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[_] We demand the union with Greece [_] We are against the union of Cyprus with Greece | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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An unofficial referendum on enosis (reunification) with Greece was held in British Cyprus between 15 and 22 January 1950. The vote was not sanctioned by the British authorities. [1] Only Greek Cypriots voted, [2] and the proposal was approved by 95.71% of those taking part; the result was never implemented. [1]
On 12 December 1949 Archbishop Makarios II had called on the British authorities to hold a referendum on the future of the island. [1] After they refused, the Church Council and the Enosis organisation organised a referendum. [1] Signature books were provided in churches between 15 and 22 January 1950. [1] The books had two columns, entitled "We demand union with Greece" and "We are against the union of Cyprus with Greece". [1]
| Choice | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| For | 215,108 | 95.71 | |
| Against | 9,639 | 4.29 | |
| Total | 224,747 | 100.00 | |
| Source: Direct Democracy | |||
After the referendum, the Church of Cyprus publicly admonished those who had voted against enosis. In the latter years of British rule in Cyprus, the Church sought to silence dissenting opinion among Greek Cypriots, sometimes by violent means. [3]
In February 2017 the Cypriot parliament voted in favour of commemorating the referendum in schools every year. The decision was received negatively by Turkish Cypriot politicians, causing talks between Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades and the Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akıncı to be halted. [2]
Cyprus, officially the Republic of Cyprus, is an island country located in the eastern Mediterranean Sea, south of the Anatolian Peninsula and west of the Levant. It is geographically in Western Asia, but its cultural ties and geopolitics are overwhelmingly Southeastern European. Cyprus is the third-largest and third-most populous island in the Mediterranean. It is located north of Egypt, east of Greece, south of Turkey, and west of Lebanon and Syria. Its capital and largest city is Nicosia. The northeast portion of the island is de facto governed by the self-declared Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.
The Republic of Cyprus is a unitary presidential representative republic, whereby the President of Cyprus is both head of state and head of government. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the parliament. The Judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislature.
Human habitation of Cyprus dates back to the Paleolithic era. Cyprus's geographic position has caused Cyprus to be influenced by differing Eastern Mediterranean civilisations over the millennia.
The Cyprus problem, also known as the Cyprus conflict, Cyprus issue, Cyprus dispute, or Cyprus question, is an ongoing dispute between the leadership of the Greek Cypriot community in the southern portion of Cyprus, and that of the Turkish Cypriot community, situated in the north.
The Progressive Party of Working People is a Marxist–Leninist communist party in Cyprus.
Makarios III was a Greek Cypriot archbishop, primate, statesman and politician, who served as the first President of Cyprus between 1960 and 1977. He was also the autocephalous of the Church of Cyprus from 1950 to 1977.
Enosis is the movement of various Greek communities that live outside Greece for incorporation of the regions that they inhabit into the Greek state. The idea is related to the Megali Idea, an irredentist concept of a Greek state that dominated Greek politics following the creation of modern Greece in 1830. The Megali Idea called for the annexation of all ethnic Greek lands, parts of which had participated in the Greek War of Independence in the 1820s but were unsuccessful and so remained under foreign rule.
The EDEK Socialist Party is a Greek Cypriot, social-democratic political party in Cyprus.
The Ethniki Organosis Kyprion Agoniston was a Greek Cypriot nationalist guerilla organization that fought a campaign for the end of British rule in Cyprus, and for eventual union with Greece.
A referendum on the Annan Plan was held in the Republic of Cyprus and the unrecognized Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus on 24 April 2004. The two communities were asked whether they approved of the fifth revision of the United Nations proposal for reuniting the island, which had been divided since 1974. While it was approved by 65% of Turkish Cypriots, it was rejected by 76% of Greek Cypriots. Turnout for the referendum was high at 89% among Greek Cypriots and 87% among Turkish Cypriots, which was taken as indicative of great interest in the issue on the part of the electorates.
The Annan Plan, also known as the Cyprus reunification plan, was a United Nations proposal to resolve the Cyprus dispute. The different parts of the proposal were based on the argumentation put forward by each party in meetings held under the auspices of the UN. The proposal was to restructure the Republic of Cyprus to become the "United Republic of Cyprus", a federation of two states. It was revised a number of times before it was put to the people of Cyprus in a 2004 referendum, and was supported by 65% of Turkish Cypriots, but only 24% of Greek Cypriots.
Georgios Grivas, also known by his nickname Digenis, was the Cypriot founder and leader of the Greek and Greek Cypriot paramilitary organisations Organization X (1942–1949), EOKA (1955–1959) and EOKA B (1971–1974).
At the national level, the Republic of Cyprus holds elections for its head of state, the President of Cyprus, and for its legislature, the House of Representatives.
Cyprus was part of the British Empire, under military occupation from 1914 to 1925, and a Crown colony from 1925 to 1960. Cyprus became an independent nation in 1960.
Taksim is a Turkish nationalist and secessionist movement of Turkish Cypriots advocating for the independence and recognition of the Turkish Republic of Cyprus under a two-state solution. It was the primary ideology of supporters of the 1974 invasion, with the concept being articulated as early as 1957 by Vice President Fazıl Küçük.
The Turkish invasion of Cyprus began on 20 July 1974 and progressed in two phases over the following month. Taking place upon a background of intercommunal violence between Greek and Turkish Cypriots, and in response to a Greek junta-sponsored Cypriot coup d'état five days earlier, it led to the Turkish capture and occupation of the northern part of the island.
Several distinct periods of Cypriot intercommunal violence involving the two main ethnic communities, Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots, marked mid-20th century Cyprus. These included the Cyprus Emergency of 1955–59 during British rule, the post-independence Cyprus crisis of 1963–64, and the Cyprus crisis of 1967. Hostilities culminated in the 1974 de facto division of the island along the Green Line following the Turkish invasion of Cyprus. The region has been relatively peaceful since then, but the Cyprus dispute has continued, with various attempts to solve it diplomatically having been generally unsuccessful.
Greek Cypriot nationalism, also known as Cypriot Hellenism, is a form of ethnic nationalism emphasising the Greekness of the Cypriot nation. It is not the same as Greek nationalism, the main goal of which is the integration of Cyprus into Greece—a process known as enosis. Having abandoned the idea of enosis, Greek Cypriot nationalists now aim to establish a Greek Cypriot-controlled state with close relations to Greece, which they see as their "motherland". Variants of Greek Cypriot nationalism have been espoused across Cyprus' political spectrum by the centre-left Movement for Social Democracy, the centre-right Democratic Party and Democratic Rally, and the right-wing New Horizons, as well as the Church of Cyprus.
The 1931 Cyprus revolt or October Events was a revolt against British colonial rule that took place in Cyprus, then a British crown colony, between 21 October and early November 1931. The revolt was spearheaded by Greek Cypriot nationalists who advocated the Enosis (Union) of the island with Greece. The defeat of the rebels led to a period of autocratic British rule known as "Palmerocracy" (Παλμεροκρατία), that would last until the beginning of World War II.
Turkish Cypriot nationalism is an ethnic nationalism supporting the independence of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) and mostly desires that the TRNC stay independent from Turkey while opposing the idea of a united Cyprus with the Greek-dominated Republic of Cyprus. The objective of taksim, that is, the partition of the island of Cyprus into Turkish and Greek portions, is widespread among Turkish Cypriot nationalists. Nevertheless, a considerable number of them wish for Turkey to annex Cyprus.
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