Cyprus Talks: Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot communities stage peaceful rally over deadlock in negotiations

Members of the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot communities on Saturday staged a peaceful rally to voice their concern over the deadlock in the ongoing Cyprus reunification talks demanding increase efforts between the two sides of the divided island towards reaching a solution.


The group totaling around 150 in numbers gathered in the buffer zone at the Ledra street checkpoint, with slogans, whistles, drums, flags, and makeshift signs shouting slogans in Greek, Turkish, and English, and waved signs reading ‘Peace now’, ‘We want a solution now’, ‘Help us reunite’, ‘Leaders listen: solution now’, and ‘We are Cypriots’.

The group sang Cypriot songs and formed a human chain along the Ledra street buffer zone.

“We don’t want barbed wire, we don’t want any more cemeteries, we want peace and democracy,” said veteran politician and Greek Cypriot co-chair of the bicommunal technical committee for cultural heritage Takis Hadjidemetriou, reports Cyprus Mail.

“We will remain united and continue to fight, with the vision of tomorrow’s Cyprus alive. We will lead the march. We will solve it our way. Every citizen individually, every Greek Cypriot with their Turkish Cypriot compatriot, and all together with cooperative projects.”

The protest comes after leaders of both communities announced that their failure to find enough common ground to reconvene the Conference on Cyprus in Geneva, with the UN special adviser to Cyprus on Friday officially announcing the end of his nine-day efforts to mediate a breakthrough.

The rally has convened daily for the past week at 7pm, which, organisers said, will continue.

Cyprus Mail