Nicosia, Cyprus. Turkish Cypriot ‘prime minister’ Unal Ustel on Sunday criticised reported plans to rename Paphos’ Kemal Ataturk Street and described as unacceptable reported calls to remove the ‘TRNC’ flag painted on the Pentadaktylos mountains.
Reaction to reports on the Pentadaktylos flag
Ustel was reacting to newspaper reports suggesting that the Greek Cypriot side would propose, as a confidence-building measure, the removal of the ‘TRNC’ flag painted on the southern side of the Pentadaktylos mountains.
He said calls in the Greek Cypriot press, particularly in the Phileleftheros newspaper, which he described as close to and strongly supportive of Greek Cypriot leader Nikos Christodoulides, to remove the flag under the guise of a confidence-building measure were excessive and unacceptable.
Ustel said any demand to remove the flag, which he said symbolises the will of Turkish Cypriots for independence, was null and void to them.
Comments on planned renaming of Kemal Ataturk Street
Ustel also addressed plans regarding Kemal Ataturk Street in Paphos, which he described as his hometown.
He said it was a hostile act for the Greek Cypriot side, which he said calls for peace and goodwill, to attempt to change street names bearing the name of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founder of the Republic of Turkey.
He added that Turkish Cypriots would continue to uphold their values, their flag, their state, and their ties with Turkey, which he referred to as their motherland.
Trust between communities and calls for mutual respect
Ustel said Turkish Cypriots have always respected the religious values, flag, and sacred things belonging to the Greek Cypriot community, and said they expect the same from the other side.
He said both the reported calls for the flag to be removed and the planned renaming of the street were destroying trust between the communities and served conflict rather than peace, and enmity rather than friendship.
Ustel said the path to lasting peace and tranquillity on the island lies in mutual respect, and that actions by circles he said cannot tolerate the Turkish presence and are driven by dreams of Enosis undermine trust between the two peoples.
He said flags with the crescent and star would continue to wave and that the flag on the Pentadaktylos mountains would continue to be a symbol of a centuries-long presence.
What impact do you think such symbolic disputes have on efforts to build trust between the two communities?