Turkish Cypriot NGO’s: Meeting with Prime Minister Tsipras was a positive step; Turkish officials should also meet with Cypriot NGO’s
Turkish Cypriot daily Yeni Duzen newspaper (04.02.15) reports that representatives of Turkish Cypriot civilian organizations evaluated their recent meeting with the Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras during the latter’s recent visit to Cyprus. They said that Prime Minister Tsipras’ meeting with Turkish Cypriots was something positive and had a symbolic meaning. They went on expressing their expectation as regards similar meetings with officials from Turkey when these officials visit the island.
Dogus Derya, who participated in the meeting on behalf of the Feminist Atelier (FEMA) said that first of all they held a sincere and warm meeting and pointed out that this was the first meeting of a Greek Prime Minister with Turkish Cypriot NGO representatives, something which is an indication of the will of the Greek Prime Minister for a federal solution. She said that they all had the chance to talk for about two minutes each and expressed the belief that this was a “good step for the Turkish-Greek peace”.
Okan Dagli, who represented the Famagusta Initiative at the meeting, said that this was something done for the first time and pointed out that never before a Greek Prime Minister had met with NGO’s. He noted that this was a symbolic meeting and that Prime Minister Tsipras talked only for about five minutes during the 40-50 minute-meeting. Dagli said that he invited Tsipras to Famagusta and Tsipras asked him whether Turks and Greeks live together in Famagusta. “When I told him that we continued living there after our Greek neighbors left, he was surprised. I think he had a different concept for Famagusta”, he argued describing their meeting as “very positive” and wished for the officials from Turkey to meet with NGO’s.
Niyazi Kizilyurek, representative of the Federal Cyprus Initiative, said that lessons should be learned from this meeting adding that NGO’s should be active in the quest for a solution in Cyprus. “After this gesture by Tsipras”, he added, “the administrators of Turkey should undertake similar initiatives”.
Meltem Onurkan Samani, representative of the Historical Dialogue and Research Association, saidthat all the Turkish and Greek leaders pay their first visit abroad to Cyprus, but the difference in this case was the fact that Prime Minister Tsipras met with bi-communal NGO’s. She noted that even foreigners want to listen to NGO’s, but the so-called embassy of Turkey keeps a distance from such meetings.