More vandalised churches in Turkish-occupied Cyprus
19.8.1997
The desecration of Christian places of worship continues to be carried out
in the Turkish-occupied area of northern Cyprus.
The Cyprus Government Permanent Representative to the United Nations
Ambassador Nicos Agathocleous in a letter of protest to the UN Secretary-
General says that the historic fourteenth century church of the Virgin Mary,
of Byzantine and Renaissance structure, located near the villages of Prastio
and Acheritou-Ayios Georgios, has been vandalised and is being used as a
sheep pen.
Moreover, according to information received by the Government of the
Republic of Cyprus, the church of Apostle Andreas located in the district of
Kyrenia has been converted to a mosque and the Church of the Virgin Mary
located in Pano Zhodia has been completely destroyed. The Byzantine Church
of Saint Sergios and the sixteenth century Church of Saint Paraskevi,
located in the village of Ayios Serghios, near the ancient area of Salamis,
and the surrounding cemetery, have been desecrated and vandalised.
Over 100 churches and monasteries in the occupied areas have been plundered
and looted of their sacred objects, icons, wall paintings, frescoes and
mosaics or converted into mosques, recreation areas, animal pens or stables.
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A CHURCH WILL BE TURNED INTO A TOURIST COMPLEX IN THE TURKISH OCCUPIED PART
OF CYPRUS
25 August 1997
The church of St. Anastasia in Lapithos, in the Turkish occupied part of
Cyprus, will be turned into a tourist complex, according to the
Turkish-Cypriot newspaper "Kipris".
The newspaper also reports that businessman Mehmet Erulku has rented the
area around the church for a period of 30 years to build a tourist complex
for the elderly. In the first 10 years Mr. Erulku will pay a rent of 10
thousand sterlings as a guarantee.
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QUESTION ON THE NEW TURKISH VANDALISM AS TABLED IN THE EURO- PARLIAMENT
Macedonian Press Agency 98-04-03
Greek Euro-deputy of the Political Spring party Ms. Katerina Daskalaki
requested from the Euro-Parliament to make specific demarches to Turkey
regarding the past and recent vandalism targeting Christian monuments.
Ms. Daskalaki referred to the new "barbaric" attack, as she characterized
it, against the Orthodox Christian cemetery in Istanbul where 51 graves were
destroyed. She also reminded the recent attack against Agios Therapontas and
the savage murder of the chapel's sexton as well as, the repeated attacks
against the Ecumenical Patriarchate.
Ms. Daskalaki underlined that not a single arrest has ever been made by the
Turkish authorities.
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ECUMENICAL PATRIARCH: THE DESECRATION OF THE CEMETERY IS AN INSULT TO
CIVILIZATION
Istanbul, 04/04/1998 (M.P.A.)
Ecumenical Patriarch Vartholomeos expressed regret and indignation for the
desecration of the Greek cemetery in Istanbul, stressing that acts of
disrespect toward the dead are an insult to civilization.
Speaking to the Thessaloniki newspaper "Angelioforos", the Ecumenical
Patriarch expressed the hope that such events will not be repeated in spite
of the fact that the past experience is negative.
Commenting on the recent attack against the Ecumenical Patriarchate and the
murder of a sexton, Vartholomeos stated that he refuses to accept the
likelihood of an organized plan against Orthodoxy.
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Athens protests latest desecration of Orthodox cemetery in Turkey
Athens, 4/4/1998 (ANA)
The Greek foreign ministry yesterday lodged a strong protest with Turkey
over the recent desecration of a Greek Orthodox cemetery in Istanbul.
The adviser of the ministry's directorate for Greek-Turkish affairs,
Georgios Avgoustis, summoned an official of the Turkish embassy in Athens
and conveyed the government's "extreme displeasure" about the vandalism
itself and the fact that the perpetrat ors remain at large "just as those
responsible for desecrating churches and cemeteries of the Greek community
in Turkey also remain at large".
Main opposition New Democracy party yesterday called on the government to
protest to international organisations over the desecration. The government
on Thursday described the vandalism as a "barbaric act" and called on Ankara
to "deal decisively with such deplorable acts".
Vandals desecrated dozens of graves in the Greek cemetery in Istanbul early
Tuesday, breaking marble slabs and scattering beheaded skeletons.
ND deputy Panayiotis Psomiadis, in a motion, urged the government to lodge
protests with the European Union, NATO and Washington.
He also called on Foreign Minister Theodoros Pangalos to brief Parliament on
what steps the government had taken on the issue.
Vandals desecrated the Greek cemetery at Neohorio on the Bosporus in
September 1993, while last year another Greek cemetery in the Istanbul
suburb of Kantili was the target of vandals and the Orthodox Ecumenical
Patriarchate of Constantinople was the ta rget of a bomb attack for the
third time in recent years. In January, the sexton of the Agios Therapon
Church in Istanbul was found murdered.
No arrests were ever made. Spyridon urges US condemnation: Archbishop of
America Spyridon urged members of the US Congress as well as national, civic
and religious leaders in the United States to respond to the latest
desecration against a Greek Orthodox cemetery in Istanbul.
Earlier this week, more than 70 graves in the Greek Orthodox cemetery of
Agios Eleftherios in the Kurtulus region of Istanbul were vandalised.
Spyridon urged the political and spiritual leadership in the United States
to come to the defence of the faithful and the Ecumenical Patriarchate of
Constantinople, the worldwide centre of Orthodox Christianity. He also
addressed a letter to US Presiden t Bill Clinton.
"Mr. President, this most recent attack upon even the dead causes great pain
to all people. I need to ask: 'What is the sin of those who repose in the
hope of Resurrection? What is the sin of those fathers and mothers who lay
at peace and cause no offen se?' Ultimately, where is the righteousness in
attacking the bones which sanctify the earth in which they were placed?" a
portion of the letter reads.
In a public statement, Archbishop Spyridon said "I am shaken and very
concerned regarding the recent desecration of more than 70 Greek Orthodox
graves in Istanbul, Turkey. In the very recent past the compound of the
Ecumenical Patriarchate has been bomb ed, resulting in casualties and
property damage, a church was broken into and a sexton was murdered, and now
even those who lie in the tombs have been attacked."
This was the third incident in four months in Istanbul. On December 3, 1997,
a bomb attack against the Patriarchal compound in the Phanar district of
Istanbul seriously injured a deacon and damaged the Patriarchal Cathedral.
On Jan. 13, the Church of Ag ios Therapon was pillaged and the sexton was
murdered. There was also an incident on the island of Imvros, a one-time
predominately Greek Orthodox isle, where the Church of the Annunciation was
robbed and vandalised.
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Congressman sends letter to Turkish Premier
Washington, May 14 1998 (CNA) -- Ben Gilman, Chairman of the US House of
Representatives Committee on International Relations, has asked the Turkish
authorities to inform him of any further measures it is planning to take
against attacks on property of the Orthodox Church in Turkey.
In a letter to Turkish Prime Minister Mesut Yilmaz, dated May 13, the US
congressman voices "strong concern over continuing attacks by unknown
individuals against the property of the Ecumenical Patriarchate".
He notes that following last year's attack, which was not the first, he
wrote to the Turkish ambassador requesting his government "do everything
within its power to ensure the safety and security of the Patriarch, his
personnel and property belonging to the Church".
"Regrettably there is an ongoing campaign in Turkey by certain individuals
to attack institutions of the Orthodox Church," Gilman adds, noting the
recent vandalisation and desecration of the Orthodox Cemetery of Saint
Eleftherios in Constantinople.
The US congressman expresses hope the appeals of Orthodox Patriarch
Bartholomew for love and reconciliation "will be heard and honoured by the
people of Turkey".
"I know that your government has expressed its strong view that acts of
intolerance aimed at any religion are unacceptable," he said.
Gilman concludes that he would "appreciate learning of any further measures
Turkish authorities plan to take to ensure that the property of the
Ecumenical Patriarchate is secure and to bring the perpetrators of these
despicable crimes to justice."
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NO PROGRESS IN THE DEMOCRATIZATION AND THE HUMAN RIGHTS RECORD IN TURKEY
Strasbourg, 20/07/1998 (MPA)
The Turkish government has made no known move yet aimed at bringing to
justice all those responsible for the vandalism of the Greek Orthodox
cemetery in Istanbul last April, rejecting in practice the clear demand made
two months ago by the EU Council of Ministers and the European Commission.
With this long-lasting inaction Turkey violates its obligations for the
respect of human rights one of the pre-conditions for the strengthening of
Turkey's relations with the EU, as defined by the Luxembourg Summit meeting
in December of 1997 and an essential element of Turkey's European strategy.
Sixty five years after the signing of the Treaty of Lauzanne, which provides
for the obligation to respect and protect non Muslim minorities in Turkey,
Ankara has made no
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