Cyprus
Popular
Back to all posts
In Cyprus we are hyper-fixated on the 'peace process' at the same time that we distance ourselves from it. We act like spectators at a sporting match - watching the main players scoring points against each other, and comment on whether what we're seeing is right or wrong. More »
While in Cyprus Desmond Tutu was interviewed by Christiana Voniati for Cyprus' POLITIS newspaper. She asked him about his reasons for visiting Cyprus, the importance of dealing with the past when resolving conflicts, and what, if any, place there was for a truth and reconciliation process on the island. The article was published in December 2009 More »
While I was in Cyprus many people asked me “Why have the Elders come here three times?” “Why do you think we can achieve peace now when we haven't done before?"
My answer is this: I think the situation now is very different from what I have known in the past, and represents possibly the best opportunity we have seen for a solution. More »
Desmond Tutu, Lakhdar Brahimi and Jimmy Carter visited Cyprus from 8-10 December 2009. During their visit the three Elders met with the Greek Cypriot leader Demetris Christofias and the Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat. They also held a public meeting to discuss issues of trust and truth-seeking in divided societies. More »
From my years of involvement in peace building work I have discovered some basic 'raw' truths that have also been the experience of possibly everyone who has been involved in this kind of work. First, is the fact that the pain of 'our' side blinds us to the pain of the 'other' side. More »
How sorry I was that I could not visit Cyprus with my fellow Elders, Gro Brundtland and Lakhdar Brahimi, in September. I suffered a back injury that kept me bedridden in South Africa; if only I were as young in body as I feel in spirit! My family are always telling me to slow down, but somehow I never quite manage it.
So it is a joy to be coming back to Cyprus, a place that really made an impression on me when I visited a year ago, just as your two leaders were beginning negotiations to reunite this beautiful island. More »
The Elders met the Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat, and Greek Cypriot leader Demetris Christofias and were encouraged by their positive reports of progress at the start of the second phase of peace negotiations. At a press conference at the end of their visit, the Elders also urged the Cypriot media on both sides to play a responsible role in reporting the progress of the talks and in covering efforts to improve cooperation between the two communities.
