The Government seeks through the peaceful process of negotiations to achieve a just and viable solution to our national problem said President of the Republic Nicos Anastasiades at the funeral of Michael Stavros Kkaelias, who was killed during the Turkish invasion.
The greeting of the President of the Republic was read by the Deputy Director General of the Deputy Ministry of Social Welfare, Marina Ioannou Hasapi.
The funeral of Michael Stavros Kkaelia, from Gypsum Famagusta was held on Saturday at the Church of St. John the Theologian, in Larnaca. His remains were recovered by the Missing Persons' Committee in the cemetery of the occupied Gypsum and identified by the DNA method. Burial took place in the cemetery of St. George Kontou in Larnaca.
In his eulogy, President Anastasiades said that Michael Stavrou is a representative example of a man who suffered the brutality and absurdity of war, enduring the ruthless and cruel behaviour of the Turkish soldiers in his village of Gypsos "unable and helpless to escape and defend himself".
Today, he said, another tragic epilogue is being written, visibly confirming the devastating consequences of the war for the country and its people, which we are still experiencing and feeling almost half a century later.
Our country, he continued, has remained under occupation and under the threat of Turkish troops since 1974, while it is the only shared and equal member of the European family. Basic freedoms and basic human rights are being violated, thousands of refugees and hundreds of missing persons remain, our archaeological sites and churches are still in ruins and abandoned, while the danger of demographic change in our population is looming large, he noted.
"This situation leaves us no room for complacency."
"This situation leaves us no room for complacency. It is imperative to further intensify efforts to reverse this painful reality and to find a peaceful, nationally acceptable and viable solution to the Cyprus problem," the President said. The Government, he noted, seeks through the peaceful process of negotiations to achieve a just and viable solution to our national problem that ensures the historical continuity of our people in the land of their fathers. We want, he said, a peaceful and prosperous homeland with political and economic stability with guaranteed freedoms and rights for all its legitimate inhabitants.
In order to achieve our goals, we fully rely on the principles of international law and the values embodied in the European acquis, the President concluded.
The remains of Michael Stavros were found in the cemetery of Gypsos village during exhumations to locate unidentified burials in the framework of the United Nations-sponsored exhumation and identification of remains programme. Subsequently, anthropological and DNA tests were carried out, based on which the identity of the bones belonging to the deceased Michael Stavrou has been established. The contributions made will be used for the restoration and maintenance of religious and ecclesiastical monuments in Gypsos.
Source: CNA
Contents of this article including associated images are belongs Cyprus Times
Views & opinions expressed are those of the author and/or Cyprus Times
Source
