“Those who want to see racism and racists in Cyprus  should look at the massacres ”


President Ersin Tatar, in his statement on the 47th anniversary of the Muratağa-Atlılar and Sandallar massacres, stated once again that "the effective and de facto guarantorship of Motherland Turkey cannot be given up".


The written statement of President Tatar states:


“Following the fascist Greek coup d’état  of July 15, 1974 carried out by the Greek military junta and the EOKA terrorist organisation in Greece and Cyprus which was formed in order to facilitate the annexation of the island to Greece, motherland Turkey, using her guarantor rights, was compelled to carry out the peace operation on July 20, 1974. 


Whilst the peace operation was continuing, the Greek and Greek Cypriot military – attacked Turkish Cypriot villages which had not yet come under the protection of the Turkish army, and occupied them. Great atrocities were committed and innocent people were massacred simply because they were Turkish, due to this racist mentality.

The Muratağa-Atlılar and Sandallar massacres are one of the most important and most painful examples of acts of genocide committed against the Turkish Cypriot people. These massacres against our people are not the first, they are a continuation of the Bloody Christmas attacks launched on December 21, 1963 to destroy our people and to realize Enosis (Union of Cyprus with Greece).


Greek military units and members of EOKA, who attacked the villages of Muratağa, Atlılar and Sandallar on August 14, 1974, took the Turkish Cypriot defenceless unarmed villagers captive and then murdered and buried  them in massacre pits, committing the greatest brutality and the greatest crime against humanity.

In these three Mesaoria villages, 126 of our people were martyred in these massacres and most of them were women and children, the youngest being Selden Ali Faik who was just 16 days old,   to the oldest, Hüseyin Osman, who was 95 years old.


It is never possible to forget our children who were killed with their mothers, our primary school students who were buried in the massacre pit, and all our martyrs. Their only crime was to be Turkish, and according to them, Turks did not have the right to live in Cyprus.

It was only last year that we were able to bury our 14 children, seven of whom were identified and found during the excavations carried out by the Committee of Missing Persons in the village of Muratağa. And still mothers and fathers are crying. It is impossible to forget this great pain. Furthermore, although the identities of the perpetrators of these massacres are known, it is another crime against humanity that these murderers are protected and not prosecuted by the Greek Cypriot Administration, and those who talk about human rights remain a spectator.


My advice to those who try to portray us as 'racist' with unrealistic claims today, is to see who the real racists are in Cyprus by looking at these massacres.


As we fight for a fair, lasting and sustainable agreement, we must also consider and take lesson from the past. Our struggle is to ensure that our people are not subjected to genocide again and are not buried in massacre pits, and that they live in their own homeland under the roof of their own State, sovereign, free and fearless. Turkey's active and effective guarantee is the most important issue for the security, peace and continuation of our people's existence.  For this reason, we will never abandon the guarantee of Turkey.


On the 47th anniversary of these painful massacres, I once again offer my condolences to our people and the families of the martyrs, and I wish God's mercy on all our martyrs. May the souls of all our martyrs rest in peace."