For the great, for the free, for the brave, for the strong, words are fitting, the great, the free, the brave, the strong. For them silence, for them tears, for them beacons and olive branches.
Respected clergy,
Honoured members of the families of the fighters,
Dear President and members of the Community Council of Chloraka, Representatives of political parties and the state,
Greeks, Greeks,
We are here today, humble pilgrims, to commemorate and honour the fighters of Chloraka.
In this holy temple we pay today the due tribute to the hero, Lieutenant Georgios Azina, who was killed at the age of 23, during the civil strife in Greece, during the battles of April 1, 1949, at Grammos and Vitsi. The Cypriot lieutenant fell on the field of glory, fighting with the legitimate Greek forces. With bravery that emanated from his Greek soul, he honoured Cyprus and Greece with his blood and life. His heroism, his conscientious enthusiasm and his conviction to prevail in the fine and noble struggle, of good against evil, were the inalienable marks of this Greek Cypriot, an invaluable volunteer.
Greeks, Greeks,
But today we also remember all the fighters who died in peace, worthy children of Chloraka, who contributed in their own way to the glorious struggle of EOKA of 55-59.
We remember the pure pioneers of the liberation struggle, who watched invisibly in the night, waiting for the first valuable load of weapons, and the lads who welcomed the chief general of EOKA, the soldier Georgios Grivas Digenis.
This year marks 67 years since the capture of the crew of the boat "Agios Georgios" and the members of the weapons reception team on the coast of Chloraka on 25 January 1955.
And it is on this coast of Chloraka, shortly before the beginning of the liberation struggle, that the idea of the "politics of dynamic struggle" began to take shape.
The brutal British colonial policy, which stubbornly refused to accept the implementation of the right of self-determination of peoples, left no choice but to take action.
The first important step of the uprising of the Greeks of Cyprus had already taken place in March 1954 on the blue shores of Chloraka, under extreme secrecy, by Greek sailors and Chlorakian farmers.
On the "Vrexi" coast of Chloraka, the ship "Siren", captained by Vangelis Loukas-Koutalianos, carried the first shipment of weapons from Piraeus. The Chlorakaites Andreas, Nicholas and Charalambos Azina together with Kostas Leonidas were the first small group of fighters formed in the spring of 1953, here in Chloraka. With thieves' lanterns they kept vigil on the shore, eagerly waiting to see from the sea the bright signal of the sailing ship carrying their precious cargo.
The unloading of the first arms for the throwing off of the British yoke and the premonition for the union of Cyprus with Mother Greece was now a fact.
The pioneer fighters of Chloraka received the first 46 crates of arms and ammunition. Chief Digenis writes in his "Memoirs" about this first armament received: "With these materials I started the Struggle and maintained it for about a year, when a small reinforcement was achieved..."
On 10 November 1954, on the nearby coast of Aliki, the "Siren" disembarked the General of Victory. George Grivas Digenis and his colleagues. Socrates Loizidis and Notis Petropouleas, who were received by the fighters Kostas Leonidas, Nicholas Mavronikola and Michalakis Papantoniou. They were all hosted at the house of Nicolas and Panagiotous Azina, in Chloraka.
Digenis was now treading the soil of Cyprus. The torch of freedom, first lit in Athens in March 1953, reached the coast of Chloraka and preparations for the struggle began. On the instructions of Digenis, groups of fighters were organized in Nicosia and in other parts of the island to which the weapons stored in Chloraka were distributed.
Two months later, on 25 January 1955, the boat "Agios Georgios", again captained by Vangelis Koutaliyanos, arrived at "Rodafinia" in Chloraka with a new load of weapons. On the shore a group of 7 fighters was waiting for it, consisting of the team leader Kostas Leonidas and Christakis Evzonas, Kyriakos Mavronikolas, Nikolas Mavronikolas, Michalakis Papantoniou, Nikolas and Christodoulos Pendaras. But the boat was not only expected by our fighters. In the darkness of the night the English warship "Comet" was lurking and English policemen ashore. The mission had been betrayed.
The five members of the ship and six of the eight fighters were captured on shore. They were convicted by an English criminal court in Paphos and all were transferred to the Central Prison in Nicosia except Socrates Loozidis who was imprisoned in England.
The capture of the ship was recorded by the international media of the time as a major success for the British, who, however, failed to appreciate the dimensions of the revolutionary project and the reaction among our people.
Greeks, Greeks,
The beginning of the struggle on April 1, 55 was accompanied by a series of blasphemous rumblings that shook the island from end to end and took the British by surprise. From the fathomless depths of our popular tradition, the legends of the Greeks sprang up. Soon the Greek Cypriot demigods were rightly personified by the Pindarians, the Tyrtaeans and King Regas.
For four whole years the generation of '55 wrote pages of unstinting heroism, self-sacrifice and national greatness. The Greeks of Cyprus, a daring and sensitive people, proved to be consistent in their encounter with their historical debt and their destiny.
Cyprus, an inch of land, accommodated, and still accommodates, great deeds, great visions, great ideals, great and brave heroes.
This is how the patriots of Chloraka reacted.
This is how the patriots of Chloraka reacted. Not only were they not discouraged by the capture of the ship "Agios Georgios", but faith and fortitude grew in them. They organized themselves and vowed to fight the good fight against colonialism. Almost all the inhabitants of the village, people of all kinds, middle-aged and elderly, men and women, amoral boys and countless little children, joined the ranks of EOKA, contributing in every way to the armed struggle.
And Chloraka became the centre of the province in the distribution of bombs and weapons, but also in the construction of hideouts for the rebels. More than 80 men and women of the community were registered as EOKA fighters.
Greek Greeks,
The struggle may not have led to the achievement of the main goal, which was self-determination and union with Greece, but it did bring an end to colonialism and the establishment of the Republic of Cyprus. It preserved our values and ideals, our national and cultural identity, it preserved our dignity, but above all it preserved the free air that we still breathe today. The spirit, ethos and virtue of the fighters remain alive in history, inspiring and guiding us. At the same time, the struggles and sacrifices of our heroes weigh on us and guide us. It is also a day of reflection. It is a day of reflection to consider our own debt to our martyred homeland and to all those who sacrificed to throw off the British colonial yoke.
For almost 48 long years our people have borne an unbearable cross of martyrdom with patience, courage and fortitude. And our homeland is still shadowed by the weight of the Turkish occupation. The best way to preserve the memory of the struggle of the H.O.K.A., the best way to honour the contribution of the fighters of 1955-59, is to preserve the future of Cypriot Hellenism in the land of our ancestors. We must achieve the goals of the struggle to find a just, viable and workable solution to our national problem.
The President of the Republic, despite Turkey's piracy provocations and its attempt to create illegal fait accompli, continues to strive for the return to the talks and in this effort he does not hesitate to submit proposals for confidence-building measures (CBMs) aimed at creating a climate of trust between the two sides on the one hand and at better preparing the ground for the resumption of the negotiation process on the basis of the agreed form of the solution of the bizonal dyadic settlement on the other.
At the same time, the positions of the Turkish Cypriot side, which defiantly and through various methods demand a two-state solution, are unacceptable and condemnable, as are the unilateral, illegal actions on the ground and at sea, which are contrary to international law and Security Council resolutions.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
As the invasion and attacks by Russian forces on the fronts of Ukraine rage on, at a heavy cost to the Ukrainian people, the pages of our history recall the nightmare of Turkish atrocities. Pages of pain and uprooting. Cyprus as a country under occupation, which for almost 48 years is still experiencing the consequences of the Turkish invasion, cannot but unequivocally condemn the Russian invasion which goes against every principle of law. This barbaric act of war violates every notion of democracy, sovereignty and the territorial integrity of Ukraine. The government and all our people express our full support and solidarity with the suffering Ukrainian people.
Ukrainians are fighting today for exactly the same cause that our heroes fought for in 55-59, opposing the then mighty British Empire.
Greeks, Greeks,
We bow reverently to the struggles of the EOKA fighters who died in peace, but also to our heroic dead who bravely fought for the faith in ideals.
The coast of Chloracca, the once remote deserted shore at the north-western tip of Cyprus, was the honoured place chosen by history to first light the flame of freedom and to sound the opening salvo of the armed struggle to throw off the colonial yoke.
You, the people of Chloraka should and ought to be proud of this privilege sent to you by fate.
Honor and glory to all the fighters of Chloraka who marked the beginning, who founded the struggle of EOKA and continued to fight for the freedom of the homeland until the final vindication.
Honour to the land of Chloraka that gave birth, nurtured and sewed with the seeds of Hellenism and Christianity, these worthy children.
Eternal be the glory that will accompany Lieutenant George X.
Eternal be the memory of all the brave men who gave even their lives for the good cause.
We ought to assure our heroes that their sacrifice will not be in vain.
We owe it to them to reassure them that we will continue the struggle that they first started so that our children and grandchildren can have a better homeland.
We owe it to them.
Eternal memory of you immortal freedom fighters, sons of the land of Chloraka.
(EFYs)
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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