Today is September 1, World Peace Day.
President Ersin Tatar issued a written message marking the day.
In his message, the President noted that the International Peace Day, which was adopted by the United Nations and is celebrated every year to end conflicts on the international arena and to promote global peace, was unfortunately being spent this year under the shadow of ongoing violence, war, and terrorist incidents on a global scale.
Tatar said that the Turkish Cypriot people, who have been subjected to the most violent of terrorism for decades and therefore know the value of the concept of peace, were today defending their identity, culture, and existence under their own state roof, despite the difficulties they have faced throughout history.
“They continue to fight to provide a future of peace and security for new generations” he stressed.
Tatar also added that the Peace Operation, which was launched on the morning of July 20, 1974 by motherland Türkiye, using the guarantee right arising from international agreements, was the day when the EOKA terrorism that lasted for decades came to an end and Turkish Cypriots gained their freedom.
“As the then Prime Minister of Türkiye, the late Bülent Ecevit, known as Karaoğlan, expressed on July 20, the Peace Operation brought peace and tranquillity not only to the Turks on the island, but also to the Greeks” the President noted.
“Our greatest goal in Cyprus, where peace has prevailed for nearly half a century, is for future generations to continue their lives in this environment of peace and security, and for the isolation and restrictions that are contrary to human rights and outdated to end against the Turkish Cypriot people” Tatar stressed.
“World Peace Day provides us with an opportunity to increase dialogue between the parties to the Cyprus problem. It will be our greatest responsibility to the future generations to uphold our new policy, which we have declared to the whole world with full unity of thought and action with the motherland Türkiye in Geneva, to recognize the inherent sovereign equality and equal international status of the Turkish Cypriot people and to establish a cooperation relationship between the two existing states on the island” President Tatar said.
He added that the Cyprus issue, which will reach a solution with the confirmation of the acquired rights, sovereign equality, and equal international status of the Turkish Cypriots, should be considered as a part of the efforts for peace in the region and the world.
“It should not be forgotten that humanity has experienced the destructive effects of war throughout history and has had to face its cruel consequences. However, these experiences remind us how savage and meaningless war is, while at the same time emphasizing the importance of peace. For this reason, peace is the ground that allows humanity to reach its highest potential. The Turkish Cypriots are a people who have understood the meaning of peace from their suffering” Tatar said.
“We will never forget what kind of struggles it took to live as a free people in peace and security” he also stressed.
“While stressing that it is possible to reach a just world where the strong does not oppress the weak, where children and innocent people are not lost in war, and where all the children of the world smile, I think it is useful to remind that tools such as diplomacy, dialogue, and education will be the most important force in building peace” President Tatar added.