-
.
- Ελληνικά
Sunday, 10 September 2023 - Holy Church of Panagia Chryseleousis, Tsada, Paphos
"Not everyone can be a hero, but a hero can come from anywhere". And the small community of Tsada is one of the most striking examples of this statement. It is not humble origins of course, it is not the data you start with, but the greatness of the soul that defines a man's true boi.
Every man, every fellow citizen who "answers" the historic call of the homeland, who declares himself present in difficult times, who has the mental fortitude to transcend human limits, whatever his origin, and wherever he comes from, rightfully enters the glorious spectrum of heroism and takes a place in the pantheon of heroes who defied danger, hardship, torture, imprisonment and even faced death itself in the eyes to defend the supreme good, freedom.
It is for this very reason that we are here today to unveil the busts of the heroes of the Chada Community, Vladimir Heraclius, Andreas Christodoulou and Herodotus Savas, with the utmost awe, respect and emotion, and to pay tribute as a State, as a Cypriot people, as a community. The heroes we honour today were equal to the heroism, self-sacrifice and greatness of their compatriot, Evagoras Pallikaridis, Evagoras of Cyprus, Evagoras of Hellenism. That is also why this particular place was chosen for their busts, to accompany their compatriot and younger hero of the gallows. A place dedicated to the timeless defenders of the Freedom of Cyprus. Chada rightly feels proud of its worthy children who defied death and were in the front line of defending freedom and the homeland in the timeless struggles.
I would like to warmly congratulate the Community of Chada and the President and Members of the Community Council who supported the initiative and the whole effort, as well as the contributors who created the busts of our heroes.
I would like to warmly congratulate the Community of Chada and the President and Members of the Community Council who supported the initiative and the whole effort, as well as the contributors who created the busts of our heroes.
Allow me, in the context of today's modest ceremony, to refer telegraphically and without any exaggeration, to the greatness and legacy of the sacrifice of the heroes we honor today.
Vladimir Heracleous was born in 1939. With the beginning of the national liberation struggle of EOKA, a student of the Greek Gymnasium of Paphos, then only 15 years old, he felt the obligation and the need to actively participate in the struggle against the British colonialist. He was one of the first to join the ranks of EOKA and actively participated in the activities of the Organization. The decision and actions of Vladimir, a friend and fellow fighter of Pallikaridis, were supported by his parents, Iraklis and Eleni Athanasiou.
As part of his action, he mapped the wider area of Chada and built hideouts and countless hiding places for his fellow fighters. He was trained in the use of weapons and improvised bombs for various ambushes, which were successfully carried out in the Paphos Province. His ardent and unique passion was the liberation of his homeland and the union with mother Greece.
With the beginning of the intercommunal riots in 1963, Vladimir declared himself present again. He joined the groups of volunteer soldiers to defend the legitimate state and the Republic of Cyprus. He took an active part in the "battles of Muttallou" during which he was killed by Turkish fire, leading to the bright path of history.
A year later, another Chada youth, child of the large family of Rebecca and Christodoulos Savvas, fell heroically. Born in 1946, Andreas Christodoulou, an excellent graduate of the Greek Gymnasium of Paphos, is in 1963 on the front line in defence of the legitimate state.
In order to defend the Republic of Cyprus, he joins the Cyprus Army in January 1965 and after his general and special training as a radio operator in Larnaca, he serves at the outpost in Abeliko, near Morphou.
On 9 April 1965, a bullet from the Turkish outposts hit Andreas in the head and at the age of just 19 he was driven to immortality.
Herodotus Savvas, son of Sophia and Christodoulos Taliotis, is the third Chada soldier we honour today. Herodotus was born in 1954 and graduated from the Pafos Economic Lyceum. In 1974, during the brutal Turkish invasion, he served his service with the 361 Infantry Battalion in Synchari, where during Turkish operations the battalion was surrounded by Attila's forces. Their attempts to escape to Famagusta on 14 August 1974 resulted in his capture and execution in cold blood. Since then, his name was added to the long list of missing persons.
Almost 40 years later, in 2013, Herodotus' remains were found in a mass grave in Kornokambos, identified by DNA and buried in his hometown.
The tragic aftermath of the Turkish invasion and the ongoing occupation remains for 49 years: the refugees, the missing, the trapped, the occupation, the violation of the human rights and fundamental freedoms of the Cypriot people, are irrefutable evidence, as a deep trauma in our historical memory and as a debt in our daily action. This cannot be the future of our country.
This is precisely why, from the first moment we took power, we launched a major diplomatic effort aimed at resuming the talks as soon as possible, in order to achieve liberation, reunification, to finally lead to the resolution of the Cyprus problem. I want to assure you, and as a debt to the sacrifice of the heroes we are honouring today, that we will never accept occupation, we will never accept the fait accompli of the Turkish invasion, we cannot accept our country remaining divided.
I will therefore fight with all my strength so that we reach the blessed day, to achieve a solution on the basis of the relevant United Nations resolutions and the principles and values of the European Union of which the Republic of Cyprus is a member state.
We are working on the basis of a specific plan and planning so that the citizens of the Republic of Cyprus, the citizens of a member state of the European Union, do not remain second-class citizens. And it is in this very context that I consider the next period of particular importance, at the end of this week I will be going to New York for the United Nations General Assembly and in October to the European Council in Brussels, which will be decisive and crucial for our effort.
And I want to reiterate today my readiness to work constructively, away from sterile confrontations, away from communication, away from games and blame game logic, to achieve the much-needed reunification of our country.
At the same time, in order to achieve the lifting of the deadlock and the resumption of the talks that will lead us to the resolution of the Cyprus problem, the existence of a strong and strong internal front is an absolute prerequisite. And I am sure that everyone understands the importance of internal unity, not only as a minimum obligation to the Cypriot people, but also as an important factor of strength both in the effort to resume talks and at the negotiating table.
The greatest memorial and the highest honour for the sacrifice of the brave men of Chada, Heraclius, Christodoulos and Savvas, who sacrificed their lives for their homeland, for freedom, is to do everything possible to liberate our homeland, to end the occupation and to reunite our land.
By laying a wreath to our heroes today, we pledge that we will stand as worthy successors to our history, taking lessons from their sacrifice.
Monuments and busts are erected as the least we owe to our heroes. But the remembrance of their sacrifice and the preservation of their memory is our duty and supreme duty. They are, and only in this way will we honour their memory, a guiding beacon for all of us, and at the same time they invite us to continue their unfinished work, crushing injustice, vindicating history and liberating our land.
Their eternal memory.
(PM/MB)
Contents of this article including associated images are belongs PIO
Views & opinions expressed are those of the author and/or PIO
Source
