By Michael Karadjis
— NICOSIA, September 5 — The following declaration was signed by 58 Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot political, cultural, trade union, peace and women's organisations on the occasion of the International Day for Peace on September 1:
"We believe unshakably in the need for peace in today's world and our aim is the creation of a federated, common homeland, a peaceful and democratic Cyprus where human rights are respected.
"People should be aware of their past but they should not live in the past. Therefore, we need to find a way to overcome the feelings of hatred and revenge and to make good use of our past experiences in order to build a peaceful future.
"The situation today renders peace even more imperative. The status quo is a basis for provocative actions, friction, conflict and war. The supporters of peace are many. Peace, however, requires struggle."
The organisations consider it their "historic duty to oppose those forces that inhibit the peace process, and to work together to secure lasting peace in Cyprus".
On the same day, all 15 Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot trade union federations held a joint rally at the Ledra Palace, in the UN zone separating the Greek south and Turkish north of the capital, Nicosia. They also released a joint declaration which read in part:
"We consider it our historic responsibility to raise our voices above those who wish to obstruct the peace process and to unite our efforts against them. We will strengthen our collaboration for the promotion of the interests of working people, believing this to be the best contribution to peace."
The unions express their "disappointment at the failure of initiatives undertaken by the UN in the search for a lasting solution to the Cyprus problem and call on the parties involved, the UN, other organisations and countries showing an interest, to expedite their efforts and initiatives towards all directions so that the course of peace is safeguarded".
They reiterate that the solution should be based on UN resolutions with "full guarantees for human and trade union rights and a unitary economy, without any form of discrimination".
In recent months, the Cyprus issue has heated up considerably, with the purchase by the Cypriot government of SS-300 missiles from Russia, and the prospect of negotiations beginning for Cypriot entry into the EEC. The Turkish regime has threatened to destroy the missiles when they arrive, citing a "threat" to Turkey — somewhat hypocritical for a massively armed state which has occupied 38% of Cyprus since 1974.
It has also threatened to formally annex the occupied part of Cyprus if EEC talks with Cyprus go ahead. This posturing has less to do with opposition to Cypriot entry into the EEC than to the fact that the EEC still does not consider Turkey ready for talks, citing massive violation of human rights, the Kurdish issue and Turkey's economic performance.
If Cyprus enters the EEC but Turkey doesn't, this would threaten to take the Turkish Cypriots out of Turkey's orbit. Already, in July, Bulent Ecivit, deputy prime minister of the new Turkish "right-left" coalition government, announced the "partial integration" of northern Cyprus into Turkey.
The US, on the other hand, has been pushing the EEC to accept Turkey's entry, and along with Israel has offered to pass on any information to Ankara about the passage of the missiles from Russia to Cyprus. The US, Turkey and Israel have also announced joint military exercises in the east Mediterranean in November.
Cyprus has been divided for 23 years since a coup by right-wing Greek Cypriots organised by the then junta in Athens overthrew the Cypriot government of Archbishop Makarios and attempted to unite the island with Greece.
This was followed by a massive invasion by Turkey, which forced 200,000 Greek Cypriots from their homes, while tens of thousands of Turkish Cypriots fled in terror from the Greek coup to the protection of the Turkish army.
Greek Cypriots overthrew the local junta five days later, bringing back the legitimate government, followed by the collapse of the Greek junta itself the next day. But this did not lead to the withdrawal of Turkish troops. The US, in conflict with the Makarios regime, gave underhand support to both the coup and the invasion.
Negotiations ever since for a bi-zonal, bi-communal federation have achieved little, largely due to the control exercised by Turkey and its 35,000 troops over the Turkish Cypriot "state", which declared itself independent in 1983. This state has not been recognised by any government except Turkey.
The Greek Cypriot government in the south has largely been in favour of UN resolutions which call for withdrawal of foreign troops, the right to return of all refugees, security for both communities in an independent federal Cyprus.
The events of 1974 represented a defeat for extreme nationalism on the Greek Cypriot side. However, actions in recent years, under the right-wing Clerides government, have undermined this independent image.
In particular, the "common defence doctrine" enacted between Cyprus and Greece several years ago has made Cyprus part of the general Greek-Turkish rivalry. Southern Cyprus, in effect, has been turned into a new centre of the Greek defence system.
Twenty years ago, independence demonstrations were a sea of Cypriot flags; in demonstrations today against the Turkish occupation, such flags are smothered under the mass of blue and white Greek flags.
It is in this context that the SS-300s should be seen, as well as the total reliance on the EEC as the solution — based on the economic superiority of the Greek Cypriot economy.
Such a situation can only encourage the rejectionist line of Turkish Cypriot leader Denktash and of Ankara. It points in the direction of a formal division of the island between Greece and Turkey, a solution preferred by many western governments.
Furthermore, while Turkish Cypriots may find Denktash's regime and the massive number of Turkish colonists difficult to bear, their oppression under the Greek Cypriot regime in the 1960s and the coup of 1974 make many still apprehensive about the withdrawal of Turkish troops. The growing "Greekness" of the "independent" Cypriot state, and the emphasis on military measures such as the SS-300 purchase, make a break with the occupation regime far more unlikely.
Hence the importance of the declarations. In recent years, left activists on both sides have promoted the view that only "rapprochement" between the two communities at the grassroots level can offer any long-term solution, as only in this way can trust be restored and fear overcome. Moreover, emphasis needs to be put on disarmament, rather than military competition.
The hurdles are enormous, however. A peace concert in the UN zone this past summer attracted only several thousand people, due to the hysteria, including physical intimidation, against participants by nationalist forces on both sides.
The joint declaration by the trade unions points to potential for the working class to play a leading role in the construction of a united, multi-ethnic Cyprus, free from the competition between the Greek and Turkish Cypriot ruling classes, who are utterly dependent on their "mother countries" and on wheeling and dealing between the US, Russia and the EEC.