"For the great, for the free,
for the brave, the strong,
The words of the great, the free,
the brave, the strong......",
is submitted to us by the great Greek poet and painter Nikos Engonopoulos. The words great and brave are fitting for those who, with the strength of their souls, defended the freedom of their homeland, putting it above their own lives.
These "words great and free" of the poet are fitting for the proud inhabitants of the leprous community of Avgoros, who sought at every moment of history to be free.
It is with deepest respect that we have gathered here today in the holy church of the Apostles Peter and Paul, in the heroic community of Avgoros, to pay due tribute to the heroes of the community, who gave their lives during the national struggles of our homeland, the national liberation struggle of EOKA 1955-1959, the intercommunal riots of 1963-64 and the black summer of 1974.
At the same time to pray for the determination of the fate of the five missing persons of the community, but also of all our missing persons. Their families, for almost half a century, are still waiting anxiously for their fate to be determined and are admittedly paying the heaviest price for the drama of the Cypriot tragedy as a result of the Turkish invasion.
First of all, I would like to thank the community of Avgoros, the mayor Panai Mihaila, the families of the heroes and the National Association of Thoi Agios Georgios Avgoros for the invitation to address the commemorative speech on behalf of the State.
The heroes we honour today are children of Avgoros who walked in the footsteps of the historical tradition of the struggles of the Greek nation and with faith in their homeland and love for freedom climbed the steps of immortality, offering their lives and writing golden pages of bravery and heroism.
A brief review, ladies and gentlemen, of their struggle and sacrifice for the homeland is the least we could offer to their memory, and to all of us, a reminder of the lives of our heroic compatriots.
Lucia Lautari Papageorgiou, mother of six children, pregnant with her seventh, during the liberation struggle of EOKA, defied the danger and with courage and strength of soul did not hesitate to clash with the forces of the colonialists.
A heroine who consciously chose to confront, together with other unarmed compatriots, armoured soldiers when they tried to make arrests in the village after posting slogans in the square.
On July 5, 1958, in a show of mental grandeur, with only their hands and a few stones and sticks as weapons, the outraged villagers, men, women and children, gathered in their village square and set up a shield of protection against injustice. In hand-to-hand fighting with the armoured soldiers, they succeeded in freeing two of their fellow villagers who were arrested as allegedly responsible for posting the slogans.
So embarrassed were the colonialists by the strong resistance they encountered that during their retreat they opened indiscriminate fire on the unarmed inhabitants, resulting in the fatal wounding of Lucia.
With her, Panagis Zacharias climbed the steps of immortality. The bio-politician who also found himself fighting along with others to prevent the humiliation of their fellow villagers. Panagis, a family man and father of five children, wanted in turn to bequeath to them the highest good of freedom, but he was not in time, since the bullets of the conquerors hit him in the chest.
After the end of the Divine Liturgy, we will go to the community square to unveil the "Battle of the Square Monument", which was erected by the community council and the EOKA Historical Memory Council (S.I.M.A.E.).), a symbol of the community's eternal appreciation of its heroes that will be for all of us the everlasting witness of our people's heroic struggles for national vindication.
Only a few days after the events in Avgoros Square, on September 2, 1958, another compatriot climbed the Pantheon of Heroes, writing together with three of his fellow fighters one of the most shocking rhapsodies of the EOKA epic.
The protagonist this time was Andreas Karyos, husband and father of a boy, who was expecting his second child to come to life. Andreas showed from a young age that he possessed leadership and rhetorical qualities. He developed intense activity before the EOKA Struggle and took the lead in national, ecclesiastical and agricultural issues of concern to the society of his village and the wider Famagusta district. He participated in the Panagricultural Union of Cyprus (PEK) and the Pancyprian National Youth Organisation (PEON) and later in EOKA, where he was involved in the recruitment of young fighters. He later distinguished himself as sub-divisional leader of the Kokkinochoria region with a rich activity. He was arrested by the British twice and imprisoned in the Famagusta Detention Centre and from November 1956 in the Pyla Detention Centre, where he escaped on 12 March 1958.
Together with his fellow fighters Fotis Pitta, Ilias Papakyriakou and Christos Samaras, they wrote pages of unparalleled bravery and heroism in the Battle of Liopetriou Barn on 2 September 1958.
For more than six hours they kept dozens of soldiers and policemen who surrounded them pinned down, turning a humble barn into a monument of unparalleled courage and resistance. Faced with their greatness of spirit and their determination not to surrender, the besiegers were forced to resort to cowardly methods. Andrew and the other lads, refusing to surrender, attempted their own heroic exit, as modern Mesolonghians, knowing that they would die. With a smile on their lips and the fire of their souls they crossed the gates of heaven as symbols of militancy and courage, turning the burning barn into a nationwide monument of glory.
Along with Andreas, we commemorate today another hero of EOKA, his younger brother Georgios Karyos. Incarcerated at the Kokkinotrimithia Detention Centre, George escaped as soon as he was informed of his brother's fate and fled to Astromeritis, where he joined the guerrilla group of the Morphou sector.
He was arrested on 19 October 1958, when his group was spotted by the British and the hero was seriously wounded in his attempt to escape. He breathed his last breath nine days later, on the day of the "OXI" anniversary, 28 October, at the Nicosia General Hospital, following in the footsteps of his brother, who in turn won eternal immortality.
The brothers were guided by the heroine Flourentzou, who lost two sons in a few days, but stood proudly against the conquerors, denouncing them with the following words of the soul:[/I]
The paths of immortality were also followed by Kyriakos Makris on 11 September 1958 and Thomas Palourtis on 13 January 1959, who were killed while on duty.
In 1964, during the intercommunal riots, shortly after the establishment of the Republic of Cyprus, on New Year's Day, the novice monk Spyridon Pericles was killed by Turkish insurgents at the Monastery of Panagia Galatotrophousa in Korno.
And ten years later, in the black summer of 1974, in the whirlwind of that betrayed struggle against the Turkish invader, young Avgorites, faithful to the legacies of their ancestors, fell defending the sacred and holy places of our homeland. We commemorate today those who died during the Turkish invasion:
Panagiotis Paphitis, Kostakis Hatzigiannis, Nikiforos Karios, Panagiotis Vrakas, Nikos Kyriakou, Panagiotis Marinou, Georgios Pilatos, Kyriakos Kalathas, Antonis Papageorgiou, Evagoras Tyrimou and Christodoulos Lautaris.
Along with the fallen, we also commemorate the civilian and defenseless citizens Michael Zenonas, Panagiotis Christodoulou and Petros Kakoullis, who in turn completed the long list of victims of Avgoros, due to Turkish criminal behaviour and barbarity.
At the same time, we pray reverently and pray for the fate of the five missing persons of the community, the soldier Sergis Poizis and the civilian Antonis Christodoulou Psathas, Androniki Paraskevas, Sotiris Pilatos and Savvas Paraskevas, with the wish and hope that their families will soon be informed and learn the truth about their children, however bitter it may be.
The relatives of our missing heroes are unfortunately paying the heaviest price of the ongoing drama of the Turkish invasion and I would like to convey once again the support and commitment of the Cyprus Government and personally of the President of the Republic Mr. Nicos Anastasiades to the struggle for a full and effective investigation of the fate of all the missing persons, so that this open wound of their families can finally be closed.
Greeks,
We all need more than ever before from models of selflessness, virtue and heroism.
We all need models of selflessness, virtue and heroism. Bearing in mind our debt to the heroes of Avgoros, we are obliged to continue the struggle until final vindication. We know that their sacrifice will only be justified by the end of the occupation and colonization, by the liberation and reunification of our homeland.
For the President of the Republic and the Government, the path of national responsibility is the only option. We will continue to engage in responsible and constructive politics, always with the interests of our country in mind.
Honouring those who fought for the freedom of our Cyprus, we address the message in every direction that we continue, with faith in the just struggle for an honourable, dignified and viable solution to the Cyprus problem on the basis of the UN Security Council resolutions and the principles and values of the EU.
We do not underestimate the difficulties and obstacles we have to face. We are fully aware of the risks but also of our historical duty to continue the struggle until the sun of freedom, peace and security rises on this long-suffering land.
History dictates that we hand over to our children a united, free, democratic and prosperous Cyprus. To deliver a homeland with political and economic stability that inspires confidence and trust in its citizens for today and tomorrow.
We owe this debt to the heroes of Avgoros whom we commemorate today, but also to all the heroes who gave their lives in the national struggles of our homeland.
May their memory be eternal and honored.
(SX)
Contents of this article including associated images are belongs PIO
Views & opinions expressed are those of the author and/or PIO
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