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==Background==
==Background==


Cyprus, an island in eastern Mediterranean, inhabited mostly by [[Greek Cypriots|Greek]] and [[Turkish Cypriots|Turkish]] populations, was part of the Ottoman empire until 4 June 1878, when in the aftermath of the [[Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878)|Russo-Turkish War]], it was handed to the British empire.{{sfn|Ρίχτερ|2007|p=23}} As nationalistic tendencies were growing in both communities of Cyprus, Greek Cypriots were leaning towards ''Enosis'' (Union with Greece) which was a part of [[Megali idea]]. The origins of Enosis date back to 1821, the year when the [[Greek War of Independence]] commenced, and the archbishop of Cyprus, his archdeacon, and three bishops were beheaded, amongst other atrocities. In 1828, Count [[Ioannis Kapodistrias]], the first governor of Greece, asked for the union of Cyprus with Greece, while small-scale uprisings also occurred.{{sfn|Mallinson|2005|p=5}} In 1878, when British general Wolsely came to Cyprus to formally establish British rule, he was met by the archbishop of [[Kition]] who, after welcoming him, requested that Britain cede Cyprus to Greece.{{sfn|Mallinson|2005|p=5}} Initially, the Greek Cypriots welcomed British rule because they were aware that the British had returned the [[Ionian Islands]] to Greece in 1864, and they were also hoping for British investment in Cyprus.<ref name="Emerick2014">{{cite book|author=Keith Emerick|title=Conserving and Managing Ancient Monuments: Heritage, Democracy, and Inclusion|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UtTCAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA117|year=2014|publisher=Boydell & Brewer Ltd|isbn=978-1-84383-909-5|pages=117-118}}</ref> In 1912 the British government offered Greece to exchange Cyprus for a naval base in [[Argostoli]], [[Kefalonia]], in order to gain control of the [[Ionian sea]] an offer which was repeated in 1913. In 1915, the British offered several times Cyprus to Greece, in exchange for Greece's participation in World War I. But while Greece was undecided whether it should enter the War, the British government withdrew its offer.{{sfn|Ρίχτερ|2007|loc= chapter First World War|p=157-194}} In 1877, the Enosis movement had only few supporters mainly from the upper classes.<ref name="Lange2011">{{cite book|author=Matthew Lange|title=Educations in Ethnic Violence: Identity, Educational Bubbles, and Resource Mobilization|date=12 December 2011|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=9781139505444|p=93}}</ref><ref name="BellingeriKappler2005">{{cite book|author1=Giampiero Bellingeri|author2=T. Kappler|title=Cipro oggi|year=2005|publisher=Casa editrice il Ponte|isbn=978-88-89465-07-3|p=21}}</ref><ref name="Isachenko2012">{{cite book|author=Daria Isachenko|title=The Making of Informal States: Statebuilding in Northern Cyprus and Transdniestria|date=20 March 2012|publisher=Palgrave Macmillan|isbn=9780230360594|p=37}}</ref>{{sfn|Ρίχτερ|2007|p=114-15}} But that was about to change as two groups of disappointed with the new ruler began to form: the Church and the Usurers. Richter states, that in the following years a growing number of Cypriots were studying in Greece, and upon their return, they became strong advocates of Enosis.{{sfn|Ρίχτερ|2007|p=114-15}} On the other hand, the Turkish Cypriot community started to develop its own nationalism in the early 20th century, as news arrived in the island about the persecutions faced by Muslims in the countries that formed after the collapse of Ottoman Empire.{{sfn|Κτωρής|2013|p=80}}{{sfn|Kizilyürek|2011|p=198 - 199|ps=:''The Turkish Cypriot nationalism mainly developed in reaction to the Greek Cypriot national desire for union with Greece. In the desire of the Greek Cypriots to unify with Greece, the Turkish Cypriot community saw a danger to its own existence. This perception of threat is partly related to the historical experience of the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire in a period of national movements, which ended up in creating independent nation states. The experiences of the Muslim population in the Balkans, where national struggles caused atrocities and deportation, were the main points of reference in the construction of Turkish Cypriot nationalism. Particularly, the example of Crete was to become among the Turkish Cypriots what can be called a ‘‘Crete syndrome’’. Crete’s attempts to unify with Greece and, finally, the realization of this dream of union in 1912 had resulted in the deportation of the Muslim population of the island and its emigration to Turkey. A few years later (1922), the expedition of the Greek army to Asia Minor increased the fears of uprooting among the Turkish Cypriots''}}
Cyprus, an island in eastern Mediterranean, inhabited mostly by [[Greek Cypriots|Greek]] and [[Turkish Cypriots|Turkish]] populations, was part of the Ottoman empire until 4 June 1878, when in the aftermath of the [[Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878)|Russo-Turkish War]], it was handed to the British empire.{{sfn|Ρίχτερ|2007|p=23}} As nationalistic tendencies were growing in both communities of Cyprus, Greek Cypriots were leaning towards ''Enosis'' (Union with Greece) which was a part of [[Megali idea]]. The origins of Enosis date back to 1821, the year when the [[Greek War of Independence]] commenced, and the archbishop of Cyprus, his archdeacon, and three bishops were beheaded, amongst other atrocities. In 1828, Count [[Ioannis Kapodistrias]], the first governor of Greece, asked for the union of Cyprus with Greece, while small-scale uprisings also occurred.{{sfn|Mallinson|2005|p=5}} In 1878, when British general Wolsely came to Cyprus to formally establish British rule, he was met by the archbishop of [[Kition]] who, after welcoming him, requested that Britain cede Cyprus to Greece.{{sfn|Mallinson|2005|p=5}} Initially, the Greek Cypriots welcomed British rule because they were aware that the British had returned the [[Ionian Islands]] to Greece in 1864, and they were also hoping for British investment in Cyprus.<ref name="Emerick2014">{{cite book|author=Keith Emerick|title=Conserving and Managing Ancient Monuments: Heritage, Democracy, and Inclusion|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UtTCAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA117|year=2014|publisher=Boydell & Brewer Ltd|isbn=978-1-84383-909-5|pages=117-118}}</ref> In 1912 the British government offered Greece to exchange Cyprus for a naval base in [[Argostoli]], [[Kefalonia]], in order to gain control of the [[Ionian sea]] an offer which was repeated in 1913. In 1915, the British offered several times Cyprus to Greece, in exchange for Greece's participation in World War I. But while Greece was undecided whether it should enter the War, the British government withdrew its offer.{{sfn|Ρίχτερ|2007|loc= chapter First World War|p=157-194}} By 1915, the Greek Cypriots seeing that neither the British investment, nor Enosis, had materialised, increased their opposition to British rule.<ref name="Emerick2014"/> In 1877, the Enosis movement had only few supporters mainly from the upper classes.<ref name="Lange2011">{{cite book|author=Matthew Lange|title=Educations in Ethnic Violence: Identity, Educational Bubbles, and Resource Mobilization|date=12 December 2011|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=9781139505444|p=93}}</ref><ref name="BellingeriKappler2005">{{cite book|author1=Giampiero Bellingeri|author2=T. Kappler|title=Cipro oggi|year=2005|publisher=Casa editrice il Ponte|isbn=978-88-89465-07-3|p=21}}</ref><ref name="Isachenko2012">{{cite book|author=Daria Isachenko|title=The Making of Informal States: Statebuilding in Northern Cyprus and Transdniestria|date=20 March 2012|publisher=Palgrave Macmillan|isbn=9780230360594|p=37}}</ref>{{sfn|Ρίχτερ|2007|p=114-15}} But that was about to change as two groups of disappointed with the new ruler began to form: the Church and the Usurers. Richter states, that in the following years a growing number of Cypriots were studying in Greece, and upon their return, they became strong advocates of Enosis.{{sfn|Ρίχτερ|2007|p=114-15}} On the other hand, the Turkish Cypriot community started to develop its own nationalism in the early 20th century, as news arrived in the island about the persecutions faced by Muslims in the countries that formed after the collapse of Ottoman Empire.{{sfn|Κτωρής|2013|p=80}}{{sfn|Kizilyürek|2011|p=198 - 199|ps=:''The Turkish Cypriot nationalism mainly developed in reaction to the Greek Cypriot national desire for union with Greece. In the desire of the Greek Cypriots to unify with Greece, the Turkish Cypriot community saw a danger to its own existence. This perception of threat is partly related to the historical experience of the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire in a period of national movements, which ended up in creating independent nation states. The experiences of the Muslim population in the Balkans, where national struggles caused atrocities and deportation, were the main points of reference in the construction of Turkish Cypriot nationalism. Particularly, the example of Crete was to become among the Turkish Cypriots what can be called a ‘‘Crete syndrome’’. Crete’s attempts to unify with Greece and, finally, the realization of this dream of union in 1912 had resulted in the deportation of the Muslim population of the island and its emigration to Turkey. A few years later (1922), the expedition of the Greek army to Asia Minor increased the fears of uprooting among the Turkish Cypriots''}}


In the 1950s, EOKA was established with the specific aim of mounting a military campaign to end the status of Cyprus as a British crown [[colony]] and achieving the island's unification with Greece. The leadership of [[AKEL]] at the time, the island's [[communist]] party, opposed EOKA's military action, advocating a "[[Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi|Gandhiesque]] approach" of [[civil disobedience]], such as [[workers' strike]]s and demonstrations.{{sfn|Mallinson|2005|p=19}}
In the 1950s, EOKA was established with the specific aim of mounting a military campaign to end the status of Cyprus as a British crown [[colony]] and achieving the island's unification with Greece. The leadership of [[AKEL]] at the time, the island's [[communist]] party, opposed EOKA's military action, advocating a "[[Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi|Gandhiesque]] approach" of [[civil disobedience]], such as [[workers' strike]]s and demonstrations.{{sfn|Mallinson|2005|p=19}}

Revision as of 08:07, 3 October 2018

Not to be confused with EOKA B.
EOKA
ΕΟΚΑ
LeadersGeorgios Grivas(Digenis)
Dates of operation1955–1959
HeadquartersCyprus
IdeologyAnti-imperialism
Greek nationalism
Enosis
Anti-communism
AlliesGreece
OpponentsBritish Empire
Turkish Resistance Organisation

EOKA (/eɪˈoʊkə/; Template:Lang-el), acronym for Ethniki Organosis Kyprion Agoniston [a] was a Greek Cypriot nationalist guerrilla organisation that fought a campaign for the end of British rule in Cyprus, for the island's self-determination and for eventual union with Greece.[3]

Background

Cyprus, an island in eastern Mediterranean, inhabited mostly by Greek and Turkish populations, was part of the Ottoman empire until 4 June 1878, when in the aftermath of the Russo-Turkish War, it was handed to the British empire.[4] As nationalistic tendencies were growing in both communities of Cyprus, Greek Cypriots were leaning towards Enosis (Union with Greece) which was a part of Megali idea. The origins of Enosis date back to 1821, the year when the Greek War of Independence commenced, and the archbishop of Cyprus, his archdeacon, and three bishops were beheaded, amongst other atrocities. In 1828, Count Ioannis Kapodistrias, the first governor of Greece, asked for the union of Cyprus with Greece, while small-scale uprisings also occurred.[5] In 1878, when British general Wolsely came to Cyprus to formally establish British rule, he was met by the archbishop of Kition who, after welcoming him, requested that Britain cede Cyprus to Greece.[5] Initially, the Greek Cypriots welcomed British rule because they were aware that the British had returned the Ionian Islands to Greece in 1864, and they were also hoping for British investment in Cyprus.[6] In 1912 the British government offered Greece to exchange Cyprus for a naval base in Argostoli, Kefalonia, in order to gain control of the Ionian sea an offer which was repeated in 1913. In 1915, the British offered several times Cyprus to Greece, in exchange for Greece's participation in World War I. But while Greece was undecided whether it should enter the War, the British government withdrew its offer.[7] By 1915, the Greek Cypriots seeing that neither the British investment, nor Enosis, had materialised, increased their opposition to British rule.[6] In 1877, the Enosis movement had only few supporters mainly from the upper classes.[8][9][10][11] But that was about to change as two groups of disappointed with the new ruler began to form: the Church and the Usurers. Richter states, that in the following years a growing number of Cypriots were studying in Greece, and upon their return, they became strong advocates of Enosis.[11] On the other hand, the Turkish Cypriot community started to develop its own nationalism in the early 20th century, as news arrived in the island about the persecutions faced by Muslims in the countries that formed after the collapse of Ottoman Empire.[12][13]

In the 1950s, EOKA was established with the specific aim of mounting a military campaign to end the status of Cyprus as a British crown colony and achieving the island's unification with Greece. The leadership of AKEL at the time, the island's communist party, opposed EOKA's military action, advocating a "Gandhiesque approach" of civil disobedience, such as workers' strikes and demonstrations.[14]

Initially, the struggle was political, as opposed to military. EOKA, in Grivas' words, wanted to attract the attention of the world through high-profile operations that would make headlines.[15] In his memoirs Grivas claims he was attempting "by deeds of heroism and self sacrifice to draw the attention of international public opinion, especially among the allies of Greece".[citation needed]

Ideology

The ideology of EOKA was nationalistic, conservative, anti-communist and heavily religious.[16][17] Grivas tried to impose the ideological character that fit his own worldview.[16] His ideas found a fertile soil because they were compatible with the ideas cultivated by Greek Cypriots through education, Church action, the press, and the political elites. EOKA was characterized by intense religiosity. OXEN, PEON and ThOI[b] were sources of fighters. [18] [19] The Church recruited and funded the struggle. The priests of the villages blessed the weapons. Essential elements among the letters of the convicted-to-death fighters, were the invocation of God, Christ, faith and prayer.[20] Grivas and Church transmitted their anticommunism to EOKA members. There was a widespread impression that leftists were national traitors and should not have a say on national matters. Moreover, it was thought that the communist ideology leads to slavery. Grivas implemented nationalism to his fighters.[21][22]

In sharp difference with other anticolonial insurgencies in Africa or Asia, where marxist movements led the struggle, in Cyprus it was the right-wing EOKA that carried the armed campaign, while the communist party of AKEL kept a neutral stance.[23]

Tactics

EOKA divided its military campaign into a rural and an urban one.[24] At the high of the campaign in 1956, EOKA consisted of no more than 350 armed men, operating in groups of 5-15 men in the mountain of Troodos and 50 urban groups of 4-5 persons in urban areas. Another 750 passive members of EOKA were organised in village groups while youth and childer were carrying arms[25] Initially, the EOKA's mode of action was sabotage. EOKA was attacking security forces, police stations, barracks, military cars, governmental buildings, power stations, caffes, bars, cinemas and restaurants that british personel used to relax[26] Within 1955 there were 405 bomb attacks in various police, military buildings, public building or houses. In 1956 the number raised to 972.[27]

EOKA also used intimidation towards local population. As David French puts it Grivas used a campaign of enforced terrorism to make sure that he stays safe and greek cypriots fell behind the lines of EOKA.[28] A number of scholars charactirize EOKA as a terrorist organization due attack on public utilities, assassination of members of the security forces, civil servants or civilians suspected of collaborating with the government [29]

Armed campaign

File:First Release by EOKA.gif
The first declaration made by EOKA, distributed in April 1955 outlining their raison d’être. See below for English translation.

The first declaration made by EOKA, distributed in April 1955. (Words in capitals kept as such)

EOKA

ANNOUNCEMENT

With God’s help, with faith in the righteousness of our struggle, with the aid of all Hellenism

WE HEREBY TAKE ON THE STRUGGLE TO RID US (Cyprus) OF THE BRITISH YOKE.

With the sacred motto left upon us by our ancestors "EITHER WITH IT, OR ON IT"

CYPRIOT BROTHERS, From the depths of the centuries we are watched by all those who shone upon Greek history to maintain our freedom, those who fought in Marathon, in Salamis, the 300 of Leonidas and those who more recently fought in the Albanian epoch. We are watched by the fighters of ‘21, who taught us that liberation from an occupier always comes through BLOOD. We are also watched by the rest of Hellenism with anticipation, but also with national pride.

Let us respond with deeds, that we “will better” them.

The time has come to show the world that if international diplomacy is UNFAIR and PUSILLANIMOUS, the Cypriot psyche is brave and if the powers that be do not want to grant us our freedom, we will claim it with our own HANDS AND BLOOD.

Let us show the world once more that a Greek’s neck will not tolerate the yoke. The struggle will be hard; the occupier has the means and the numbers.

However, we have the SOUL, and JUSTICE on our side. And that is why we shall be VICTORIOUS.

GLOBAL ENVOYS,

Take a look at your own actions. It is a disgrace in the 20th century for a nation to have to shed blood to gain its freedom, the holy gift for which we fought on your side and for which you yourselves claim to have fought against Nazism and Fascism.

HELLENES,

Wherever you are, hear our voice:

GO FORTH, ALL UNITED FOR THE LIBERATION OF OUR CYPRUS.....

E.O.K.A.

THE COMMANDER

D I G E N I S

direct translation from the original document released by EOKA

The military campaign officially began on 1 April 1955. On that date, EOKA launched simultaneous attacks on the British controlled Cyprus Broadcasting Station in Nicosia, undertaken by a team led by Markos Drakos, on the British Army's Wolseley barracks, and on targets in Famagusta, by a team led by Grigoris Afxentiou. EOKA's campaign initially targeted the British and those Greek Cypriots identified with them. After the anti-Greek pogrom in Istanbul (September 1955) the Turkish Cypriot community was targeted too.[30][31]

Thereafter and unlike other anti colonial movements, EOKA confined its acts to sabotaging military installations, ambushing military convoys and patrols, and assassinating British soldiers and local informers. It did not attempt to control any territory, a tactic that according to Grivas would not have suited the terrain and size of Cyprus nor the imbalance of EOKA's conventional military capabilities with respect to the British Army.[citation needed]

Formation and structure

The organisation was headed by Georgios Grivas. A graduate of the Hellenic Military Academy, Grivas had served as an officer in the Greek Army. He had fought in both World Wars. During the German occupation of Greece in World War II, he led a small, extreme right-wing resistance group, named Organization X. After the war and during the Hellenic Civil War, he led Organisation X in opposing the leftist resistance guerillas of ELAS.[32]

Grivas assumed the nom de guerre Digenis in direct reference to the legendary Byzantine Digenis Akritas who repelled invaders from the Byzantine Empire.[33] Second in command in EOKA was Grigoris Afxentiou, also a former officer of the Greek army. Afxentiou had graduated from the reserves Officers Academy in 1950 with no prior experience in military operations.

Recruitment of members was targeted at the younger population. The conditions for a mass uprising as witnessed in other colonial conflicts were assessed not to exist in Cyprus. There were no fundamental economic problems nor was there widespread poverty or food shortage.[34] The working class was largely allied to the AKEL left-wingers and did not openly support an armed paramilitary campaign. Cyprus' privileged geographical position allowed the middle class to prosper through international trade, activities that were openly encouraged by the British administration. As a result, EOKA's leadership directed recruitment to the "idealist" and "passionate youth".[citation needed]

At the peak of the conflict, EOKA' paramilitary numbered 1,250 members (250 regulars plus 1,000 active underground). They faced British security forces totalling 40,000 (32,000 regulars plus 8,000 auxiliaries)[1] EOKA was allegedly clandestinely supported by the Greek Government in the form of arms, money and propaganda on radio stations broadcast from Athens. The total cost of running the campaign was reported to be GBP £50,000 (US $140,000) for the whole 4 years.[35]

Targets

British

EOKA against British soldiers in Nicosia, 1956
Georgios Grivas

EOKA's main target, as stated both in its initiation oath and its initial declaration of existence, was the British military. In total, during the campaign, EOKA engaged in 1,144 armed clashes with the British Army. About 53% of clashes took place in urban areas, whilst the rest took place in rural areas.[15]

During the course of the insurrection, 105 [36] British servicemen were killed as well as 51 members of the police.[37]

Colonial and civilian police officers were targeted along with civilian British expatriates (including women and children) who were targeted due to their nationality.[38]

Greek Cypriots

Greek Cypriots suspected of being allied to the colonial forces and those believed to be informants were targeted. Although the extent of operations launched against Greek Cypriots was far smaller than those against the British military, they were much more efficient. In total, 230 assassination attempts were attributed to EOKA action. Of those, only 13 targets escaped unharmed, whilst 148 Greek Cypriots were killed and 69 were wounded.[15]

Among the 148 killings, 23 have since the end of the struggle been characterised as leftists. After the end of the struggle, there has been debate whether EOKA was also used to target individuals on the basis of their political affiliations, in particular if they did not correspond to Grivas' right-wing ideology and/or as a vehicle for settling personal differences. The communist party of AKEL and the EOKA veteran fighters have both been outspoken on this issue.[39][40]

Turkish Cypriots

One of the first actions of Field Marshal Sir John Harding, the newly appointed in 1955 governor of Cyprus, was to expand the numbers of auxiliary Cyprus Police. This was achieved by disproportionate recruitment from the Turkish-Cypriot community, an action that went against the advice of experienced colonial officials who knew that over-reliance upon a Turkish police force would alarm the Greek Cypriot population and likely lead to open conflict between the island’s ethnic communities [41] A new, separate "Special Mobile Reserve" unit was created, exclusively recruiting from the Turkish community.[41] Although EOKA's primary targets were British interests, Cypriots of Turkish descent, especially those serving the colonial security forces soon became targets.[41] Activity against Turkish Cypriots was initiated only after the anti-Greek Istanbul Pogrom of September 1955.[31]

Communal violence, rare in Cyprus before the insurgency, flared up in 1956 and increased throughout EOKA's campaign.[41] In 1957, a Turkish Resistance Organization (TMT in Turkish) came into existence, being a rival paramilitary organisations. Though infrequently, EOKA and TMT did target each other's members with ferocity. In the worst period of such violence, in 1958, EOKA killed 55 Turkish Cypriots whilst TMT killed 60 Greeks.[42]

Events

On 16 June 1956, the bombing of a restaurant by EOKA led to the death of William P. Boteler, a CIA officer working under diplomatic cover. Colonel Grivas immediately issued a statement denying a deliberate attempt to target American citizens. He further warned American officials, for their own safety, to avoid the establishments patronised by "our British enemy."[43]

In October 1956, an EOKA leader was captured during the British forces' "Operation Sparrowhawk." The following year, Grigoris Afxentiou was cornered and forced into a firefight with a British detachment, where he eventually burned to death, in what became known as the Battle of Machairas.[citation needed] A number of other Greek fighters were hanged by the British forces for acts of terrorism and sabotage, including 19-year-old Evagoras Pallikarides.[44]

EOKA's activity continued until December 1959 when a cease-fire was declared which paved the way for the political rapprochement between Greece, Britain and Turkey that produced the Zürich agreement on the future of the country.

The EOKA campaign objectives were partially met when on 16 August 1960 Cyprus achieved independence from the United Kingdom, with the exception of two "Sovereign Base Areas" (SBAs) at Akrotiri and Dhekelia. The settlement explicitly denied Enosis, the union with Greece sought by EOKA. Although Cyprus gained its independence, this independence came with a complex constitution and the 1960 Treaty of Guarantee, a security arrangement comprising a three-way guarantee from Turkey, Greece and Britain that none of them would annex in the future the independent republic.

EOKA allegations of torture by British forces

In 2011, veteran EOKA paramilitary figures announced that lawsuits were being planned against British authorities. This was re-iterated in 2012.[45] The veterans association alleged that at least 14 Cypriots died and hundreds more could have been "tortured during interrogations" by the British during the 1955–1959 campaign. Two of those who allegedly died during interrogation were aged 17. The legal action comes on the back of the uncovering of secret documents released in 2011 which present similar practices during the Mau Mau Uprising in Kenya, during the same period.[46][47] In 2018, Cypriot veterans won right to claim damages over UK torture claims at court. The Greek Cypriots also said that the International Red Cross archives containing eyewitness accounts from officials then working for the organization provide additional evidence of their claims.[48]

Foreign Office declassified documents

In 2012, Foreign Office released highly classified documents which described claims of torture and abuse during the 1955-1959. In the reports there are stories about British soldiers and security services killing a blind man, telling another Greek Cypriot to dig his own grave and punching a pregnant woman who then miscarried. In another incident in 1958, colonial forces rounded up 300 civilians before beating them and leaving some for dead.[48]

Dissolution and legacy

The EOKA campaign lasted officially until 31 March 1959. After independence, EOKA fighters formed regional associations, such as ΣΑΠΕΛ (acronym of "Σύνδεσμος Αγωνιστών Πόλεως και Επαρχίας Λεμεσού"; "SAPEL", "Union of Fighters of Limassol and district"), that have been participating in commemorations, museum collections etc. In the 1990s, a dedicated old people's home for ex-EOKA fighters was constructed in the village of Palodhia, near Limassol.

A memorial museum dedicated to the EOKA campaign was created in 1960. It is located in the centre of Nicosia.[49]

Monuments

There are various monuments dedicated to the members of EOKA who died during the years of combat. Those people are largely regarded as war-time heroes by Greek-Cypriots.

In Larnaka, there are monuments dedicated to Michalakis Paridis, Grigoris Afxentiou, and on King Paul Square to Petrakis Kiprianou, a 17-year-old member of EOKA who was killed in the village of Ora on 21 March 1957.[50]

In culture

  • In series three of the UK television series House of Cards, it is revealed that Prime Minister Francis Urquhart, during his military service in Cyprus in 1956, killed and burned the bodies of two young men who knew where EOKA fighters had stashed a cache of arms. Urquhart experiences guilty flashbacks throughout series three, and an important plotline revolves around several parties' investigations seeking documents related to the "EOKA graves".

See also

Notes

  1. ^ more specific, EOKA is the acronym of the organisation's full name in Greek, Εθνική Οργάνωσις Κυπρίων Αγωνιστών, Ethniki Organosis Kyprion Agoniston (National Organisation of Cypriot Fighters), sometimes expanded as Εθνική Οργάνωσις Κυπριακού Αγώνος, Ethnikí Orgánosis Kipriakoú Agónos ("National Organisation of Cypriot Struggle").[2]
  2. ^ OXEN, PEON and ThOI were Greek-Cypriot associations related to Church

References

  1. ^ a b Kraemer 1971, p. 146.
  2. ^ The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica 2015.
  3. ^ Karyos 2009.
  4. ^ Ρίχτερ 2007, p. 23.
  5. ^ a b Mallinson 2005, p. 5.
  6. ^ a b Keith Emerick (2014). Conserving and Managing Ancient Monuments: Heritage, Democracy, and Inclusion. Boydell & Brewer Ltd. pp. 117–118. ISBN 978-1-84383-909-5.
  7. ^ Ρίχτερ 2007, p. 157-194, chapter First World War.
  8. ^ Matthew Lange (12 December 2011). Educations in Ethnic Violence: Identity, Educational Bubbles, and Resource Mobilization. Cambridge University Press. p. 93. ISBN 9781139505444.
  9. ^ Giampiero Bellingeri; T. Kappler (2005). Cipro oggi. Casa editrice il Ponte. p. 21. ISBN 978-88-89465-07-3.
  10. ^ Daria Isachenko (20 March 2012). The Making of Informal States: Statebuilding in Northern Cyprus and Transdniestria. Palgrave Macmillan. p. 37. ISBN 9780230360594.
  11. ^ a b Ρίχτερ 2007, p. 114-15.
  12. ^ Κτωρής 2013, p. 80.
  13. ^ Kizilyürek 2011, p. 198 - 199:The Turkish Cypriot nationalism mainly developed in reaction to the Greek Cypriot national desire for union with Greece. In the desire of the Greek Cypriots to unify with Greece, the Turkish Cypriot community saw a danger to its own existence. This perception of threat is partly related to the historical experience of the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire in a period of national movements, which ended up in creating independent nation states. The experiences of the Muslim population in the Balkans, where national struggles caused atrocities and deportation, were the main points of reference in the construction of Turkish Cypriot nationalism. Particularly, the example of Crete was to become among the Turkish Cypriots what can be called a ‘‘Crete syndrome’’. Crete’s attempts to unify with Greece and, finally, the realization of this dream of union in 1912 had resulted in the deportation of the Muslim population of the island and its emigration to Turkey. A few years later (1922), the expedition of the Greek army to Asia Minor increased the fears of uprooting among the Turkish Cypriots
  14. ^ Mallinson 2005, p. 19.
  15. ^ a b c Markides, Kyriacos (May 1974). "Social Change and the Rise and Decline of Social Movements: The Case of Cyprus". American Ethnologist. 1 (2): 309–330. doi:10.1525/ae.1974.1.2.02a00070. JSTOR 643552.
  16. ^ a b Θρασυβούλου 2016, p. 298.
  17. ^ Novo 2012, p. 194T:he involvement of the church dictated the course of the EOKA struggle and imbued the cause of enosis with its own particular ideology: anti-communist, Greek, and Christian-Orthodox…(..)At the same time, the church’s ideological control and its uncompromising and exclusionary attitudes played an important role in setting Cyprus on its path to interethnic conflict and independence. Furthermore, traditional Greek-Cypriot accounts tend to downplay “[t]he role of religion in the Cyprus conflict,” but its influence cannot be denied (Hadjipavlou 2007:354). As in Mark Juergensmeyer’s Terror in the Mind of God, religion can play a role “as an ideology of public order” and be connected to “movements of religious nationalism.
  18. ^ Βαρνάβα 2000, p. 88-105, Church and EOKA youth.
  19. ^ Novo 2012, p. 195-196.
  20. ^ Θρασυβούλου 2016, p. 300-303.
  21. ^ Θρασυβούλου 2016, p. 316.
  22. ^ Novo 2010, p. 64-69.
  23. ^ Novo 2010, p. 64-65: While the antagonism between AKEL and EOKA was real and eventually bloody, the alleged ‘cooperation’ between AKEL and the British authorities did not happen.(...) EOKA’s right-wing ideology made it the exception to the rule of post-Second World War insurgencies. Such movements were most often led by communists who aimed at establishing new Marxist societies. This was the case in China, Malaya, Vietnam, and Cuba. As a nationalist and anti-communist movement, EOKA had far more in common with the Irgun and Stern Gang in late-1940s Palestine.
  24. ^ Marshall 1997, p. 169.
  25. ^ Becket 2001, p. 154.
  26. ^ Αργυρού 2014, p. 341.
  27. ^ Αργυρού 2014, p. 341-43.
  28. ^ French 2015, p. 158.
  29. ^ Other scholars that described EOKA as terrorist organization, or their members as terrorist are: (not all inclusive list}
    • Edwards, Aaron (February 28, 2018). "Securing the base : Defending the realm?". Home. Retrieved September 24, 2018. British military intervention in Cyprus reached a crescendo in the major counter-insurgency campaign fought by the island's Security Forces between 1955 and 1959. The terrorist group EOKA, led by Colonel George Grivas, immediately embarked on enosis (union with Greece) through an armed campaign. EOKA was backed politically by Archbishop Makarios III, leader of the Cyprus Orthodox Church, who, while not taking an active part in the terrorist campaign himself, 'hinted that the Church would not shrink from violence if necessary'. {{cite web}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
    • Shughart, William F. (July 21, 2006). "An analytical history of terrorism, 1945–2000". Public Choice. 128 (1–2). Springer Nature: 7–39. doi:10.1007/s11127-006-9043-y. ISSN 0048-5829. A series of similar events played out in Cyprus, where, by 1955, the EOKA had succeeded in throwing the island into complete chaos. Never more than 400 active terrorists strong, the Greek Cypriot organization employed hit-and-run tactics against the much larger British security force deployed on station...(...).... . Britain reacted to the terrorists' "apparent ability to strike anywhere, anytime" and to the growing "public frustration caused by disruption to daily life" by interning and then exiling Makarios to the Seychelles in 1956. {{cite journal}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
    • Audrey Kurth Cronin (24 August 2009). "Chapter 3: Success, Achieving the objective". How Terrorism Ends: Understanding the Decline and Demise of Terrorist. Princeton University Press. pp. 73–93. ISBN 1-4008-3114-8. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help); Text "Campaigns" ignored (help)
    • Abrahms, Max; Lula., Karolina (2012). "Why Terrorists Overestimate the Odds of Victory". Perspectives on Terrorism. 6, no. 4/5: 46–62.
    • David French (2015). Fighting EOKA: The British Counter-Insurgency Campaign on Cyprus, 1955-1959. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-872934-1. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
    • Martha Crenshaw; John Pimlott (22 April 2015). "Terrorism in Cyprus". International Encyclopedia of Terrorism. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-135-91966-5. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  30. ^ Arthur Mark Weisburd (25 April 1997). Use of Force: The Practice of States Since World War II. Penn State Press. p. 76. ISBN 0271043016.
  31. ^ a b Λιμπιτσιούνη, Ανθή Γ. "Το πλέγμα των ελληνοτουρκικών σχέσεων και η ελληνική μειονότητα στην Τουρκία, οι Έλληνες της Κωνσταντινούπολης της Ίμβρου και της Τενέδου" (PDF). University of Thessaloniki. p. 56. Retrieved 3 October 2011.
  32. ^ Ganser, Daniele (July 12, 2005). Nato's Secret Armies: Operation Gladio and Terrorism in Western Europe. Routledge. p. 213. ISBN 978-0-7146-5607-6.
  33. ^ The Cyprus Conspiracy: America, Espionage and the Turkish Invasion page 152
  34. ^ A good example was the case of Algeria where the uprising was fueled in part by a poor wheat harvest, shortages of manufactured goods, and severe unemployment. See article: "Nationalism and resistance in Algeria"
  35. ^ Kraemer 1971, p. 144.
  36. ^ Official statistics, unofficial estimates at around 371 (see Simpson, Alfred William Brian)
  37. ^ Simpson, Alfred William Brian (2001). Human Rights and the End of Empire: Britain and the Genesis of the European Convention. Oxford University Press. p. 893. ISBN 978-0-19-926789-7.
  38. ^ The struggle for Cyprus. Charles Foley, W. I. Scobie, Hoover Institution Press, 1975
  39. ^ Hazou, Elias (April 12, 2005). "Christofias comments spark EOKA storm". Cyprus Mail. Retrieved 2008-08-15.[permanent dead link]
  40. ^ Hadjistylianou, Michalis; Giorgos Ploutarhos (2005-04-07). "Οι δύο όψεις της ιστορίας για τους εκτελεσθέντες (The two views on the assassinations)". Simerini (in Greek). Archived from the original on 2008-02-25. Retrieved 2008-08-15. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  41. ^ a b c d S. Corum, James (March 1, 2006). "Training Indigenous Forces in Counterinsurgency: A Tale of Two Insurgencies" (pdf). Strategic Studies Institute. U.S. Army War College. Retrieved 2009-05-03.
  42. ^ Drousiotis, Makarios (2005-04-25). "Our Haunted Country". Politis Newspaper. Retrieved 2009-05-03.
  43. ^ Gup, Ted. Book of Honor: Covert Lives and Classified Deaths at the CIA page 90, New York, Doubleday, 2000. ISBN 0-385-49293-6
  44. ^ Simpson, Alfred William Brian (2001). Human Rights and the End of Empire: Britain and the Genesis of the European Convention. Oxford University Press. p. 876. ISBN 978-0-19-926789-7.
  45. ^ "Cypriots to sue U.K. for alleged torture in '50s", Herald News, 1 November 2012
  46. ^ Theodoulou, Michael (13 April 2011). "Greek Cypriots intend to sue Britain over torture in 1950s uprising". The Times. Retrieved 2011-05-09.
  47. ^ Dewhurst, Patrick (14 April 2011). "EOKA fighters to sue Brits over torture". Cyprus Mail. Archived from the original on 18 May 2011. Retrieved 2011-05-09. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  48. ^ a b Eoka fighters win first historical torture battle in UK court
  49. ^ Leonidou, Leo (June 22, 2006). "The flag that marked the end of colonial rule". Cyprus Mail. Archived from the original on 2007-05-26. Retrieved 2007-04-17. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  50. ^ The inscription reads, "ΠΕΤΡΑΚΗΣ ΚΥΠΡΙΑΝΟΥ ΑΓΩΝΙΣΤΗΣ Ε. 1956–1959 – ΠΕΣΩΝ ΣΤΗΝ ΟΡΑ ΛΑΡΝΑΚΑΣ 21.3.1957", "Petrakis Kyprianou, Cyptiot fighter, 1956-1959, fallen in Ora Larnaka 21/3/1957"

Sources

Secondary, Books

In Greek
  • Βαρνάβα, Αντρέας (2000) Η νεολαία στον απελευθερωτικό αγώνα της ΕΟΚΑ, Λευκωσία, Συμβούλιο Ιστορικής Μνήμης ΕΟΚΑ
  • Ρίχτερ, Χάιντς Α. (2007). Ιστορία της Κύπρου, τόμος πρώτος (1878-1949). Αθήνα: Εστία. ISBN 9789600512946. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Kizilyurek, Niyazi (1990). Ολική Κύπρος. Λευκωσία: Κασουλίδη. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Κτωρής, Σώτος (2013). Τουρκοκύπριοι: από το περιθώριο στο συνεταιρισμό, 1923-196. Αθήνα: Παπαζήσης. ISBN 9789600228984. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Θρασυβούλου, Μάριος (2016). Ο εθνικισμός των Ελληνοκυπρίων, από την αποικιοκρατία στην Ανεξαρτησία. Θεσσαλονίκη: επίκεντρο. ISBN 978-960-458-686-8. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
In English

Journals

Encyclopedias

Thesis

Further Reading

Primary Sources

  • Grivas, George; Charles Foley (1964). The Memoirs of General Grivas. London: Longmans.
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