square.
At 18:00 the Women's Movement of POGO will hold an event of remembrance and honor for the fallen, at the Tomb of Makedonitissa, which the Secretary General of the Movement will greet and lay a wreath. There will also be an event in 1900 in memory and honor on the occasion of the coup and the Turkish invasion of the New Cemetery of Constantine and Helen.
At 19:00 DIKO - GODIK will hold an annual memorial service in Nicosia and a prayer for the fate of the missing in the Cypriot tragedy of 1974, to which will be added the Metropolitan of Tamasos and Orini Isaia. A memorial speech will be delivered by the President of GODIK Antigoni Papadopoulou and will be followed by an event with the theme: "Day of Remembrance, Honor and Race" of DIKO.
At 18:30 the Speaker of the Parliament and the Speaker of the Parliament of Malta Dr. Anglu Farrugia, who is in Cyprus, will visit the Free Radio Station of Cyprus in Paphos where an honorary event and trishagio will take place. The Free Radio Station in Paphos broadcast the speech of President Makarios after the coup.
At 19:00 the Speaker of Parliament will deliver a speech during the event of the House of Representatives at the Monument of Archbishop Makarios III - Resistance (Fallen Paphites), in Paphos.
At 18:45 EDON organizes an event on the occasion of the 41st anniversary of the coup and the Turkish invasion, which will start at the Kapnos Airport Shuttle on Kyrenia Avenue and end at Skali Aglantzias.
At 20:00 the General Secretary of AKEL Andros Kyprianou will deliver a speech at an event of remembrance and honor for the fallen on the occasion of the anniversary of the coup and the Turkish invasion, which will take place at the Amphitheater "Skali" Aglantzia.
At 19:30 the President of KS EDEK Marinos Sizopoulos will attend an anniversary event of EDEK for the treacherous coup of July 15, 1974 where speeches will be made by two resistance fighters who defended the Republic in the battles of the Presidency and the Archdiocese. from the Cyprus Dossier by the President of EDEK. The event will take place at the "Pallas" Cinema in Nicosia.