84^TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE DECLARATION OF REPUBLIC OF TURKEY
PRESIDENT TALAT: “WE WILL NOT GIVE UP OUR EQUAL RIGHTS”

 

29 October, which marks the 84^th Anniversary of the Declaration of the Republic of Turkey by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, was celebrated both in Turkey and in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.

Ceremonies started with the Turkish Ambassador to Lefkosa Turkekul Kurttekin and the Commander of the Cyprus Turkish Peace Forces Lieutenant General Hayri Kývrýkoðlu receiving well-wishers.

Addressing the ceremony at Dr. Fazil Kucuk Boulevard, President Mehmet Ali Talat stated that this year they were celebrating the 84^th Anniversary of the Establishment of the Turkish Republic with a more meaningful solidarity spirit compared to the past. Talat pointed out that Turkey has entered a new stage in its struggle to protect its territorial integrity and democratic unity while it continues its fight against terror.

Touching upon the Cyprus issue, President Talat stressed that the Turkish Cypriot people also entered a new process in its struggle to unite with the rest of the world and to protect its rights and interests.

President said: “Mustafa Kemal Ataturk’s foresight and courage under the most difficult positions as well as the fact he established the Turkish Republic through his revolutions, which most people deemed impossible, continue to be a source of inspiration for all of us.”

Talat stressed that today the Turkish Republic which is preparing to take its rightful place within the European Union constituted a model in the world with its economy as well as communal, administrative and legal structure.  Talat said the Turkish Republic emerged as a regional power in all fields.

President Talat stated that the Turkish Cypriots who actively engaged in the process of the establishment of the Turkish Republic is proud of both themselves and Turkey.

Talat expressed belief that Ataturk’s Turkey, which has always stood against all threats, would give the necessary response just like it did in the past.

Referring to the Cyprus issue, President said the Turkish Cypriot people gave him an important duty to integrate the Turkish Cypriot people with the EU through a settlement and also support Turkey’s full EU membership.

Pointing out that the EU should encourage the Greek Cypriot side to reach a solution on the UN platform and keep its promises towards Turkish Cypriots; President Talat said otherwise, EU would further lose its credibility amongst the Turkish Cypriot people just like Turkish people.

President said it was an unacceptable approach to force the Turkish Cypriot people to live as a ‘closed community’ under international isolation. ”Even if the international community, including the European Union, surrenders to the Greek Cypriot impositions, we will never surrender ourselves to a mentality which ignores our right of equality and partnership in Cyprus. The international community should acknowledge this, even if the Greek Cypriot administration denies it”, the President said.

Talat added that the mistakes of the international community and the EU which ignored the Turkish Cypriot people’s basic rights and liberties are among the major reasons for deadlocks faced by the TRNC.

President said although it is a well known fact that the Turkish Cypriots were acting in harmony with the EU principles and the international community, the EU and the international community were not taking the necessary steps to correct their mistakes.

Continuing, President said:

“The solution of the Cyprus problem on the basis of the political equality of the Turkish Cypriots, bi-zonality and within the framework of the continuation of Turkey’s guarantorship, which is still pending due to the negative stance of the Greek Cypriot administration, would contribute to peace not only in our island but also in the whole region. We are in favor of peace. The solution of the Cyprus problem can be solved on the basis of long-established UN parameters. Greek Cypriot side’s impositions could only serve for a new enmity and division.

It should be the EU’s primary duty to prevent the Greek Cypriot side which is using its unilateral EU membership to hinder the efforts aimed at providing a peaceful and just solution to the Cyprus problem. We as the Turkish Cypriot side are ready for every kind of constructive negotiations. We have proved our pro-solution and peaceful stance through the steps we have taken recently by both the EU and the UN.”

Expressing belief that Turkish and Greek Cypriot could anyhow provide a peaceful country for themselves, President Talat said:

“We should do this for our children...It is true that everyday we are walking on a path towards permanent division, where it would not possible to turn back. We expect the Greek Cypriot leadership to also acknowledge this threat and to make an effort towards achieving peace and solution. Although the number of people who thinks that this is a very optimistic expectation is increasing, we will continue to work and be optimistic.”

 

 

PRIME MINISTER SOYER: “TURKEY PROGRESSED ON THE PATH ENLIGHTENED AND LEAD BY ATATURK AND HAS BECOME A MODEL FOR STABILITY AND POWER WITH ITS DEMOCRATIC AND SECULAR STRUCTURE”

            Prime Minister Ferdi Sabit Soyer in his message issued for the 84^th Anniversary of the Establishment of the Turkish Republic, said: “The Turkish Cypriot people are celebrating with joy the 84^th Anniversary of the Establishment of the Turkish Republic. I am sending my best wishes and regards to Turkish people”.

“Turkey, with the declaration of the Republic, had turned upside down the bed faith of the Turkish people and continued to progress in the path enlightened by Ataturk and has become a model for stability and power with its democratic and secular structure”, said Prime Minister Soyer. He described the Turkish Republic as an Enlightenment Revolution.

Pointing out that 29 October was the anniversary of a new birth and a revolution, Prime Minister said:

“This revolution, which has a significant place in the world history, is one of the biggest modernization movements of the 20th century and ensured Turkey to take her place amongst the modern states and values system.

Ataturk underlined the aim of his revolution as making the Turkish people a modern and contemporary community.

The Republic’s administration which brought universal values such as democracy, justice, basic rights and freedoms to Turkish Nation, has based its revolution and radical changes on secularity principle.”

Prime Minister Soyer stated that besides secularism another very important characteristic of the Turkish Republic was being a nation state which was composed of citizens sharing a common past and future within the national territories of the country.

Soyer pointed out that Turkish Republic had unified all its citizens regardless of their ethnic origin under the identity of Turkish Nation.

 

 

PRESIDENT TALAT: “PAPADOPOULOS’ PROPOSALS AIM TO POSTPONE A SOLUTION”

President Mehmet Ali Talat in an interview given to Greek Cypriot daily ALITHIA, stating that he envisaged a solution in 2008, made evaluations on the current situation in Cyprus.

Referring to his meeting with the UN Secretary General Ban-Ki Moon, President Talat said he asked the Secretary General to take an initiative with the aim of reaching a comprehensive settlement in 2008.

Commenting on the criticisms by the Greek Cypriot politicians and leader Papadopoulos to the effect that him and Turkey prevented the 8 July Agreement from being implemented, President Talat reminded that he proposed Papadopoulos to put a time-limit for the preparation period of 8 July Agreement for 2 and a half months and to start full fledged negotiations with the aim of reaching a settlement by the end of 2008.

Referring to Greek Cypriot leader Tassos Papadopoulos’ 8 proposals made to Ban-Ki Moon, Talat said these proposals were aimed at postponing a solution and if this happened the Cyprus issue could not solved. Talat explained that Papadopoulos’ proposals were very complicated, did not refer to any date, aim or a substantive issue for a solution and only thing mentioned was to meet for negotiations.  

President said Papadopoulos was trying to drive us into a dark time tunnel through unfruitful discussions.

 

 

STATEMENT BY THE PRESIDENTIAL SPOKESPERSON MR. HASAN ERCAKICA

The inclusion of expressions, regarding the lifting of the isolations the Turkish Cypriots have been subjected to, in the UK-Turkey Strategic Partnership Memorandum signed on 23 October 2007, have been defined by the Greek Cypriots as a step “to recognize the TRNC” and met with harsh criticism.

This stance of the Greek Cypriot side is nothing more than the reflection of the policy they have been employing since 2004. The Greek Cypriot authorities, who could not digest the efforts of lifting the isolations imposed on Turkish Cypriots so as to motivate their efforts to reach a solution for the Cyprus problem, have been, as a means to avert such a move, clinging on the allegations that “TRNC will be recognized” and there will be a permanent partition. As there is nothing more likely than lifting of the isolations imposed on people who have established their wish to live in Cyprus as “equal partners”, this objective is also being supported by the UN and the EU. The fact that the UK is taking steps in that direction should not be deemed as an extraordinary move, but, on the contrary, it should be deemed as a belated initiative.

The uneasiness these moves caused in the Greek Cypriot side are didactic in terms of indicating what the international community should do to make the Greek Cypriot leadership return to the negotiation table. The response of the Greek Cypriot side also indicates the accuracy of the call to lift the isolations.

The efforts of the Greek Cypriot side, who has been trying to avert the steps to be taken to implement the 8 July Agreement or to build confidence between the two peoples by employing delay tactics, directed towards condemning the Turkish Cypriots live by unjust and inhumane embargoes until they decide to return to the negotiation table, are not acceptable. It is, therefore, revealed that one of the reasons behind the fact that Greek Cypriots have turned the 8 July process into a process of diversion is to obstruct the initiatives that will end the isolation of the Turkish Cypriots.

As the Turkish Cypriot side, we would like to reiterate that we do not deem the lifting of the isolations as an alternative to a comprehensive settlement, we aim to commence the settlement negotiations by the end of a preparatory period of 2-2.5 months and to solve the Cyprus problem by the end of 2008 and we are still waiting for a response to the proposal President Mr. Talat has conveyed to Mr. Papadopoulos on 5 September 2007.