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- Ελληνικά
Today we pay the minimum tribute to the action and sacrifice of the hero of EOKA, Georgios Papaverkios, who, faithful to its call, fell fighting for the liberation of Cyprus from the British yoke.
Georgios Papaverkiou was born in 1938 in Pano Arodes. He was the child of a large family and was fortunate to have parents who were virtuous and philanthropic, the priest of the community, Fr. He learned his first letters at the primary school of his village and subsequently attended the Pafos Gymnasium and Pafos College.
Immediately after the beginning of the national liberation struggle of EOKA he joined the ranks of the Organization. He initially participated in the distribution of leaflets, in student demonstrations and parades and in clashes with the British army.
Later, with the bravery that distinguished him, he joined the Ktima task forces and took part in organised grenade throwing operations, ambushes and attacks on British soldiers. Based in the area of Toxeftra, he operated from Emba to Kathika, Polis Chrysochous and Chada.
For this action he was put a price on his head in July 1956 by the English as a wanted man for his actions, with the sum of five thousand euros. After remaining for a short time in houses in Paphos, he then fled to the mountains, where he joined other guerrillas in the province.
Before leaving, his father suggested that he continue his studies in Athens, but he considered it a betrayal to leave his fighting homeland and replied that he would do so only when it was liberated.
On 23 January 1957, in an ambush with fellow fighters outside the village of Kritou Terra, they attacked a military vehicle. In response, the British organized a blockade of the area in order to capture the guerrillas.
On 7 February 1957, Georgios Papaverkiou and his fellow fighter Takis Sofokleous from Panagia attempted to intercept the British military convoy on the road between Prodromiou and Androlikou by placing a mine. In the ensuing battle, Takis Sofokleous was the first to be killed. George Papaverkiou did not attempt to escape but remained beside him, shooting against the enemy until he himself fell dead.
Compatriots,
The sacrifice of Georgios Papaverkios, like the struggle of all our compatriots over the years defending the freedom and integrity of our homeland, is a beacon and signpost of our own course.
We owe it to our heroes to forge and ensure unity among us, so that we can strive to find a just, viable and workable solution based on the European acquis and the relevant United Nations resolutions, without occupying troops and invasive rights.
We owe our heroes a solution that will liberate and reunite our homeland, that will respect and guarantee the human rights of all citizens, and that will ensure the historical continuity of our nation in our special homeland. A solution that will first and foremost vindicate their struggle and sacrifice and allow all the Cypriot people to benefit from the promising prospects of a reunited homeland within the European Union.
By justifying the sacrifice of Georgios Papaverkios and all those who have fought for the preservation of our national dignity with unparalleled philanthropy, we will continue our struggle to secure the future of Cypriot Hellenism in this land.
Because, as our great poet Kostis Palamas writes "We owe a debt to those who have come, passed, will come, will pass. We will be judged by the unborn, the dead".
(GS/EP)
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