By George Psyllides
TODAY, Sunday July 20, 2014 marks the 40th anniversary of the island’s division, the unsettling wail of the sirens in the early morning hours a stark reminder of the events of 1974 that brought about the current state of affairs.
Memorial services will be held across the government-controlled areas for those killed during the operation, dubbed Attila by Turkey.
In the Turkish-occupied north meanwhile, various celebrations will be held to mark the anniversary.
The celebrations will be attended by Turkish President Abdullah Gül, in north Cyprus for a two-day visit.
Turkish troops landed in Kyrenia early on Saturday July 20, 1974 while paratroopers were being dropped inland and its air force bombed targets across the island.
“From our east facing room (at the Ledra Palace Hotel in Nicosia) we watched as about 12 lumbering transport aircraft flew in sedate circles before the backcloth of the Kyrenia range and began dropping paratroopers on the central plain,” veteran war correspondent and military historian Colin Smith, who worked for the Observer at the time, said.
The invasion found Cyprus reeling in the aftermath of a coup that overthrew president Makarios on July 15.
It had been engineered by the Greek junta and executed by the National Guard, whose officers were mostly Greek, and the EOKA B paramilitary organisation, which wanted union with Greece.
Turkey claimed it had the right to invade or “intervene” under the Treaty of Guarantee it had signed along with Greece and Britain, though the article it cited also states that the sole aim of taking action is to re-establish the state of affairs.
Under the Treaty, the guarantor powers must also prohibit any activity aiming at either union with any other country or partition.
At the time of the invasion, Cyprus had been independent – on paper at least — for 14 years.
However, the power sharing agreement between Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots had already broken down three years after the declaration of independence.
The apparent reason was president Makarios’ proposals to change the constitution to make it more functional. The Turkish side disagreed and withdrew from the arrangement.
Inter-communal clashes broke out late in 1963 and many Turkish Cypriots withdrew into enclaves, which they defended with firearms.
In 1974, Turkey declared a ceasefire on August 16, after occupying one-third of the island, according to its plans.
On top of the dead and missing, between 160,000 and 200,000 Greek Cypriots and 50,000 to 60,000 Turkish Cypriots were displaced.
Cypriot photographer and cinematographer Doros Partasides recalls the drama of missing persons and the mixed feelings captured on people’s faces, “the joy of those whose relatives returned, and the overwhelming sorrow of those whose loved ones did not.
“We should not forget everything that happened, we should tell the story to the younger generations. At the same time we should also build a happy, peaceful future,” he said.
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