It is apparent from the author's report that he/she knows absolutely nothing about the history of Cyprus. Until 1960, Cyprus was a British Protectorate and had been for more than 100 years. Eoka created chaos - fighting and killing British troops until 1960. Thereafter it was jointly governed by the Greek speaking and Turkish speaking peoples. In 1974 the Turkish forces from the Turkish mainland went to the aid of the Turkish speaking population to prevent further genocide being conducted by the Greek speaking peoples at the instigation of Eoka 2 - who were under the influence of the Greek mainland generals who at that time were busy ousting the Greek King and all the Greek Royal Family. It was decided that the Turkish speaking peoples would live in the North of the island and the Greek speaking peoples in the South of the Island. There is a 'buffer' zone between the two area - NEITHER ZONE IS PATROLLED BY MILITARY FROM EITHER THE NORTH OR THE SOUTH BUT BY PERSONNEL FROM THE UNITED NATIONS. The UN personnel do not patrol in the sense that they 'keep the peace'. Bree Freeman's report gives the impression that the area is similar to that pertaining when the Berlin Wall was in existance. There was a referendum in 2004, held in the North and the South on the same day to determine whether both peoples should join the EU - the North voted affimatively, the South voted against. Since September this year there have been ongoing talks between the Prime Ministers of both North and SouthCyprus to find a way forward such that both peoples become self-governing but that the Turkish speaking peoples of Cyprus can be accepted by the rest of the EU and the world that they legitimately live (and have legitimately lived for hundreds of years) on the island of Cyprus. Please, be very careful what you write - your one sided and inept report could do much harm to the ongoing talks and deliberations. There is no bar to anyone from the North visiting the South, similarly vice versa. One more point, until 1974 Turkish speaking and Greek speaking peoples lived all over the island - villages were 'mixed' - it was only after the genocide of 1974 (when incidentally they tried to murder Archbishop Makarios) that it became apparent that for the time being it was necessary to prevent further troubles that the two peoples should live separately. There are many areas in the South which once were owned by Turkish people - Larnaca airport being but one. I might add that I am neither Turkish nor Cypriot but British.

I have spent an extensive amount of time studying this conflict at home and in Cyprus itself. This past summer I was able to speak with the incumbent TRNC president, Mehmet Ali Talat, as well as the former president of the south, Glafkos Clerides. I’m fully aware of the history of this island and the MANY events on both sides that have led up to the current situation today.

Although EOKA, driven by the enosis movement, was a nationalist organization that was the cause of many problems in Cyprus there are other variables that have played a part in creating the current stalemate. Takism, in response to enosis, should also be mentioned in this case which did much more in creating a division between the two communities than bringing them together. However, My objective in this post was not to point fingers and place historical blame on those that I believed caused this problem, but to focus more on its future and the constructive measures currently taking place.

In describing the economic disparity of the two communities my goal was not to insult the Turkish Cypriot people but to point out the unfair conditions in which they live. The ‘first class’ restaurants and hotels that you speak of are almost entirely enjoyed by wealthy European vacationers and not the Turkish Cypriots themselves. Many vacationers carelessly play on the beautiful beaches of Kyrenia now lined with hotels and know nothing about the massacre that took place there just decades before. Many Turkish Cypriots have been welcoming of these tourists as it is one of their few sources of income. Villages that are not occupied by tourists is where you see this true disparity. I apologize if I came across insulting in any way but these conditions aren’t being spoken about enough. I have met with many NGO’s working in the north and south and can assure you that there are many problems that are not openly spoken about for fear of discouraging wealthy vacationers of coming to spend their money. The island has few resources and is largely dependent on income from tourism.

There are several crossing points in Nicosia, none of which are the same. There are however, many armed soldiers in this area in addition to the UN presence-- especially those from Turkey. This is extremely important to note as the presence of Turkish soldiers in Cyprus is one of the many topics being discussed in the negotiations and a very controversial issue.

What I’m trying to point out is that the talks that are happening now are positive and Talat has gone far beyond his predecessor in trying to create a solution. Christoifias, whose predecessor Papadopoulos refused to meet with the TRNC president and advocated for the rejection of the 2004 referendum by the south, has showed a willingness to compromise that hasn’t been seen for some time.

The reality is, the TRNC is currently unrecognized by anyone other than Turkey. For the island to unite and have the whole territory in the EU would raise the standard of living for Turkish Cypriots significantly. Right now the isolation of the TRNC is just increasing its dependency on Turkey, there is little they can do to be self sustained when they cannot even trade with any other country. There is talk of the island remaining bizonal and bicommunal and the power sharing between Greek and Turkish Cypriots is among topics being negotiated. I am fully aware that the two ethnic groups, Greeks and Turks, have long lived in peace in this island and my point of this article was to give hope that they can again. I think the EU can play a positive role in this process as they are strong advocates of human rights which is extremely important for the Turkish community given their historical place in this conflict. Though history is tremendously important when discussing this conflict, looking forward and acknowledging the progress being made is key to a solution.