Cyprus commemorated today all those killed defending the Republic, during the 1974 military coup, on July 15, against the democratically elected President of Cyprus. The coup, engineered by the Greek military junta, then ruling Greece, was followed by the Turkish invasion five days later, which resulted in the occupation of Cyprus' northern third.
The Cypriot political, religious and state leadership attended the annual commemoration ceremony, in the presence of President Demetris Christofias.
''This day causes pain and indignation. Today we pay tribute to those who fought and fell defending the Republic to counter the fascist coup of the junta and EOAK B','' the President said in statements after the ceremony.
Noting that the coup was the pretext for Turkey to invade Cyprus on the grounds of restoring constitutional order, the President recalled that ''very soon Makarios (the democratically elected President of Cyprus) returned to Cyprus, but for thirty five years now Turkey has been implementing old plans locked in drawers since the 1950s.''
The President said some so-called patriots have led the country to partition, with Turkey controlling its northern part.
''Ever since we are striving to restore the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of Cyprus,'' President Christofias said, recalling that ''Makarios took a courageous decision, to see the Republic of Cyprus evolve from a unitary state to a federal one, with the basic goal to end the occupation and restore the human rights of all Cypriots,'' he said.
In 1977 the then Cyprus President Archbishop Makarios and Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktash signed the High Level Agreement envisaging ''an independent non-aligned, bi-communal federal republic''.
President Christofias added that he has been consistently working to implement that decision but Turkish positions raise obstacles to this effect.
''We will not bow down. Through the talks which we conduct, I reiterate, we defend principles and we strive to restore the rights of Cyprus as a state, and of the Cypriots, Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots, as citizens of the Republic of Cyprus'', he concluded.
President Christofias and Turkish Cypriot leader began direct negotiations under the auspices of the UN in September 2008 and have had 36 meetings so far, with the aim of reaching an agreed settlement to the Cyprus problem.
