Turkish Cypriots will never accept becoming a minority - Akıncı

Turkish Cypriot leader, Mustafa Akinci has said that Turkish Cypriots will never accept becoming a minority adding that the decades long Cyprus Problem has continued to affect everyone’s lives.

Akinci made the comment when speaking during a ceremony organized to mark the 7th year anniversary of the death of the founding President of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, Rauf Raif Denktaş in front of the TMT Monument in Lefkoşa on Monday.

According to him, as time passed, even though areas and issues affected by the Cyprus Problem changed, each newer generation was forced to wage a struggle against this problem.

He noted that the late founding president during his years as the leader of the Turkish Cypriot community had waged a struggle against his Greek Cypriot interlocutors on the basis of his own views and beliefs.

Akıncı said even though some elements may have changed over time, the source of the problem remained the same.

He also pointed out that the Greek Cypriot side’s reluctance to accept Turkish Cypriots as an equal community was a serious mentality problem.

The resistance displayed by the Greek Cypriots against the political equality of Turkish Cypriots unfortunately shows that they have still not changed. The Turkish Cypriots are equal partners on this island and it’s not possible to abandon these rights. They will never bow down to such pressure. We will not allow this to happen, he added.

Akıncı concluded his speech by stating that the necessary struggle will be waged as long as the Cyprus Problem remained unresolved.

BRTK