On the recordJuly 19, 2010
For nearly 36 years, the people of Cyprus have endured an illegal occupation and massive violations of human rights and fundamental freedoms by Turkey after it invaded a sovereign nation 36 years ago tomorrow. It breaks my heart to hear the stories of how the occupied north has been devastated, how the Turkish occupiers have converted chapels in Kyrenia into bars and tourist information centers; how once beautiful churches have been converted into mosques; how the U.N. peacekeepers on the island have watched for 36 years as the Turkish Army has laid land mines and can only sit and note what's being done--a peacekeeping force operating with no mandate to stop the lawlessness. It breaks my heart that families forcibly removed from their homes had all of their personal and real property stolen from them. More heartbreaking than anything else are the persons missing since 1974, Madam Speaker, whose families still grieve knowing they will never be at peace until their sons, brothers, husbands, and fathers are accounted for and whose bones must be laid to rest. Yet the Turkish Government still refuses to cooperate. To us, their actions aren't acceptable. That is why we will continue to fight and persist in our efforts to reunify Cyprus and make the island whole again and heal the wounds. A solution to the Cyprus problem has come from the Cypriots themselves and must serve first and foremost the interests of the Cypriots.
