Thousands of people said goodbye to Glafkos Clerides in the presence of officials from several countries.
During the procession of the coffin of the former President, the crowd applauded and shouted: "Immortal".
The funeral was said by the President of the Republic Nikos Anastasiadis who put forward the message of reconciliation of Glafkos Clerides.
Apart from the political leadership of Cyprus, Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras, the Deputy Prime Minister of Greece, the Speaker of the Greek Parliament, the President of Serbia, a representative of the President of Israel and diplomats were present at the funeral.
The message of Glafkos Clerides that the homeland is not a point of conflict for yesterday and today, but a vision, optimism and hope for tomorrow, was sent today by the President of the Republic Nikos Anastasiadis addressing the funeral speech at the funeral of the former President of the Republic of Cyprus Glafkou Clerides.
In his speech, Nikos Anastasiadis praised the man and the "Leader", as he said, Clerides and spoke about the leading role he played in shaping the history of Cyprus, his commitment to democracy and tolerance of the opposite view, his vision and for his efforts during his ten years in the leadership of the state to achieve a viable and functional solution to the Cyprus problem and to achieve the goal of integration into the European family.
Glafkos Clerides' political legacy, he said, is that of "conciliation, dialogue and reconciliation, he has firmly laid the foundations that allow the Cypriot people as a whole, in Greek Cypriots, Turkish Cypriots, Maronites, Armenians and Latinos to looks forward to better days for our common homeland. "
The President of the Republic sent a message with the same, as he said, with visions Glafkos Clerides, that "I am determined to work tirelessly to find a solution based on the occasional summit agreements, the United Nations resolutions and the European principles and values, which will lead us to a modern state that will respect and guarantee the human rights of all its legal citizens ".
"In my view, it is time to overcome the reasonable mistrust caused by the passions and hatreds of the past because we deserve a better future," he said, adding that "the homeland is not a point of conflict for yesterday and today. But vision, optimism and hope for tomorrow. "Tomorrow is ours and our children's."
He also expressed the hope that "both my Turkish Cypriot compatriots and Turkey share the same vision and in this direction will work away from any other expediencies to achieve as soon as possible what was the life experience of Glafkos Clerides."
Elsewhere in the funeral, President Anastasiadis referred to the early demise of the deceased, saying that "in his early years, when incompatible with the conservative establishment of his time, he commits a first unconventional act" and referred to Glafkos' challenge. Clergy of the use of the cleanser.
"The newspapers at the time spoke of the 'little revolutionary' and made flattering remarks about his boldness, parsimony and courage," he said.
President Anastasiadis referred to the former President's contribution to World War II when he "voluntarily left the comfort of his student studies in London and voluntarily enlisted in the British Royal Air Force to give his presence in the battle for freedom and the free world." of Nazism ".
He expressed the view that "the Second World War catalyzed the character and temperament of Glafkos Clerides."
"Deep down, the vision of a united and peaceful Europe took root and flourished. "A Europe free of the syndromes of morbid nationalism and war."
In a special reference to his wife Lilla, whom he met during the war, he said that he found "love, companionship and absolute devotion by her side and from these elements he draws strength and courage to walk the difficult path he has chosen".
"Together with his partner, they will have their only daughter, Kaiti, whom they were then fortunate enough to be proud of holding public office and standing by her own life partner, Costas Siammas," he added.
Then the President of the Republic referred to the offer of Glafkos Clerides in the struggle of EOKA. "Under the code name 'Yperides', he writes with the vast majority of Cypriot Hellenism and undertakes important missions of a political nature," he said.
"With unparalleled courage and passion, he defends the future EOKA fighters before the British military courts. "And when his efforts are thwarted in the face of the ordered decisions of the English judges, Glafkos Clerides becomes a confessor of the future deaths and he often bends", he added.
He went on to say that "the end of that majestic struggle does not find all the Greeks of Cyprus in agreement".
The story, he added, "meets once again Glafkos Clerides to see the visible dangers of division and without emotion is unreservedly drafted with the candidacy of Archbishop Makarios in order to contribute to the consolidation and perspective of the newly formed Cypriot".
"He strongly defends the criticism of all those who accused him of turning against his father's candidacy, using the ancient saying: 'Mother and father of other ancestors, the father is more honest than anyone else,'" he noted.
In the midst of that turbulent course, he said, "history identifies Glafkos Clerides, first from the position of Minister of Justice and then from the position of the first Speaker of the House of Representatives, to be a voice of prudence, moderation, unity and self-knowledge." To warn, he added, "about the catastrophic consequences that the division of Hellenism would bring, while at the same time he does not hesitate to warn both communities about the catastrophic consequences of non-compliance with what has been agreed."
He also referred to the attitude of Glafkos Clerides against the national division. He raised his voice, he said, "once again, insisting that violence only brings violence. "And that democracy requires dialogue, pluralism, tolerance of the opposite point of view and respect for political diversity and, above all, national reconciliation."
"He is the first to put into practice the policy of the possible and through his bargaining power and credibility he manages to reach a breathing distance from an overall agreement that significantly improved the provisions of the Zurich Constitution," he said.
He also stated that after the failure to reach an agreement and the tragic events of 1974, Glafkos Clerides "in tragic circumstances for our people, under adverse conditions that can hardly be described, Glafkos Clerides as President of the Republic, undertakes to perform a multidimensional work ".
To heal, he added, "the first wounds from the invasion, to restore relations of harmonious cooperation with the now democratic Greece, to guard the international status of the shaky Republic of Cyprus, to reconstruct the non-existent structures of the state, to release the prisoners, to locate missing, to support the trapped, to honor the fallen and the dead, to relieve the refugees ".
The President of the Republic also pointed out that in addition to Makarios' public thanks for his work, "the House of Representatives, democratic Greece and the international community recognize in the person of Glafkos Clerides the honest politician, the good ship owner, who under It receives chaotic circumstances and delivers a coordinated state, as the late Tassos Papadopoulos characteristically stated from the floor of Parliament in his speech on November 1, 1975 ".
Despite the bitterness he experienced from their opponents, he said, "he bypassed it with his familiar sobriety and arrogance. "Without ever giving in to the temptation to attribute to his political opponents what they at times inadvertently attributed to him."
Special reference was made by President Anastasiadis to the establishment of the late Democratic Alarm.
"With his unmistakable political sense, his unmistakable intuition and insight, from the very first moment he declares his presence in the invitation for a new Cyprus of democracy, pluralism and pluralism", he said, "for a modern society of tolerance, of diversity and creative composition ".
He sees, he added, "the possibility of a great opportunity for a new course of Cypriot society towards the future. "With the renewal of democracy, with the absolute condemnation of the rhetorical majority, with the rejection of violence and fanaticism, with European political culture."
"Overcoming in practice stereotypes of insecurity, isolation and provincialism, he boldly reflects his vision for a Cyprus that will coexist equally and creatively with the peoples of a united Europe," he said.
Inside, he added, "from the depths of those extreme events, Glafkos Clerides, setting aside any feelings of personal bitterness, emerges with his dialectical moderation as a wise political leader of moderation, moderation and conciliation.
Speaking about his presence in the leadership of the state from 1993 to 2003, the President of the Republic said that he embarked on "a multilevel effort to upgrade the fraternal cooperation with Greece, to achieve a viable and functional solution to the Cyprus problem and to conquer it." great national and strategic goal of integration into the European family ".
"Bypassing international reactions and suffocating political pressures, it marks with the historic decision of Copenhagen on December 12, 2002, the accession of our country to the United Europe, when in fact Ankara formally threatened with unlimited reactions," he noted.
At the same time, he pointed out that "in the ten years of Clerides' rule, with the cooperation of all political forces without exception, the economy was stabilized, social cohesion was strengthened, the rights of the weakest strata of the people were expanded so that Cyprus could rightfully claim and finally to achieve its membership in the European Union with the best performance in fact ".
After losing the election in February 2003 and despite the fact that "the advanced age would allow him to stay away, he supports the next President, accompanying him in all the negotiations that followed".
"In the referendum, despite his disagreements with many of the provisions of the final solution plan, with the pragmatism that distinguished him, he did not hesitate to make his choices public," said President Anastasiadis, adding that the result of the popular verdict is fully respected. by the leader who throughout his life fought for the supremacy of democratic values ".
Glafkos Clerides, stressed, "leaves with a universal recognition that is reflected not only in the presence of the political leadership of the place and the people but also with the participation of the political leadership of Greece and a host of other prominent personalities whom I warmly thank for here in their presence ".
He publicly expressed his gratitude to the late former President, saying that "it would be unforgivable ignorance if, as an epilogue to my humble speech, I did not publicly express what I owe you."
Thank you, he said, "because you surrounded me with paternal affection and love, because you supported me in difficult times, because you taught me to tolerate and endure, to respect and honor those who express the other point of view."
"Above all, however, I am grateful to you for teaching me that at critical times the leader's love for his homeland is not served by the rhetoric of great words, but by the courage and determination to take on his responsibilities, ignoring the political cost. ", He underlined.
Addressing Glafkos Clerides for the last time, President Anatasiadis told him that "I want you to be calm but also confident that we will continue your struggles with the same determination so that the day will not be late when we will announce to you that we have lived up to expectations. yours ".