THE FAMILY of a National Guard soldier killed in 1974 has been vindicated after fighting for 33 years to clear his name of ‘treason’. The authorities finally owned up to getting it wrong after an investigation revealed the recruit had been killed by those he was accused of conspiring with.
Sotiris Constantinou was one of 22 commandos killed on July 15, 1974, the day of the Greek-inspired coup against the Makarios government, which opened the door for the subsequent Turkish invasion and occupation of northern Cyprus. The 22 commandos were accused of supporting the coup and attacking the Presidential Palace. All the commandos were young conscripts, killed during their military service. None were given state service burials or afforded high-profile memorial services as was the practice for others who fell during the turbulent summer months of 1974. In their death, the 22 conscripts became some of the main scapegoats for the coup, despite the fact that many former coupists continued to play key roles in the country’s establishment after 1974.
Now, an investigation by the Defence Ministry has shed new light on the role of at least one of those commandos.
The family of Constantinou has always claimed his innocence, yet their pleas fell on deaf ears for over three decades. Since 1974, the soldier’s oldest brother, Christakis Adamou Constantinou, insisted that his brother had been shot in the back after seeing his body in the Nicosia general hospital on the day of his death. He also argued that Constantinou was a marked man in the army because he came from a left-wing background. At the time, Constantinou suffered a lot of abuse in the army because his oldest brother was a goalkeeper for Omonia football club, while his two other brothers also played for teams with left-wing political ties. The family have consistently referred to a number of eyewitnesses who could back up that claim.
Just days before the July coup, Constantinou was enjoying a 10-day leave, awarded for his good work on an army construction site. On July 14, 1974, he got a call from his superior officers to report back to base as they planned on having a ‘military exercise’ the following day. The next day, his brother Christakis was informed of Sotiris’ death by a friend at the hospital. The only time the family heard from the authorities on the matter was in 1977, when the Finance Ministry told the family they were not entitled to certain benefits because their son had participated in the coup.
When Archbishop Chrysostomos conducted a memorial service for the 22 commandos earlier this year, the negative public reaction it created convinced the family to continue the fight to clear Constantinou’s name. In August, they sent a letter to the Defence Ministry requesting an investigation. The paper, Phileleftheros, championed their cause, highlighting the plight of the family on their front pages.
Defence Minister Christodoulos Pashardis heard the call and ordered an investigation into Constantinou’s death, the first of its kind. The conclusions of the report were damming. Not only did Constantinou not participate in the coup, he was likely killed for his refusal to do so.
After digging up Constantinou’s body, investigators concluded that he had been shot and stabbed in the back. They found a bullet wound on the right shoulder and a knife wound on the left. The wound appeared to have been created by a bayonet, the type used by the commando unit in 1974.
A Defence Ministry source told the Cyprus Mail that he didn’t expect the report to be made public, adding that the Defence Minister had already gathered the family to inform them of its contents.
Reports suggest that after 33 years, the family will now hold a proper funeral service for the slain soldier this Saturday.
