BY TUFAN TURENC
HURRIYET- As a nation, we have neither an ideal concerning the Cyprus issue, nor goals to make that ideal a reality. However, the Greek Cypriots do. Their ideal is to turn Cyprus wholesale into a Greek island. That’s why the island is now about to slip through our fingers. We must see that it’s getting harder and harder for us to protect our rights on Cyprus. The Greek Cypriots are completely unified towards their goals, but we’re split in two. After the results of last weekend’s elections in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) were announced, our inability to improve Cyprus even a little bit became even more clear. All the money sent to the island has been squandered. In the last 30 years, not a single Turkish businessman went to the island to invest there. Those who governed Cyprus took care of themselves first and couldn’t stop looting. Today the number of Turkish Cypriots living in Britain and Australia is higher than those still on the island. Some 100,000 Turkish Cypriots got passports, identity cards and birth certificates from the south. We should all accept that a national issue can’t be handled this way.
Let’s examine the current situation. The results of last weekend’s elections make clear the need for national consensus, domestic peace and action in unity and solidarity. If the current confusion resists solution, we’ll all see that Cyprus slipped through our fingers. The four parties with seats in Parliament should come together in line with the goals mentioned above. It’s important to present a unified front to the Greek Cypriots. Obviously Ankara’s responsibility rose after these elections. Now the Justice and Development Party (AKP) can’t shrink from playing a determining and guiding role. Can a government which appoints imams as administrators to the Society for the Protection of Children fulfill such a duty? Actually one cannot help but doubt it.