Professional Documents
Culture Documents
d
(Babyland)
Shane Hensinger
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INTRODUCTION..........................................................................................................................................4
HISTORY........................................................................................................................................................4
BRITISH RULE..................................................................................................................................................5
INDEPENDENCE.................................................................................................................................................6
POST- INDEPENDENCE.......................................................................................................................................7
THE INVASION OF “ATTILA.”.............................................................................................................................9
VISUAL REPRESENTATION OF THE DECLINE OF BICOMMUNAL VILLAGES IN CYPRUS.................................................10
AFTERWARD..................................................................................................................................................10
PEACEMAKING AND PEACEBUILDING STRATEGIES..................................................................10
ENVIRONMENT...............................................................................................................................................11
SPORTS.........................................................................................................................................................12
WOMEN’S ISSUES...........................................................................................................................................13
EDUCATIONAL EXCHANGES..............................................................................................................................14
CONCLUSION.............................................................................................................................................14
WORKS CITED ..........................................................................................................................................15
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Introduction
The conflict in Cyprus resulting in the Turkish invasion of the island in 1974
and stalemating in the subsequent partition and frozen dynamics which exist
today, represents in many ways the latest conflict between the Greek and
Turkish states or a “significant part of the larger Greco-Turkish issue with a
thousand year history” (Yelmaz 35). Both the Greek-Turkish war of 1920 and
the Lausanne Treaty of 1923 ensured that both Greece and Turkey have
“unmixed” their populations to a degree quite remarkable considering the
multiethnic nature of each state prior to these events. Cyprus is the last
territory where large numbers of ethnic Cypriot Greeks and ethnic Cypriot
Turks once lived together and where Greece and Turkey still have major roles
to play in resolving (or prolonging) conflict between the two communities. A
major, unresolved irritant in relations between the two states is Cyprus and
the problems of that island have followed a path which closely parallels that
of each respective community’s “benefactors” in Greece and Turkey.
The challenge then is to wean each community away from this dynamic and
encourage the development of a Cypriot identity separate from reliance on
the ethnic or religious identity of either of the guarantors of Cyprus’s two
major communities. In this report as well as the ones following it we will
make specific recommendations to assist in peacebuilding and peacemaking
measures which we hope will build the confidence of both communities in one
another and in the Cypriot state outside of its current reliance on the
“guarantor” powers of Turkey and Greece.
History
There is significant disagreement as to relations between the two
communities before the British assumed control of Cyprus in 1878. Greek
Cypriot writers tend to mention the 1832 execution of the Cypriot Orthodox
archbishop and clergy by the Ottoman Empire for alleged sympathies with
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those seeking independence for Greeks (Yelmas 39). But in the period after
the British took control of Cyprus it can generally be agreed that “Greek
Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot nationalism and intercommunal distrust
intensified in series of steps or “rachets.”” (Kaufmann 209).
British Rule
The British “allowed the communities to set up separate school systems, both
of which imported teachers from the respective mainlands who taught
children to see themselves as “Greek” or “Turkish, not “Cypriot.” History in
each community, from well before the possibility of Cypriot independence
until today, has represented its own people as consistently heroic and the
other as consistently barbaric” (Kaufman 209).
Language was also a source of separation on the island with few Greek
Cypriots speaking Turkish but approximately 40% of Turkish Cypriots
speaking Greek. As the two communities began their process of self-
segregation less and less members of the “other” community learned their
neighbor’s language - meaning contacts between the two became
increasingly limited (Fisher 309).
For Greek Cypriots this took the form of enosis (union) with the Greek state.
In 1912 and 1931 there were pro-enosis riots in Cyprus. These were followed
by a growing sense of Turkish Cypriot nationalism which led to demands for
taksim (partition) of the island.
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After WWII the anti-colonialist wave which swept much of the world also
reached Cyprus. In 1955 EOKA (National Organization of Cypriot Fighters) was
formed to fight the British for Cypriot independence. EOKA was also closely
identified with the cause of enosis and the Orthodox church and was
exclusively Greek – thus encouraging another, exclusively Turkish
organization called TMT (Turkish Defense Organization) to form which further
divided the two communities. Distrust built further because TMT aligned itself
with British colonialists and engaged in “limited intercommunal fighting with
the Greek Cypriots until a ceasefire was implemented in 1958” (Fisher 310).
This trend of separate structures and institutions for each community also
manifested itself in politics as well – with no cross-community parties or
movements competing for both Turkish Cypriot and Greek Cypriot votes
before independence or after (Kaufmann 210).
The period between 1891 and 1931 saw the unmixing of previously
ethnically-mixed villages in Cyprus, from 43% to 36%.
Independence
This complex document, designed with what the negotiators thought were
the best interests of both communities at heart, instead held the seeds of the
destruction of bicommunal existence on Cyprus. The president of Cyprus at
the time, Archbishop Markarios, never supported the constitution and insisted
it wouldn’t be binding on Greek Cypriots after independence (Kaufmann 210).
The constitution “institutionalized ethno-communalism, because it failed to
take into account “the psychological and sociological fact that the power-
protection system” increased “suspicions, antagonism and conflict between
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the communities because of the discriminations and uncertainties involved.”
“The sectarian and divisive provisions of the 1960 arrangement constituted
the seeds that led to its collapse three years later” (Michael 26).
The consocialistic model of power sharing as laid out in the 1960 Cypriot
constitution was a failure for the reasons stated above and because it did
nothing to encourage consensus between competing factions within the
government (Large & Sisk 100). Of course there existed no ability in Cyprus
to field an integrative approach to governance because there existed no
cross-community political parties, societies or institutions. The Cypriot
constitution of 1960 cemented this state of affairs and did nothing to
ameliorate it.
Post- Independence
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In addition the agreement was dependent on stable power relations between
the two sides and the other parties to the agreement (Greece, Turkey and
Britain). When one side felt the power relations had shifted it could simply
abandon the agreement or seek to change it unilaterally – as Makarios did
later. Power relations can shift because of changing military capacities,
demography or, as in the case of Cyprus, international actors (Jarstad 21).
“It is difficult to overestimate the magnitude of the 1964 crisis for the Turkish
Cypriot community. This was a seminal event for them. The Greek Cypriots
failed to comprehend the significance of the 1964 crisis in the Turkish Cypriot
narrative. Their inability to to grasp the centrality of this “chosen trauma”
only compounded the “mistrust factor” in any prospective endeavor toward
coexistence and reunification. Cast in bereaved language, the 1964-1974 trial
would underline all future negotiating predispositions for the Turkish
Cypriots” (Michael 27). After the events of 1964 “the remainder of the 1960s
and the early 1970s saw continuing hostility and increasing segregation
between the two communities, punctuated by intermittent crises sparking
Turkish involvement and repeated calls for enosis by nationalist elements in
the Greek-Cypriot community” (Fisher 310).
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through difficult times in 1974. But the Cyprus problem did not start in 1974”
(Papadakis 109).
Turkey’s invasion of Cyprus in July 1974 is the event which led to the partition
of the island and the forced displacement of over 250,000 Greek Cypriots. For
Greek Cypriots this event, hailed as “liberation” by Turkish Cypriots, was as
traumatizing as the 1964 crisis and subsequent exile to small enclaves was to
the Turkish Cypriots.
The first part of the invasion, on July 20 th, was followed by ethnic cleansing of
Cypriot Turks from Greek-held areas almost immediately (Kaufmann 214). On
August 14th, following the end of talks in Geneva between the four guarantor
powers designed to seek a settlement to the previous round of fighting,
Turkey attacked again and pushed inwards from the beachheads it had
established, causing greater displacement of people, both Greek Cypriots
heading south (away from the Turkish invasion) and Turkish Cypriots heading
north (towards the occupied areas) and eventually occupying almost 37% of
the island (Yilmaz 65). For Greek Cypriots the events of 1974 leading up to
the invasion of Turkey, constitute their own “chosen trauma” in the same
manner the events between 1964 and 1974 mean to the Cypriot Turkish
population.
The toll on the people of Cyprus was fierce. 4000 Greek soldiers and Cypriots
were killed as well as 2000 Turkish soldiers. The Turkish army “committed
rapes and killed women and children” (Kaufmann 215). Over 1500 people
today are still considered “disappeared” by their families. Almost no Turkish
Cypriots remained in the south of Cyprus while less than 10,000 Greek
Cypriots remained in the north – many of whom would be later placed under
great pressure to leave. Subsequent agreements allowed a UN-supervised
population exchange which further reduced the mixed communities in each
state. Today less than 300 Greek Cypriots remain in the Turkish-occupied
areas of Cyprus, mainly in the remote Karpas Peninsula. Figures on the
number of Turkish Cypriots in the south – the internationally recognized
Republic of Cyprus, are unavailable but it is thought less than 1000 chose to
stay behind.
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Each side has its own narrative for every significant event which has occurred
in the history of Cyprus. “The year 1974 perpetuated the image of the
“unspeakable” Turk as Orthodox Hellenism’s eternal enemy, out to expel
them from their ancestral homeland, in a melancholic fatalism colored by
betrayal, defeat and loss. Conversely 1974 is heralded as a “peace
operation” and celebrated by Turkish Cypriots as “an antidote to Greek
Cypriot oppression” (Michael 32). Neither side appears willing to acknowledge
the other’s narrative – not accept but acknowledge. The principle of “the ego
of victimization” doesn’t allow empathy for one’s compatriot’s pain – when
one suffers then the other must suffer in return (Yilmaz 66).
Afterward
The conflict in Cyprus has been stalemated since 1974. Contrary to the low-
level ethnic violence which occupied the island from between 1955 and 1974
there have been very few incidents since the Turkish invasion – primarily or
wholly because the two populations are unmixed now to the point where
very, very few Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots still live in close proximity
to one another.
Because this project is broken into two parts – conflict and escalation analysis
followed by peacemaking analysis at a later date, we will not go any further
into the history of the conflict as the conflict has remained essentially frozen
since 1974.
The European Union (EU) has taken the initiative in some of these areas but
unfortunately in the EU, where the Republic of Cyprus is a full member and
the north and Turkey are not, “Greek Cypriots… have eagerly used all the
levers available to them to pursue what they see as their national interest
and need for justice” (ICG 3). If opportunities for building cross-border
cooperation are stymied in the EU then countries should make the decision to
pursue these opportunities unilaterally – as Britain and the United States
appear to be doing in certain areas – including the ones mentioned below.
Environment
Sports
Women’s Issues
Educational Exchanges
Environment
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The resurgence of the natural environment into the void left by humans can
be a comforting and uniting factor if managed well. The Environment and
Security Initiative (ENVSEC), a project formed between the Organization for
Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), United Nations Environment
Programme (UNEP) and the United Nations Development Programe (UNDP)
could serve as a framework within which to develop a process for cross-
border cooperation on issues of mutual concern between the two parts of
Cyprus today (United Nations 25).
A main issue sure to arise is that the Republic of Cyprus doesn’t want to
provide legitimacy to the Turkish-occupied north, which declared
independence in 1983. But the environment is an issue which doesn’t respect
artificial boundaries across land, air or sea. Tackling issues of joint concern
between both communities, issues like ensuring sea turtles have clean
beaches on which to nest, the status of Cyprus’s native donkey population or
discussing ways to mitigate the effects of a dropping water table can be
approached as joint-initiatives, if necessary done outside the framework of
government-to-government contacts through NGOs or multilateral
organizations.
The water issue, in particular, has been mentioned as having the potential to
“function both as a unifier promoting collaboration between entities at
different levels and scales but also an irritant worsening already bad
relations” (Strand 191). Using Cyprus’s dropping water table as “an
opportunity to ensure structure dialogue with groups in the two communities”
could be enormously valuable in building ties between the two groups
(Strand 192).
Sports
The Olympics are designed to bring the world’s states together in peace and
harmony, united under the Olympic banner and committed to the ancient
ideals of sportsmanship. Because the TRNC isn’t a recognized state it has no
Olympic committee, any athlete who wanted to participate would be forced
to get a Turkish passport and compete under the flag of Turkey. And the
Republic of Cyprus up to this point has never won a metal in the Olympics –
winter or summer. Approaching the Olympic committee in the south to
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accept and train athletes from the north, who could perhaps compete under a
neutral banner until reunification was achieved (in the same manner as
Taiwan) could serve as a visible and successful example of cooperation
across the divide. If objections were to arise bringing the issue of Greece’s
adoption of ethnic Greek minorities from the Pontus (Paraskevi Patoulidou)
and Albania (Pyrros Dimas) to compete for Greece in the Olympics (each who
won a gold metal) could serve as an important reminder of the role athletes
from the TRNC could play in the Olympics on behalf of all Cypriots.
Women’s Issues
Recognizing the valuable role women can play in peacebuilding the United
Nations Security Council passed resolution 1325 in 2000, which called for
broader participation for women in conflict resolution and “that involve
women in all the implementation mechanisms of the peace agreements”
(Strand 188).
The UNDP has funded (2006 – 2008) a $30,000,000 project in Cyprus based
on mainstreaming women’s participation in peacemaking efforts on the island
(UNDP). A report is expected soon on its results but a greater effort must be
made to bind women from the Republic of Cyprus and the TRNC together in
cross-border groups discussing issues of concern to women. As the UNDP has
taken a lead role so far it could continue to do so – or delegate additional
responsibilities to gender-based NGOs eager to help build the process of
peacebuilding forward (Georgiadu 1).
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Educational Exchanges
Because of the international isolation of the TRNC students from the statelet
often have to procure Turkish passports to study abroad and are only allowed
to study in Cyprus once they obtain a Republic of Cyprus passport. Creating
an exchange mechanism whereby students of both the Republic of Cyprus
and the TRNC could study on each side of the dividing line would be
enormously beneficial in breaking down the negative stereotypes each
community holds of the other. A more immediate impact would be a growing
number of citizens of each ethnic group with the ability to speak the
language of the other. It would also lift some of the sense of siege which the
Turkish Cypriot community feels under and encourage greater ties between
the two educational communities.
Conclusion
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Works Cited
the crossroads. 1st ed. New York: Manchester UP, 2009. 237-55. Print.
Jarstad, Anna. "Power Sharing for Peace and Democracy?!" From War to
Jarstad, Anna. "The Logic of Power Sharing After Civil War." Proc. of Power-
Large, Judith, and Timothy D. Sisk. Democracy, Conflict and Human Security:
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Papadakis, Yiannis. Echoes From The Dead Zone: Across the Cyprus Divide.
Reunifying Cyprus: The Best Chance yet. Rep. no. 194. Brussels: International
Souter, David. "A Review of the Cyprus Problem." Third World Quarterly 6.3
Strand, Arne. "The Smaller Issues Complicating the Larger Picture." The
United States. National Security Council. NSSM 227. Washington, DC, 1975.
Print.
Webb, Keith, and A.J.R Groom. Settlements in Unended Conflicts: The Case of
Weisman, Alan. The World Without Us. New York: Thomas Dunne, 2007. Print.
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