There is a serious maturity problem in Cypriot society and its political system. This is confirmed every year, before and after Grivas’s memorial service. For hours or days, political parties, public figures, and citizens engage in verbal tussles – metaphorically, for now – over whether EOKA’s leader deserves commemoration and whether the government and political parties should be represented there. Usually, the discussion centers on DISY, which sometimes attends in full force, as it did this year, and sometimes maintains a more “modest” presence.
It all depends on polling numbers and party unity – everything in blessed Cyprus depends on these things. And so emerges the whole discussion about Grivas, whom half exploit and half curse. You see, it’s an easy solution for those who haven’t shed a drop of blood for this land to blame a dead man for the Turkish occupation, enslavement, and misery. And simultaneously, it’s equally convenient for the others, who likewise haven’t shed a drop of blood, to perpetuate the myth that Grivas lives on while counting votes over his grave.
Sadly, Cyprus remains gravely ill, and lest we forget, this is also confirmed by the discussions surrounding Makarios. How many more bloody years? How many?
ΑΛ.ΜΙΧ.
