Greek Cypriot enclaved in the Turkish occupied north of Cyprus, showed up once again in the government controlled areas of the Republic, to cast their vote, underlining the importance of their presence in the occupied areas.
Mrs. Suzana from Kormakitis, age 95, the oldest resident of the occupied village, votes unfailingly in all electoral processes. Now, wheelchair bound, she came this time too and voted both for the Parliamentary elections and for the election of the Maronite religious group representative in the new House of Representatives.
Mrs. Katia was born in October 1937, in Kormakitis, where she lives to this day. In every electoral process – Presidential, Parliamentary, and local elections – she declares herself present. She considers it her duty to do so, she said. “I always voted”, she added.
Mrs. Yiannoula, 79 years old, is one of only three permanent residents in Karpasia. She also came today to vote accompanied by her son. The resettled residents in Karpasia, she mentioned, number about ten.
The enclaved residents from the occupied villages of Kormakitis and Karpasia came in numbers to vote at the specially arranged polling centers at Kykkos High School in Nicosia. Many arrived over the weekend to see their children, grandchildren and other relatives. The first bus with 29 people arrived at Kykkos High School around 10:30 with 29 people, mainly elderly, from Kormakitis. A second bus was scheduled for this afternoon. Some will return by bus, others by private cars.
Relatives, friends and acquaintances thronged the school courtyard and polling center where they had a chance to catch up with their news. Some had not met for a long time.
Four members of the Maronite community are participating in different parties in the House of Representatives elections, Kormakitis community leader Antonis Solomou told CNA. Having resettled three years ago in the village, Solomou said that the permanent residents together with people who returned and live there now, number about 400.
He said the Maronite community “is very active in public affairs”. Indeed, the turnout has been large since morning and as Solomou said, in all elections the “community is number one”.
In the local elections, he said, they had 97% participation. They want, he added, more young people to resettle in Kormakitis and together with their representative in the new Parliament, they will proceed with a proposal for an incentive scheme similar to that for young people to return to the mountain villages.
None of the three elderly women who spoke to CNA contemplated leaving their villages, even though their children live in the free areas. “We are already accustomed to it”, said Mrs. Katia, who has been widowed since 2010, but her children visit her continuously. Her son Michalis, the third of her five children, accompanied her to the polling station and told CNA that in two months he will retire and will relocate to Kormakitis to be near his mother.
The CNA asked Mrs. Katia what does she wish for these elections. “I wish that the one I voted for will win. Whoever God wants to win. I know…” she said with a smile. Mrs. Katia and her son Michalis said that “we have to keep Kormakitis” going. The state must maintain the Greek element in the north”, Michalis said, whether it is called Kormakitis or Karpasia, and the young people should go and live there. “The village welcomes everyone as long as they want it,” Mrs. Katia said.
Mr. Mishelis from Kormakitis also came to vote. He has been living in Kormakitis for the last 26 years. He said he is doing well and likes it very much there, “where our mother, our grandparents are buried and we will die there too”. He votes unfailingly every time and returns.
Mr. Iosif and Mrs. Yiannoullla, a couple, live in Kormakitis and came alone with their own means to vote and return to the village on the same day. “We are resettled and we are doing very well,” said Mrs. Yiannoullla. Their children live in the government controlled areas but they get to see them every weekend.
The oldest of all in Kormakitis, Mrs. Souzana, has five children, all of whom live in the free areas. She says it with regret while crying, however she sees them often and they visit too. . She exercised her right to vote once again today. It is her duty, she says, and she will do it as long as she lives. She called on the young people to relocate to Kormakitis.
Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when Turkey invaded and occupied its northern third. Repeated rounds of UN-led peace talks have so far failed to yield results. The last round of negotiations, in July 2017 at the Swiss resort of Crans-Montana ended inconclusively.
Shortly after the invasion, some 20,000 Greek Cypriot remained in their home, in the areas Turkey had occupied. The number of these “enclaved” persons has dwindled over the years due to the appalling living conditions and restrictions imposed on them and their daily life. Educational and religious freedoms, in addition to individual freedoms are curtailed by the occupation regime.