Dr.Ihsan Ali lived a life
(1904-1978), full of love for his home country, Cyprus. He served as a
physician for both the T/C and G/C. He was also a clever politician with a
vision and showed always close interest for local and international politics.
When he returned to Cyprus as a
doctor, he settled in 1934 in Paphos from where he contributed a lot for the
betterment of the living conditions of the Cypriot people under the British
colonial government.
He regularly wrote articles about the political, social and economic
problems related with the T/C. He started to write in the progressive Kemalist
weekly Ses (Voice) in 1935 on medical matters. Later he wrote political
articles in Soz (Word) newspaper and he became its editor-in-chief one year
later. He was criticising the T/C political leadership, formed around the KATAK
and he was himself the Paphos district secretary of this party. In 1951-53, he
wrote in Istiklal (Freedom) newspaper of Necati Özkan, who was also an opponent
of Dr.Kucuk's policies. Dr.Ihsan Ali was a member of the Paphos Educational
Board and socially active in the Paphos Turkish Unity Club as well as a member
of the Paphos Municipality Council.
When the Republic of Cyprus was
established in 1960, he started to write in the weekly newspaper
"Cumhuriyet" (Republic), owned by the two advocates Ahmet Gurkan and
Ayhan Hikmet who in 1962 were murdered by the orders of the partitionist T/C
leadership. Dr.Ihsan Ali wrote the following evaluation in his "Memoirs":
"The Zurich and London
Agreements created an extraordinary (phenomenon of a) state. It was very
difficult to have a harmonious co-operation of the two communities within the
framework of this constitution which had no parallel anywhere in the world. Three
years after the inception of the Constitution, the first bloody incidents broke
out, known as "the 1963 incidents". (p.37) ...The colonial power
chose to sow the seeds of disruption, as it did elsewhere. The colonialists
believed that they could plant those seeds through the London-Zurich
Agreements. (p.37)
The percentage of Turkish public
servants and policemen (30%) as required by the Constitution, was far higher
than the proportion of the population, while the percentage of the Turkish
forces (TURDYK) was 40 % and that of Greek Forces (ELDYK) 60 per cent.
Recognition of the right of veto by the T/C Vice-President, separate courts,
separate municipalities and above all, the presence of Turkish and Greek Forces
in Cyprus all appeared very attractive to the Turkish side and were considered
great success. However, it was the colonialists who had really succeeded. All
their efforts concentrated on doing everything within their power to secure the
acceptance of a constitution that sooner or later could cause a clash between
the two communities. They believed that, with mutual destruction that would be
created among the Cypriot people, they would secure their own military bases,
which they managed to consolidate with the Zurich Constitution." (p.37)
Dr.Ihsan Ali defended his honourable
struggle against the partitionist T/C leadership as follows:
"One can easily understand how those people terrorised the T/C
community. There is no doubt that their aim was to separate the two communities
so that the situation would culminate in de facto partition.
I hope that the reader will understand why I refused to cooperate
with that leadership... As I did not follow the policy of the T/C leadership, I
was accused of being a traitor, by those who wanted to conceal their own
treason.
Even some Greeks regarded my action
as strange because their fanaticism and chauvinism did not allow them to
realise that I was facing the situation as a Cypriot and was concerned about
the interest of the people of Cyprus as a whole. They could not appreciate this
line of thought and I wonder how could the Cyprus State continue to exist if
the Cypriot people are not able to realise that first of all they are
Cypriots." (p.58)
Dr.Ihsan Ali was a close friend of
President Makarios and he was appointed as his political adviser in 1970. After
the fascist coup and the following Turkish invasion, he was one of the
participants of the National Council Meeting when the basic principles were
adopted in 1977. He wrote the following in his "Memoirs" in 1978 a
few months before his death:
"The basic principles for the
solution to the Cyprus problem were made known to Waldheim and Clifford by
Archbishop Makarios. The principles had to do with the territorial percentage,
return of the Greek and Turkish refugees, freedom of movement and settlement
and the recognition of the right of ownership. Those principles were rejected
after a few days by the T/C leadership and Turkey. (p.94)...
... For the resolution of the problem, there are some basic
preconditions for the safe-guarding the independence, territorial integrity and
non-alignment of the Cypriot state. These are the freedom of movement, the
recognition of the right of property for every citizen and the withdrawal of
all foreign troops from Cyprus. These basic preconditions which are desired by
the masses on both sides are not recognised by the Turkish government and the
T/C leadership. Thus, the continuation of the talks with the delaying tactics
followed by the Turks aim at perpetuating the situation that prevails today.
Such tactics would inevitably lead to partition and perhaps double Enosis, with
the direct result of the dissolution of the Cyprus Republic." (p.100)
These thoughts of Dr. Ihsan Ali show
very clearly the notion of the common homeland with Cypriot citizens as point
of reference.
As we can see it in his letters
which were written to the son of his brother, Mr.Ozdemir Ozgur, and which were
published in 2004 in Turkish as a book under the title "Letters from
Dr.Ihsan Ali", his assessments and predictions were proven right and this
shows how he was competent of the subject.
In his letter of 13 May 1976, he wrote the following about a letter
he sent to President Makarios:
"I have defended the thesis
that the two communities can live together. If this did not bring any result,
this is not my fault, but of the junta and the EOKA-B" I wrote and I
stated that my position was thus very delicate, because I am a Turkish Cypriot
and the Greek Cypriot side regards me as an outsider. I also isolated myself
from my own community because of my faithful and serious policy (at the same
time as a result of the transfer of the Turkish Cypriots to the North and because
of the treachery of the Greek-Cypriot side) and because of all these, I, as a
citizen who made politics for many years, don't feel myself 'psychologically'
well and on the other hand, I again lost as a physician since all the Turkish
Cypriots were transferred to the North. I feel myself as a pensioner. He phoned
me and said that we could talk when we would meet." (p.151)
He wrote the following on 27 April
1977:
"It doesn't look like that the
Cyprus problem will be solved. It seems to me that the Turks will declare a
separate government. And they will allow the US to build bases in their
quarter. The British have their bases in the Greek-Cypriot side that the
Americans can use them whenever they want, like they used them during the
Arab-Israeli wars. In other words, the war planes took off from here and bombed
the Arabs. It is cowardly that the CIA brought such a great calamity to Cyprus,
though they had such an opportunity in their hands." (p.180)
Dr.Ihsan Ali looked with doubt at
the solution formulas brought by the creators of the problem. Here are some
quotations from the year 1978: "It's a pity that the key of this problem
is in the hands of the silly Americans. And we are worried that a logical
solution will not be found so easily." (p.204)
"I don't see it possible that the Greek Cypriot side will
achieve successful results. What the aim and the policy of the American
government are will be realised. These dream-loving creatures have tied their
hopes to their Motherland (!) which caused their own destruction. Whereas they
don't know that Greece has accepted the double enosis which was proposed by the
USA, but this could not be realised, because Turkey rejected it. I learned this
long ago." (p.206)
"There is no hopeful sign
whatsoever that this problem, that is the Cyprus problem, will be settled
easily. As long as the Middle East problem continues as it is now, it looks
like that the Cyprus problem, too, will still be pending. All of these are the
games of the NATO." (p.211)
Dr.Ihsan Ali had seen the
development of the awareness of Cypriotism as the only way out and he expressed
his criticisms and views towards this end:
"The soul and the mentality
carried by the Greek Cypriots and the Turkish Cypriots are terrible obstacle
for the establishment of an independent state as the state of Cyprus. The
Turkish flag is hanged in the Turkish quarter and the Greek flag is hanged in
the Greek quarter. The Cypriot flag is not seen. The Greek Cypriots celebrate
28th March Ohi Day as if it is their own holiday and the Turks celebrate 29
October as if it is their own holiday. Indeed, this kind of actions, create
disgust for the future. The days which are regarded as holiday by other states
are celebrated and the day of "so-called independence" does not
bother anyone. Then they declare without being ashamed that they want an
independent and sovereign state. I am so much afraid that this situation will
end up with double enosis and then the real disaster will happen." (p.194)
If Dr. Ihsan Ali were alive, I am
sure, he would state with the same clarity how he would feel embarrassed that
the south of our island became a part of the EU and the north came under the
control of the USA through Turkey.
Dr. Ihsan Ali quoted in his letter
of 5th June 1972 that Makarios told someone for the second time about himself
"If we also had not more, but 5-6 Ihsan Alis" (p.75)! He wrote in
another letter of 1 November 1977 the following: "It cannot be an
exaggeration to tell that since Makarios vanished, there is no taste anymore in
this country." (p.196)
I tell that, at this very moment, our Cyprus is in need of thousands
of Ihsan Alis. Our task is to remain faithful to his memory and to contribute
at the bringing up of new Ihsan Alis and to contribute at the reunification of
our country.
(This paper was
read at the Commemoration Meeting on 16 December 2005, organized by the
Dr.Ihsan Ali Foundation in Nicosia)
who is he
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