Residents from Poli Chrysochous and from the communities of Kato Pyrgos Tyllirias cluster, took part in a rally, on Saturday morning, in Pachyammos, calling for the crossing point at Kokkina to open, facilitating the region’s connection with other parts of the island and with the capital, Nicosia.
Participants send a message, ahead of a meeting on Monday, between the President of Cyprus and the Turkish Cypriot leader, who are set to discuss the opening of more crossing points, saying that “there is no more tolerance for their isolation.”
The Mayor of Poli Chrysochous, Yiotis Papachristofi, said that their struggle will continue, adding that “others cannot be facilitated by crossing points” while life for the residents in the area is becoming more difficult.
Papachristofi also said that their isolation has existed “for more than 60 years” and expressed hope that both sides in Cyprus side show support the region. In case the Kokkina crossing point opens, the journey to Nicosia will be reduced by half an hour, he concluded.
For his part, the President of the Kato Pyrgos Tyllirias Communities cluster, Nicos Kleanthous, stated that this is a “unique and last opportunity”, which, together with the other proposed crossing points, should be used by the Greek Cypriot side and put high on the priorities of the requests that will be submitted.
If it is not exploited at the moment, it is difficult for such an opportunity to arise again, he added, referring to Monday’s meeting between Cyprus President, Nikos Christodoulides, and Turkish Cypriot leader, Ersin Tatar, to discuss the issue of the crossing points. For us, he continued, the opening of Kokkina is a matter of the region’s survival since the area is “in danger of extinction.”
The President of the Cyprus Green Party, Giorgos Perdikis, also attended the rally, along with residents of Poli Chrysochous and the outlying village of Pyrgos Tyllirias.
Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when Turkey invaded and occupied its northern third. Repeated rounds of UN-led peace talks have so far failed to yield results. The latest round of negotiations, in July 2017 at the Swiss resort of Crans-Montana ended inconclusively.
