Is it time to forget ‘Do not forget’ slogan?

By Christos P. Panayiotides

The slogan “Do not forget” emblazoned over a map of Cyprus dripping blood was created by the well-known communication consultant Nicos Demou, in the course of the second phase of the Turkish invasion in August 1974.

I am of the opinion that the image and the slogan associated with it have not served any real purpose. Quite the contrary, they have damaged the national cause. They have not served any real purpose because it is naïve to argue that anyone who experienced the horror of that war and the pain that was inflicted on the people of Cyprus, would ever forget that experience. The anguish and the despair caused during those agonising days will never be forgotten, nor will the fact that those ugly events were initiated by a group of insane people who launched an insane coup d’etat.

The truth is that the slogan has had – and probably continues to have – a negative impact in two ways. The first and most important one is that the slogan projects a goal that can easily be attained, thus allowing complacency. The message is clear: “You do not have to do anything beyond ensuring that you do not forget.

By doing this, your obligation to discharge a national duty is exhausted.”

Ensuring that the wounds do not heal is the other problem. The dripping blood visually ensures that the wounds remain open for a very long time. As I have said on numerous occasions, I have the impression that many of our compatriots, while strongly in favour of the reunification of Cyprus, hesitate to attempt it because they are afraid. This fear is systematically cultivated by most mass media and by all the political parties of Cyprus, without exception. They consistently remind us what a bad country Turkey is and how much of a “sultan” its leader is.

There is no doubt that our neighbouring country is confronted by problems: those associated with the democratisation of its society; of modernising its economy; of repositioning itself in the world as well as in the Eastern Mediterranean. But equally indisputable is the fact that Turkey is a large country with notable potential and capabilities, a country that is located in a region of great strategic importance.

The critical question for the Greek people is whether the basic goal of Turkey is to enslave Greece and Cyprus and to force Greeks to become subservient objects of a new Ottoman empire or whether it is willing to compromise and to cooperate with its neighbours. Most Greek Cypriots fear that the former is the correct response to the question.

I do not have a basis on which I can argue that these fears are foolish and unjustified. What is, however, clear in my mind is that we have not consistently and honestly sought to formulate and secure the framework that would have promoted the desired level of cooperation between the two communities. In my opinion, this failure was partly caused by the significant negative role the slogan “Do not forget” has played, indiscriminately placing all Turkish Cypriots and all their leaders in the same basket. There is little doubt that extremist elements do exist within the Turkish Cypriot community, as they do within the Greek Cypriot community, but it is equally certain that there are many serious and responsible Turkish Cypriots who are not at all happy with the current situation in northern Cyprus.

These are the people that the Greek Cypriot leadership must approach, with genuine interest and a commitment to a constructive approach, in contrast to the prevailing confrontational mentality, which rests on the belief that every gain of the Turkish Cypriots is by definition a loss for the Greek Cypriots and vice-versa.

The time for formulating and implementing a new approach in resolving the Cyprus problem is running out.

• Christos Panayiotides is a regular columnist for the Sunday Mail and Alithia