In remembrance of Turkish Cypriot civillians who were massacred in Taşkent. . .
President Ersin Tatar attended the ceremony held at the Taşkent Martyrs' Cemetery: "We will never abandon the guarantee of Motherland Türkiye.”
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President Ersin Tatar underlined that the Turkish Cypriot people will never abandon the guarantee of Motherland Türkiye.
The President made the remarks in his address at the remembrance ceremony held at the Martyrs' Cemetery in Taşkent. He said 84 Turkish Cypriot males were taken from their homes from Taşkent and nearby villages in the Larnaca district, now in South Cyprus, on August 15, 1974, and massacred by Greek-Greek Cypriot forces and members of the EOKA terrorist organisation.
Explaining the “dire situation” being faced during that period by Turkish Cypriots across the island, President Tatar said: “Turkish Cypriot civilians and even our babies and children were being massacred. Like Taşkent, they were attacking village after village in different regions, watched by the UN. Our people were waiting desperately to be saved, and for Motherland Türkiye to come and put a stop to these atrocities.
“July 20, 1974, is the day when Turkish Cypriots were born again. The pain and suffering will never be forgotten. Turkish Cypriots paid a heavy price and made great sacrifices, and today we are living in our own State,” he said.
In reference to the Cyprus issue, the President said that based on the continuous failures of previous negotiation processes for a federal based settlement, which has always been rejected by the Greek Cypriot Side who refuses to share power and prosperity with the Turkish Cypriot People on the basis of equality, the “way to reaching sustainable peace and stability is for a settlement to be based on the sovereign equality of the Turkish Cypriot people”.
President Tatar underlined that the Turkish Cypriot People will “never abandon the guarantee of Motherland Türkiye”, and added: “for over a decade our people were being massacred and subjected to acts of genocide despite the existence of the guarantees whilst the UN watched”.
President Tatar expressed his deepest gratitude to the martyrs who sacrificed their lives for the homeland and wished the veterans long and healthy lives.
The ceremony concluded with a visit to the graves of the martyrs as prayers were recited.