‘Every corner of this island will be Europe’

Every corner of Cyprus “will be Europe”, opposition candidate at October’s Turkish Cypriot leadership election Tufan Erhurman said at a campaign rally at Kyrenia port on Thursday night.

“I swear and I promise, there will be no European south or Middle Eastern north on this island. Every corner of this island will be Europe. All young people, regardless of where they were born, will live together in a life worthy of human dignity. We do not accept inequality,” he said.

Around a thousand people descended on the Kyrenia port to attend the rally, with Erhurman beginning his speech by saying that “Kyrenia is even more beautiful tonight”.

“We will neither lose nor bow down. We have been saying this ever since we set out. They have tried to divide us and rule us through division. We know these games. This is not the first time we have seen them. They will try to divide us, but we will unite, relentlessly. We will win together. We are on the march, winning hearts and minds. The day we will govern this country is very near,” he said.

He then said that October 20, the day after the election, will be a “day of change”, before directly addressing President Nikos Christodoulides.

“From here, we call on Greek Cypriot leader Nikos Christodoulides. If he is sincere about a solution, our political equality will be accepted before we even sit down, and a timetable will be set. If they abandon the negotiating table again, we will not return to the current status quo,” he said.

“The will of the Turkish Cypriot people for a solution will be on the table, and a solution will come. If Christodoulides is sincere, then he must be ready.”

He stressed that the Turkish Cypriot community is “one of two equal founding partners” of the Republic of Cyprus, and that once a solution is found to the Cyprus problem, the Turkish Cypriot people will be partners in a bizonal, bicommunal federation with two equal constituent states based on political equality.

“Whatever comes out of this beautiful island, we are partners. We are not among the crowd which says that Famagusta, Nicosia, and Kyrenia are enough for us. Paphos, Limassol, and Nicosia are also ours,” he said.

He then turned his attention to the economic struggles experienced by the north in recent years, with rising prices on goods hitting local consumers, and also driving Greek Cypriot customers away from Turkish Cypriot businesses.

“Two or three years ago, supermarkets, dentists, hairdressers and barbershops in this country were filled with Greek Cypriot customers. Somehow, now a euro is worth 48TL, and yet the south is cheaper than the north. Greek Cypriots stopped coming and Turkish Cypriots cannot cross to the south,” he said.

He added, “those who cross to the south can buy meat for their children, and those who cannot cross cannot”.

Then, he spoke of how a solution to the Cyprus problem would allow children of “mixed marriages”, those who have one parent who is a Turkish Cypriot and one who is from abroad, typically Turkey, to become citizens of an internationally recognised federal Cyprus, and become equals to Greek Cypriots.

“No one will be able to tell my children that they came through an illegal port just because their parents were born in Turkey. All the children of this country will live freely, happily, and in prosperity throughout this island. We will ensure that our children do not migrate, and that those who do migrate return. We will make this country worthy of human dignity,” he said.

As his speech drew to a close, he turned his attention to incumbent Turkish Cypriot leader Ersin Tatar’s five years in office, and offered his opponent harsh criticism.

“Five whole years have passed. During this period, there have been no negotiations and no confidence-building measures. The problems of our children born from mixed marriages have not been discussed, and not a single crossing point was opened,” he said.

“Education has been carried out in portacabins, the economy has shifted south, and drugs and arms trafficking have increased … The Immovable Property Commission has been relegated in stature. The south opened court cases over property, and our economy has been shaken.

“We have been sent 10 or 15 years backwards in these five wasted years. No one will steal another five years from our children’s lives. We are now on our way to win.”