“I was not born in Cyprus. I did not experience the war. But I have learned the story of the dark summer of July 1974 in Cyprus. I have learned about the injustice. I have learned what the people of Cyprus went through. I have learned what it means when I say ‘I will not forget!'” writes Dimitra Sienna Karatza.
The 49th anniversary of the coup and occupation of Cyprus has resonated with 10-year-old student Dimitra Sienna Karatza, who wrote a beautiful piece.
Dimitra, a second-generation Greek Cypriot with roots in Cyprus, is a student at the Panellinio College of the Cypriot Community in the Northern Suburbs of Melbourne.
Her text reads as follows:
CYPRUS: 49 YEARS – I WILL NOT FORGET
Last night, I saw my grandmother take a book and look at it. She does this every year around this time. For the first time, I decided to take a look too. The title read “Days of Wrath – Cyprus.” I felt strange and opened it to see what kind of book it was.
It had many photographs. I sat and looked at them. I felt my heart breaking. I saw little children crying fearfully in their mother’s arms. Grown-ups crying from pain. I asked my grandfather and grandmother to tell me about the photographs.
They told me that on July 15, 1974, the Greeks of Cyprus fought among themselves. This gave Turkey the opportunity to send thousands of troops to Cyprus on July 20. The Turkish soldiers committed many atrocities. They killed innocent people, even children. They captured others, and some of them are still missing today.
Those who are still missing are still unaccounted for. One of them is my grandmother’s brother, Andreas. The Turks took him, and since then, all traces of him have been lost forever.
Since then, Cyprus has been divided in two. Even after 49 years, the refugees of Cyprus cannot return to their homes. This saddens me greatly. It is a great injustice.
I was not born in Cyprus. I did not experience the war. But I have learned the story of the dark summer of July 1974 in Cyprus. I have learned about the injustice. I have learned what the people of Cyprus went through. I have learned what it means when I say ‘I will not forget!’
Dimitra Sienna Karatza
