Politicians in north outraged by Metsola’s Eoka remarks

Strong reactions continued in the north on Friday to remarks made by European Parliament president Roberta Metsola referencing Eoka.

Turkish Cypriot leader Tufan Erhurman said the comments raised serious concerns among Turkish Cypriots, questioning whether European officials fully understand the sensitivities surrounding the organisation.

“While Mrs Metsola marked this anniversary with great enthusiasm, was she unaware of what this organisation represents for Turkish Cypriots?” he asked, adding that such rhetoric is “increasingly undermining the trust of Turkish Cypriots”.

He called on European institutions to reassess their approach, arguing that statements supporting a solution to the Cyprus issue are contradicted by positions that alienate one side.

“If the EU does not know Cyprus, it should take the time to learn, if it does, it must reconsider its stance,” he said.

The north’s ‘prime minister’ Unal Ustel also criticised the remarks, describing them as unacceptable and accusing EU leadership of disregarding the historical experience of Turkish Cypriots.

He said references portraying Eoka in a positive light amounted to “a clear scandal and a distortion of historical facts”, adding that the organisation “remains associated in the memory of the Turkish Cypriot people with violence, suffering and attacks”.

People’s Party (HP) leader and former Turkish Cypriot chief negotiator, Kudret Ozersay, also criticised the European Parliament president, saying the remarks ignored what he described as the “existential sensitivities of the Turkish Cypriots” and reflected “a complete lack of logic”.

He argued that Eoka had “poisoned life in Cyprus not only for the British but also for the Turkish Cypriots through violence”.

Ozersay warned that such positions could exacerbate divisions rather than counter rising nationalism.

The criticism follows Metsola’s message at the European Parliament marking the anniversary of EOKA’s founding, in which she referred to the group’s actions in terms of “courage and sacrifice.

Eoka, formed in 1955 under the leadership of General George Grivas, launched an armed campaign against British colonial rule with the aim of achieving union with Greece.

The period, known to the colonial government at the time as the ‘Cyprus Emergency’, saw violence directed at British forces as well as intercommunal tensions between both Eoka and the Turkish Cypriot paramilitary faction, the Turkish resistance organisation (TMT), led by Rauf Denktash.