SOME years ago, a Turkish Cypriot journalist said that if a solution to the Cyprus problem ever came to be, it would emerge from the streets of northern Nicosia.
For many who thought they knew the Turkish Cypriot people, the idea that these modest and easy-going people would take to the streets in an attempt to bring down their leadership was regarded as something of a joke.
But when tens of thousands repeatedly filled Inonu Square in central north Nicosia in the winter of 2002-2003 calling for the resignations of their ‘government’ and ‘president’, those who had always thought the Turkish Cypriots would forever passively take whatever was thrown at them fell silent.
Viewed from outside the enclave, observers may have wondered why a people – who the world had previously seen demanding partition and recognition of their breakaway state – were now calling for reunification with the Greek Cypriot majority in the south.
As Peace and Democracy Movement (BDH) leader Mustafa Akinci points out, the change did not happen overnight, and came as a result of a number of factors.
“It’s not just that they want to have more euros in their pockets, as many have said. While no one can underestimate economics and the wishes of people to have a better standard of living, the Turkish Cypriots simply want to see a clear future,” he says
Akinci believes the lack of certainty and a host of inconveniences were instrumental in convincing people that reunification was the only viable option for them.
“No one can live in such circumstances forever,” he says, adding, “You live on a piece of land, which they tell you is yours, but according to international law it is not. You don’t have direct connections with the outside world. Everything – your communication, your transportation – is through Turkey.
“You can’t use your passport anywhere but in Turkey. If you want to go beyond Turkey, you have to use a Turkish passport, and when you are abroad and you are asked your address, people get confused when you tell them your address is Mersin 10, Turkey.”
Akinci stresses that the Turkish Cypriots’ desire for reunification should not be interpreted as a desire for a change of rulers – from Turks to Greeks – but as a craving for more control over their lives.
“We want to be masters of our own house, and are aware that unless we achieve a solution, we will not govern ourselves; we will always be governed by Turkey,” he says, adding that, as things stand, all major administrative organs are controlled by Ankara.
“Our police are under Turkish military command; the head of civil defence is appointed by Ankara; the governor of the central bank is appointed by Ankara; the majority of the board of the Turkish Cypriot airline are also appointed by Ankara. In all key aspects of society, there is Turkish control,” he explains.
Akinci believes that resentment, borne from this perceived lack of independence, has in recent times been increasingly expressed as opposition to Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktash.
“Our reaction to Denktash is to see him as the symbol of all these things,” he says, adding, “I believe those massive demonstrations were a sign that they [the Turkish Cypriots] wanted change, wanted a solution, and wanted to see accession to the European Union. And the only way to do that was via acceptance of the Annan plan. And the Annan plan, of course, envisages a united Cyprus”.
Akinci does not believe it was only events in Cyprus that sparked mass demonstrations and calls for change, but also derived from signs from Turkey that Turkish foreign policy in Cyprus might be under review.
“What has happened in Cyprus has come as a result of what happened in Turkey. It is true that things started to change with the Erdogan government. They were able to tell Denktash and say ‘listen, this is what Turkey wants’,” Akinci believes.
Although he is emphatic that the Turkish Cypriot movement for change did not spring only from economic woes and aspirations, Akinci does believe that the economic collapse of 2000 cause great anger and resentment among Turkish Cypriots.
“A lot of people lost a lot of money, and to see the other side joining the EU, while here young people are emigrating en masse made people think”.
Greater awareness of the issues and choices available to the Turkish Cypriots is also a factor that has been greatly aided by “the emergence of private radio and TV stations in the mid-90s”.
But ultimately, says Akinci, it was the opening of crossing points in the Green Line in April last year that made people realise that things could not continue as they had done before.
