Today I talk Greek, does not mean my loyalty to Egypt is altered neither my loyalty to Greece had ever been affected with my Egyptian loyalty. Bi-ethnical people is hard to explain but I can say it is as difficult as asking you to make a choice and love your father more or your mother!
In fact the reason I speak Greek today is closely relate to Egypt and Egyptian today’s problem as we will see soon but first I need to speak of Glafcos Clerides -Γλαύκος Κληρίδης in Greek- and give a short tribute to a man lived and died for his country!
First the Guardian Newspaper said in its main page “Glafcos Clerides, the former Cypriot president who dedicated most of his 50 years in politicsto trying to reunify the ethnically split island and guided it to European Union membership, died Nov. 15 at a clinic in the capital city Nicosia. He was 94.
The death was confirmed by Joseph Kasios, Mr. Clerides’s personal physician. He did not disclose the cause.” I just hope it will not turn to be an assassination too like Yasser Arafat the former Palestinian leader, indeed Palestine and Cyprus represent to me the twine coin of the same problem occupied land that the International Community failed to solve and as a getaway exit they decided to divide the land between occupants creating even more problems between occupants! We had seen this division –useless in my opinion- solution a lot of times the closest into my mind Somali and Sudan overlooking Iraq as a still united land with fighting guerillas for just the joy of power nothing more!
Now back to our Glafcos Clerides –R.I.P.- who was he?
IN THE NEWS
The World : Cyprus Elects New Leader
February 22, 1988
George Vassiliou, a 56-year-old Communist-backed millionaire, defeated a veteran conservative opponent to become president of Cyprus. With 90% of the vote counted in a second round of balloting, Vassiliou had 51.53% of the votes and Glafcos Clerides had 48.47%. It was the first closely contested election since independence from Britain in 1960. Clerides, 68, and Vassiliou eliminated incumbent Spyros Kyprianou on Feb. 14 in the first round in the Greek part of the Mediterranean island.
Last Tango in Cyprus
January 16, 2002 | RICHARD BOUDREAUX, TIMES STAFF WRITER
One is 82, the other 77. They met as opposing lawyers in a string of terrorist trials nearly half a century ago and have grown old trying to outfox each other in one of the world's most intractable armed standoffs. Their common obsession has spawned a respectful but wary friendship. They have no doubt spent more time conversing than many married couples do, and their periodic estrangement has been punctuated by jovial barbs, traded through the media, about each other's advancing girth and age.
That is what you get in the news when asking about Glafcos Clerides who was he? But in Wikipedia there is a different story about him here is a brief outline of his life:-
Clerides was born and died in Nicosia. He was the eldest son of the lawyer and statesman Ioannis Clerides. Clerides was married to Lila-Irene. They have a daughter, Katherine, who is a member of the House of the Representatives for the Democratic Rally Party. He died on 15 November 2013 at a hospital in Nicosia!
During World War II, he served in the British Royal Air Force. In 1942 his airplane was shot down over Germany and he was captured. He remained a prisoner of war until the end of the war. His name was mentioned in dispatches for distinguished services.
Following the war, he studied law at King's College London graduating in 1948, and later practiced law in Cyprus. He was a member of the EOKA organization that sought the liberation of Cyprus from British Rule and participated in the struggle under the pseudonym "Ypereides." During that period he defended numerous EOKA fighters arrested by the British. One of his most famous accomplishments was a preparation of a dossier that enumerated and provided evidence of instances of Human Rights violations by the Imperial administration of Cyprus and its agents.
Clerides participated in the 1959 London Conference on Cyprus and during the transitional period, from colonial administration to independence (1959–1960), he served as Minister of Justice. During the same period he was Head of the Greek Cypriot delegation in the Joint Constitutional Committee. In July 1960, he was elected to the House of Representatives which, in turn, elected him as its first President. He held this position until 22 July 1976. In the first presidential elections Clerides backed Makarios III, the other candidate being his father Ioannis Clerides.
Cyprus became independent in 1960, and Clerides gained political power as a member of the United Democratic Party. Following the 15 July 1974 coup d'état in which EOKA B, a Greek Cypriot pro-enosis paramilitary organisation, overthrew the democratically elected Makarios and installed Nikos Sampson as a President with dictatorial powers, Turkey invaded Cyprus. Eight days later, Sampson was forced to resign. On the same day, 23 July 1974, Clerides temporarily assumed the duties of the President of the Republic, in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Constitution. He exercised these duties until the 7 December 1974, the day of the return of Archbishop Makarios, President of the Republic, who was forced to flee on 16 July 1974 on account of the coup. Both President Makarios and the House of Representatives thanked Glafcos Clerides publicly for the task he performed during that period. Critics, especially from EDEK refer to that period as the post-coup, implying that democracy was not fully restored until the return of Makarios. Clerides on the other hand has repeatedly condemned what he called "violence and counter violence" that lead to the coup (i.e. the conflict between Grivas's EOKA-B and "efedriko", a special anti-terrorist police body formed to fight EOKA-B).
From 1961 to 1963 he held the position of President of the Cyprus Red Cross. In recognition of his outstanding services he was awarded a Certificate of Honour and Life Membership in recognition of distinguished services to the Red Cross.
In 1976 he founded the right wing Democratic Rally (Demokratikos Synagermos). He was a candidate for the presidency of Cyprus six times and elected to two five-year terms, in 1993 and in 1998. In 1998 his main opponent was Georgios Iakovou. He was defeated in the 2003 presidential election by Tassos Papadopoulos.
He was the author of the autobiographical overtoned depiction of 20th century Cypriot history, My Deposition, in four volumes. Glafcos Clerides is an Honorary Member of The International Raoul Wallenberg Foundation.
During his presidency (1993–2003)[ Succeeded byTassos Papadopoulos] Cyprus prospered significantly. Its stabilised economy made Cyprus the wealthiest of the ten inductees to the European Union in 2004. The Clerides administration is heavily credited with the ascension to the European Union. Clerides, with his Churchillian persona, was respected by world leaders at the time of his presidency, and was locally a respected leader because of his accomplishments. He lost some of this popularity due to his strong support of Annan Plan for the unification of Cyprus. While 65% of the Turkish Cypriot community voted in favor of the plan in a referendum, the Greek Cypriot community rejected it by over 75% of the popular vote.
Now let us see the similarities and differences Cyprus/Egypt
We all know learned and remember Egypt, Palestine, and most of the Middle East world was part of the Empire that then Sun is always on –Endless Empire that people rejected demanding their INDEPENDENCE- UK itself was nothing but UNITED KINGDOM built over the Independence and freedom of Irelands, Scotland and …
Naturally this fallen Empire had built their defenses to remain alive after Independences –one follows the other- 1st set back was Belford promise 2nd set back extracting pieces of lands as Independent countries, Cyprus was part of the Greek Islands that belong to GREECE never an independent country but now it is seen as a country divided between Turks and Greeks! Recall prior to the revolution shortly after WWII was over Sudan that was part of Egypt become Independent country moreover fighting with Egypt over parts of land pretending they do have historical ties!
Bottom line is looking over Ardoghan of Turkey and Egypt/Cyprus national ties with Turkey? Remember both Egypt/Cyprus were occupied by Ottoman –the demolished Empire that Turkey leaders try to bring back alive.
In conclusion I would say each and every event has more than a side to look at the defeat of Egypt 1967 was a victory for Israel who suffered a defeat 1973 that was a victory for Egypt. The ½ empty cup is as well ½ full but politicians try to make people see only the full part believing it is full all the way up while opposition tries to show only the empty part. This is all how politics works but within those there is always the bright side of humans that for them the GOAL was humanity and Clerides for sure was one of those that history will remember for ever as a bright politician who lived and died for his country, Rest in Peace Clerides you wrote your name in Golden Letters!
This is the difference between Patriots and traitors Morsy as well will be remembered in history but as a traitor who tried to subdivide Egypt and cut it more small pieces while Glafcos Clerides tries to unify an already divided land!
Please God let the power of love overcome the love of power so that the world will be in peace one day, Peace of the Lord be with you ALL.
