Mild fascism?

A fascists' gathering!

As Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu explained in his seminal work, “Strategic Depth” in 2001: “Even if there was not one single Muslim Turk over there, Turkey would have to maintain a Cyprus question. No country could possibly be indifferent to an island like this, placed in the heart of its vital space.” 

Speaking to reporters during a visit to Kyrgyzstan this week [2011], Erdogan criticised the unions and NGOs for their participation by saying, “Who do you [Turkish Cypriots] think you are? We have martyrs, heroes and strategic interests [on Cyprus].” He added that the demonstration had been “provocative” and that Turkish Cypriots, who were “fed and maintained by Turkey”, had “no right to hold such protests”. “They take our money, and tell us to get lost,” he was also quoted as saying, and called on the Turkish Cypriot leadership to express “a clear view” on the issue.

European Cyprus at the mercy of Turkish-Islamic Middle Ages' mentality

As we contemplate our Turkeyish problem in Cyprus and the absurdity of it all, it is useful to reflect on who it is we deal with, their outlook on life, their values and their democratic credentials. And if we do, the word absurd seems inadequate to describe our predicament. How preposterous that a nation as immature politically and socially as Turkey assumes shamelessly, for our western ways, the moral high ground and preaches us on democracy! Do these modern cavemen at the helm of Turkish "democracy" even realize who we are? Are they ignorant or simply oblivious as their social, political and ethical filters are so foreign to ours? - Antifon 30-3-11

"The logical sequence to your government’s policies would be to jail all the journalists, and then all the bloggers, and then anyone else who criticized your government. We presume you will stop short of that," wrote Jeremy Main and Kevin McDermott, the co-chairs of the OPC’s Freedom of the Press Committee in a letter dated March 10 [2011].

Pandora's box opening in Turkey imminent?

"Those demands include Kurdish language education in schools, release of political prisoners and an end to military operations against Kurds; and removal of the threshold of 10% of the national vote for political parties to enter parliament. "We will not respond [with violence] even if tanks come to crush us," Mr. Demirtas said.A spokesman for the government said it would respond to the call until Thursday, but with elections set for June 12, it appears unlikely to compromise on an issue that is neuralgic to many Turkish voters, analysts said. Turkish TV channels were filled with discussions of the proposed protests Thursday evening, with some commentators asking whether Turkey would now be drawn into the circle of Tunisia, Egypt, Bahrain and Libya." —Marc Champion and Erkan Oz, Wall Street Journal

Leaving so soon?

"They came, but they did not go back. They said 'we do not want land', but occupied half of the island. Forty thousand troops remained here and they are settled for good. They saw absolutely no drawback in distributing the Greek Cypriot land which they occupied to the population they carried here...In any case, the then Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit too has not kept his promise.'We came to restore the constitutional order of the Republic of Cyprus which has been spoiled', he said. However, he did not restore it?"

What the hell just happened?

There was once a visionary man who outlined his solution while trying to balance an impossible situation of an empire's bruised ego, a fascist's designs, the crippled aspirations of a people and the sacrifice of an ethnic minority in the arena of international power politics. His ideas, updated and EU adjusted, are the only sensible solution for Cyprus' Turkeyish problem and her tCypriot challenge.

I just wish tCypriot unionists had the vision, the wisdom and the guts to respond to Makarios' letter. The solution will be agreed and the problems will be over so fast that Turkey will be left wondering "What the hell just happened?"

Illegal rabbits in the "trnc"?

Turkish Cypriot trade unionist Sener Elcil has been blasted for saying that “settlers multiply faster than rabbits”. Elcil was rounded on by several dailies yesterday, many claiming that trade unionists have exceeded the boundaries of treachery. The daily Volkan newspaper described Elcil as “immoral”.

Kurds' 2011 civil disobedience & tCypriots' self-segregation in 1963

Cypriots need to ask themselves whether the civil disobedience of Kurds in 2011 bears similarities to tCypriots' self-segregation in the 1960s, a policy designed and supported by the Turkish deep state.

"Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has welcomed the cries for change that have swept the Middle East, but protesters say he is ignoring similar calls from his country's Kurdish minority." Associated Press / msnbc.com 26-3-2011

Cyprus Treaty of Guarantee 16 August 1960

NO. 5475. TREATY OF GUARANTEE. SIGNED AT NICOSIA ON 16 AUGUST 1960
The Republic of Cyprus of the one part, and Greece, Turkey and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland of the other part,

I. Considering that the recognition and maintenance of the independence, territorial integrity and security of the Republic of Cyprus, as established and regulated by the Basic Articles of its Constitution, are in their common interest,

II. Desiring to co-operate to ensure respect for the state of affairs created by that Constitution,

Have agreed as follows: -

Legal and moral justification expired!

"When you have an illegal invasion, [division,] occupation, [ethnic cleansing and colonization] you can not ask the rapist and thief to sit down at the same table with you and be treated as an equal.

How would you like me coming into you house, seizing part of your property, install a force to prevent you from exercising your property rights and then suggest that we both sit down as reasonable people and figure the whole thing out?

The concept is rotten from the beginning; it does not make sense.
So if you as much as display sympathy for the offender here, you are on the wrong side of the issue."

Walk the talk Erdoğan!

"The recent speeches of Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan were playing in my head, haunting me; it’s shameful just how hypocritical a head of a state can be. He travels around the world, preaching and encouraging the recent uprisings in the Middle East against dictatorial leaders; he speaks harshly against Israel for its mistreatment of the Palestinians, yet he “forgets” the oppression of Kurds. Hasn’t he recently stated on a number of occasions, “My fits of anger over the deaths of children were ‘nondiscriminative’ when it comes to race or religion; if a child is killed, I would fiercely stand against the murderers”. - Luqman Barwari, Kurdish Media News 26/3/2011

The medicine should never be stronger than the disease

Marietje Schaake, MEP ALDE
http://www.marietjeschaake.com/

More about the country that interprets international law at will and assumes the moral high ground in Cyprus when at home her democratic credentials are missing. - Antifon

“We have a hard time conceiving of what explanation would justify the unprecedented act of raiding a news desk and seeking to ban an unpublished book,” Alexander Graf Lambsdorff and Marietje Schaake [MEP, ALDE, The Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe is the third largest political group in the European Parliament] told the Hürriyet Daily News & Economic Review in a joint written statement Friday.

Declare 77-79 null and void!

"Agreed at the High Level Meetings/Agreements of 1977 and 1979 but agreements can be broken ... by, amongst other things, subsequent actions and by lack of goodwill, by not entering into the underlying spirit of the agreements.

... and what better way of undermining those High Level Agreements than by Turkey and its Regime establishing, and supporting with billions of dollars since, the attempt at partition and annexation known as "trcn" in 1983???

When seen in this light, the High Level Agreements were clearly broken, and can therefore be declared as being NULL AND VOID."

Partial admission of Turkey's Cyprus mistakes by Professor Levent Köker

The ‘problem of Turkey’ in Cyprus by LEVENT KÖKER, lecturer at Gazi University.

"One grave mistake was the division of Cyprus ... contrary to the provisions of the Treaty of Guarantee after the military operation of July 20, 1974. As you may recall, the Greek military junta of 1967-1974 used its supporters in Cyprus to overthrow the constitutional order on the island and, in response, Turkey launched a military operation on the island invoking its rights under the treaties of 1959-1960."

Turkish state terror under the guise of 'counter-terrorism

Turkish state terror under the guise of 'counter-terrorism' has historically enabled the eradication of Kurdish identity and culture. The legacy of Turkish state violence against the Kurds remains in the unsolved mass disappearances and the lack of justice and accountability for torture and other crimes against humanity. Kurds today still routinely face collective repression for speaking in their mother tongue. Prosecutions under terrorism laws for simply saying the words 'Kurd' and 'Kurdistan' indicate the scale of the institutional violence of denying an entire people the right to speak their language and express their true identity.

Turkish Cypriot ingratitude unabated!

Turkish Cypriots (tCypriots herein) incorrectly and hypocritically hide behind two enormous injustices against the Greek Cypriots (gCypriots herein): [a] the illogical super-rights and ill-equality Turkey secured on their behalf in 1960 & [b] the division and ethnic cleansing performed in their name by Turkey in 1974.

A referendum for Turkey's Kurds

The way to test the will of the Kurdish people is to hold a referendum, Halim İpek from the Kurdish Revolutionary Democrats Movement said Sunday. “The Kurds should decide on their right to self-rule,” İpek said, calling for a choice to be offered between independence, federation or confederation and the vote to be held under free democratic conditions with international observers.

“I am not talking about holding a referendum tomorrow, but in 10, 15 or 20 years,” he said.

Kemal Burkay on Kurds' Turkish problem

Kemal Burkay

Today's Zaman: "If the Turkish state were to fulfill Kurdish democratic demands, would the PKK have any more reason to exist?"

Kemal Burkay: Had Turkey only recognized Kurdish rights earlier, there would neither be a Kurdish problem nor so many Kurdish uprisings from the start of the republic up until now. Neither would the Kurds have felt any need for illegal organizations, nor would a group like the PKK have ever emerged. The only way to completely rid Turkey of this problem now is to recognize all the basic rights of the Kurdish people. A solution based on the principle of equality is possible, there are many examples of this throughout the world, and as we see it, this would take the shape of a federation.

The most important reality of all

In 1963 a document was put up for discussion by the Cypriot President, not dissimilar to what Erdogan is doing today in Turkey, putting up for discussion even the unchangeable articles of the Turkish constitution.

tCypriots, when merely presented with the 1963 ideas, opted to abandon their positions in government, a government they had been trying for three years to sabotage, to pursue a policy of self-segregation so attested by the United Nations, and bring havoc to Cyprus in 63-64 & again in 1974. Whatever rights they had are gone! The Republic of Cyprus survived despite them. The RoC is in the EU despite them.

tCypriots have but two options:

Perception of Cyprus straight from the horse's mouth!

“[EU] membership makes them [Cyprus Republic] invulnerable”

the Turkish Foreign Ministry Undersecretary Feridun Sinirlioğlu said in a meeting with the State Department's Undersecretary William Burns on February 18, 2010

It's important to know how Turkey thinks of Cyprus!

United Nations plan for a new Turko-Kurdistan Federation

Turkey and the tCypriot minority supported overwhelmingly the Annan plan as a solution to the long-standing problem in Cyprus. An overwhelming majority of 76% of Cypriots rejected it outright. Below read a brief comparative approach as to how the Annan plan would apply to Turkey and its 87-year long problem with her 20 million Kurdish community.

UNITED NATIONS PLAN FOR TURKEY & HER KURDS - 2011

Upon agreement of the two main communities living in Turkey (Kurdish and Turkish), the present state ceases to exist pending approval of the citizens of the Turkish Republic through a nation-wide referendum. Immediately after the approval of the new settlement, the new state is a reality. There is no going back to the old state even if later on majorities in both the Kurdish and Turkish areas overwhelmingly vote to do so.

Kurdish deputies in Turkey of 2011 face 2.606 years in jail

If Turkey thinks 1960 was fair for tCypriots in Cyprus then she must offer same to her Kurds

If Turkey thinks a federation is fair for tCypriots then she must offer same to her Kurds

Simple really!

Deputies from the Peace and Democracy Party benefit from immunity that protects them from prosecution, yet 19 deputies are still facing a whopping 2,606 years in jail for various offenses.

The David Goliath story unabridged!

The foundation of our struggle is three little words: REPUBLIC OF CYPRUS (RoC herein)! Anyone with demands of us to trim it or dispose of it altogether is a fool.

There is only one thing on the agenda really:
to determine the seamless tCypriot reintegration into the RoC, which will be done on RoC terms. It will borrow heavily from Makarios' 1963 ideas, adjusted to our EU reality.

Do not underestimate either this extremely SIMPLE & equally POWERFUL concept:

Turkey being emotional and sensitive and the EU being factual and realistic

The governor of Mardin, Hasan Duruer, told the delegation that thanks to Turkey’s recent outreach to countries from North Africa to the Far East, it soon may not need the EU at all.

Pierini [the head of the Delegation of the European Union to Turkey] pointed out 90 percent of direct investment and 80 percent of technology in Turkey was still coming from EU countries. Such an exchange between the governor and the ambassador shows that the negotiation process is all about Turkey being emotional and sensitive and the EU being factual and realistic.

Kurds demand Turkey's Cyprus logic applied at home!

"The proposed autonomous model would organize itself in “political, economic, cultural, social, diplomatic, legal, ecological and self-defense” branches."

“Democratic autonomy aims to democratize the [Turkish] Republic, changing the rigidity of the nation-state that does not satisfy the needs of the people of Turkey while also eliminating the impediment that the nation-state creates in front of the political, social, economic and cultural development of the people”

Angela Merkel takes sides!

“We greatly appreciate your courage, creativity shown and initiative taken to solve the problem. We see that you are taking many steps and we also see that the Turkish side is not responding adequately to your steps ... We will support the path you have chosen to solve the problem in every way we can. We know this path is not easy and that the solution must be achieved by the people of Cyprus ... I want to thank Mr Christofias because we managed to draft a strategic plan of cooperation between NATO and the CFSP [EU’s Common Foreign and Security Policy]”

Angela Merkel, German Chancellor, January 11, 2011

2010 progress report on Turkey | European Parliament | Wednesday, 9 March 2011 - Strasbourg

See link to full report below

Insights into the Turkish psyche

Claire Berlinski who lives amongst Turks understands them better than we ever will. The sooner we realize what Claire Berlinski is talking about the better. Only then will we begin to understand why we find so weird, unnatural and spiteful the display of a flag on a stolen mountain to proclaim one's theft, while for the Turks and their TSK buffoons it is the most natural thing in the world, something to feel really proud of. These people look like us somewhat, some of them anyhow, and that's the extend of our similarities. They think they are western but in reality they are light years away from our western world .

Which airspace to close?

“There are Kurds who want their rights in Turkey. They want to establish an independent state. The Turkish army has been fighting the Kurds for years. Why is Turkish airspace not closed? Neither the US, nor Europe have made any decision to that effect. Why?”

Who said this? Where?
 

EU Resolution on Turkey's progress on 9-3-2011 - Slow progress by Turkey regretted

In two resolutions adopted on Wednesday on the progress of Turkey and Montenegro in their EU membership negotiations, Parliament express concern at the "slow progress" on human rights and key reforms in Turkey in 2010, while welcoming Montenegro's official candidate status despite concerns over corruption.

The Cyprus-Turkey deadlock, lack of dialogue among Turkish political parties and the undermining of press freedom and other basic rights in Turkey are the key factors slowing down the country's EU accession talks, said rapporteur Ria Oomen-Ruijten (EPP, NL) during the debate.

Turkish Cypriots at a juncture!

"It appears to me that Turkish Cypriots are at a juncture.

1. Convince the Turkish tax payer to sponsor a Cypriot life in relative luxury. (Unlikely)
2. Settle for a life in Turkish reality, possibly in Cyprus but more likely in Istanbul, in the private sector. Effectively the end of Turkish Cypriot culture. (Untenable)
3. Leave for another EU country. (Sad)
4. Turn the island into a normal European country, for all its citizens, by convincing the real leadership to negotiate a proposed solution, where all citizens will with the same freedoms as in the rest of Europe. (Why not)" - Comment on Wed, March 9th 2011 at 21:48 by PG

Thinking of zones is wrong & ineffective thinking

Time to stop talking of two zones. Zones are the result of an illegal invasion and occupation. Just as "equality", veto rights, sovereign bases, foreign intervention rights, obscene guaranteed representation & a crippled independence are the result of bullying and an imbalance of power in 1960. Time we all realize that we are being logical and doing the well meaning tCypriots a favor as well if we press for a solution on a 1960/1963 basis the soonest possible, i.e. an improved 1960, a true democracy's constitution, a sovereign country's constitution. The majority tCypriots, the true tCypriots, are ready to make an honorable compromise. We, gCypriots, should be ready to heed their cry for help. On the right basis for all our children's sake! For Cyprus!

Just who the bloody hell do we think we are?

When Turkey's Turks realize that their ideas in Cyprus will form the basis of a solution to their Kurdish problem then ... [please let me know what you think will happen at abettercyprus@gmail.com or abetterturkey@gmail.com 


The truth hurts tCypriots because it contains hard to swallow realities for the spoiled, misguided tCypriot soul.

And the truth will infuriate Turks once it sinks in.

Why the Turkish military bombed mosques in Cyprus | Hürriyet Daily News

We just learned that our officers bombed mosques in Cyprus to 'raise resistance' against 'enemies without.' We now wonder whether they used similar techniques also against 'enemies within'?

Last week, Sabri Yirmibeşoğlu, a retired Turkish general, said something that shocked the nation. During an interview by Habertürk, a popular news channel, he said that the Turkish military had bombed mosques in Cyprus in the past and put the blame on the Greeks. “Such attacks and sabotages on sacred values are done and portrayed as if the enemy did them,” he explained. “The purpose is to raise the resistance of the people.”

Win-Win-Win-Win?

The real thought-provoking aspect of the impending solution to Cyprus' Turkeyish problem, in essence the bridging of the diverging interests of a circa 80% majority and a 20% ethnic minority as the prerequisite to delegitimize the purported need for Turkeyish presence in Cyprus, is that it will be an inescapable reference and an extremely relevant legal precedent, as the Turkish Republic and her Kurds try to find a compromise solution to the 87-year long Kurdish (*) problem, a problem between a circa 25% ethnic minority and a circa 70% majority of Turks.

The key to restarting Turkey's EU engine | March 3, 2011 | Hugh Pope | Hürriyet Daily News

The Cyprus reunification talks are getting stuck, again. But for Turkey this should no longer be a license to shrug, yawn and allow the standoff on the island to slide further towards partition. Contrary to public perceptions, the situation is not static. The diplomatic stalemate is forcing the dispute into an area that is strongly against Turkish national interests.

Point #14 - Additions to the November 30 1963 proposal - Suggest it!

New amendments for the 1960 constitution:

Point #13 of November 30 1963 proposal - Debate it!

Point 13. The Greek Communal Chamber to be abolished

Point #12 of November 30 1963 proposal - Debate it!

Point 12. All decisions of the Public Service Commission to be taken by simple majority.

Point #11 of November 30 1963 proposal - Debate it!

Point 11. The number of the Members of the Public Service Commission to be reduced from ten to five.

Point #10 of November 30 1963 proposal - Debate it!

Point 10. The proportion of the participation of Greek and Turkish Cypriots in the composition of the Public Service and the Forces of the Republic to be modified in proportion to the ratio of the population of Greek and Turkish Cypriots.

Point #9 of November 30 1963 proposal - Debate it!

Point 9. The numerical strength of the Security Forces and of the Defence Forces to be determined by a Law.

Point #8 of November 30 1963 proposal - Debate it!

Point 8. The division of the Security Forces into Police and Gendarmerie to be abolished Since the establishment of Independence the Security Forces of the Republic have been divided into Police and Gendarmerie and operate as two separate and distinct Forces in defined areas and under separate command.

Point #7 of November 30 1963 proposal - Debate it!

Point 7. The administration of Justice to be unified.

Point #6 of November 30 1963 proposal - Debate it!

Point 6. Unified Municipalities to be established.

Point #5 of November 30 1963 proposal - Debate it!

Point 5.  The constitutional provisions regarding separate majorities for enactment of certain laws by the House of Representatives to be abolished.

Point #4 of November 30 1963 proposal - Debate it!

Point 4. The Vice-President of the House of Representatives to deputise for the President of the House in case of his temporary absence or incapacity to perform his duties.

Point #3 of November 30 1963 proposal - Debate it!

Point 3. The Greek President of the House of Representatives and the Turkish Vice-President to be elected by the House as a whole and not as at present the President by the Greek Members of the House and the Vice President by the Turkish Members of the House.

Point #2 of November 30 1963 proposal - Debate it!

Point 2. The Vice-President of the Republic to deputise for the President of the Republic in case of his temporary absence or incapacity to perform his duties

Point #1 of November 30 1963 proposal - Debate it!

Point 1. The right of veto of the President and the Vice-President of the Republic to be abandoned.

Revolution 101 for tCypriots & e-negotiating 1963!

As a member of the gCypriot right I feel the responsibility to tell you that a solution based on November 30 1963 is the minimum which would assure me that tCypriots are both genuine and reasonable, in seeking a fair solution for a UNITED CYPRUS without divisive elements just about everywhere in the constitution. tCypriots accepting the November 30 1963 document as the basis would mean that they recognize the rotten deal the 82% gCypriot majority was coerced to accept in 1960, a deal accommodating foreign interests and ignoring local ones, a deal which would have been rejected 10-fold by any sane gCypriot leader if left free to decide.