Press Releases

Although half a century has passed, the grief is profound and the pain is indescribable every time our memory recalls the tragic events of 1974; the Turkish invasion, the unwavering milestone for every Cypriot citizen, who, 50 years later, still bears the inflicted trauma of the unspeakable tragedy of the Turkish invasion and the ongoing occupation.

From this historic place, located in close proximity to the barbed wires of separation, I would like to reiterate that, despite the challenges, hardships and difficulties we face, we do not compromise with the occupation. The current state of affairs cannot be the future of our country. We have no choice but to continue our efforts to overturn the fait accompli, to reunify our country. Therefore, we are working with deeds, not words to establish the prospects for the resumption of substantive negotiations for a solution to the Cyprus problem, always on the basis of the agreed framework and with European principles and values as the foundation. We strongly support the United Nations Secretary-General’s endeavours as well as his personal envoy’s. Moreover, it is our own persistent efforts which have launched this new prospect. June is a crucial month, taking into consideration the preparation of the relevant report by the personal envoy. We aspire for a positive outcome. We are aware of the current situation, particularly from some countries which express great interest in the resumption of talks, and we are hopeful that June will be a month of a positive outcome.

The photographs exhibited here as well as the short film “Operation Museum”, which the Director of the Press and Information Office (PIO) of the Republic of Cyprus, Ms Aliki Stylianou, has presented, comprise the mosaic of our collective memory of a period which remains deeply engraved in our memory. They are concrete reminders of a significant era, recording the suffering on the faces of hundreds, thousands of people in the most vivid way. These people are not strangers. A number of them are still with us. They are our parents, our grandparents, our relatives, our neighbours. They are those who rose from the ashes with unassailable vigour, iron will and unshakable faith. They have rebuilt their lives, thanks to their hard work and patriotism, without forgetting their roots. On behalf of the State, I express my sincere gratitude to all of them.  

The short film entitled “Operation Museum” constitutes a remarkable narrative of the tremendous effort to rescue the exhibits of the Cyprus Museum during the Turkish invasion of 1974. It is a tribute to the former Director of the Department of Antiquities and the Cyprus Museum, the late Vassos Karageorghis, as well as to the Museum staff for their efforts to rescue the cultural wealth of our country.

Among the objectives of the film is to raise awareness not only among the Cypriot people but also for everyone, especially the younger generation which did not experience these events, bringing to light unseen aspects of our country’s history, still unknown.

I would like to congratulate the Director of the PIO and the PIO staff for organising this event, as well as for their hard work for the events for the commemoration of our 20^th anniversary of our accession to the European Union (EU) and the 50^th anniversary of the Turkish invasion. The PIO holds a wealth of information, which we must utilise, and we need to support its effort. I would also like to thank the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Deputy Ministry of Culture, the political heads and the staff for their assistance in this effort, as well as all those who worked for this event. 

Thank you.

(GS)