December 1963 - Kanlı Noel / Bloody Christmas / Οι Φασαρίες / the Troubles

Today is the anniversary of 'Bloody Christmas' which started in 63 and saw the displacement of hundreds of TsC into enclaves as well as the first partition of our island. From December to August, the recorded death toll was 364 Turkish Cypriots and 174 Greek Cypriots. Approximately 25,000 TsC from 104 villages, amounting to a quarter of the TsC population, fled their villages and were displaced into enclaves (and some, displaced to the UK). Many TsC houses and cultural buildings left behind were ransacked or completely destroyed. Around 1,200 Armenian Cypriots and 500 GsC were also displaced. This also marked the beginning of 11 years of TsC refugees living in tents and enclaves under heavy embargoes.

Very brief background to contextualise the violence;

• 1900: British ceded Cyprus from the Ottoman Empire. Now a Crown colony, Cyprus was subjected to ruthless 'divide and rule' policy, with the aim of dividing the Greek-speaking and Turkish-speaking population.

• 1950s: EOKA was formed, with the demand of ENOSIS, uniting Cyprus to Greece. This stance excluded the TsC community. In response, VOLKAN was formed, demanding the unification of Cyprus with Turkey. VOLKAN was later replaced by TMT, who demanded TAKSIM (partition)

The British (and ofc Greece and Turkey) played the two organizations against each other, by hiring TMT members and even local TsC to form the auxiliary cops who would arrest EOKA members. They would often approach poor TsC, who needed employment.

• 1958: a series of massacres were carried out by both organizations against the other community. At the same time, both organizations were also attacking left-wingers.

This atmosphere of distrust allowed the British to introduce guarantor powers, Greece, Turkey and themselves. This is why we still have British Bases. This contextualisation is necessary when discussing 74 too, for the purposes of healing our communities.

Many of us on this sub carry the generational trauma of these events, the same way many of us carry the weight of 74, making it incredibly difficult for us to thrive emotionally, physically, financially. Fortunately, with a father displaced in 63 and mother in 74, I grew up with stories where GsC protected the wounded TsC and vice versa, and Cypriot women joining together to find their families or taking care of their orange and olive trees. Solidarity between victims of geopolitical puppeteering is the Cypriot way.