IN AN INTERVIEW published in the last edition of the Sunday Mail, Dervis Eroglu’s advisor Kudret Ozersay expressed the view that the Turkish Cypriots had “turned into less than a community.” This was the reason he is currently leading an effort to organise a social movement, the aim of which “is for the Turkish Cypriots to start becoming a community again.”
His remedy envisages the Turkish Cypriots uniting and taking the control of the north which they had surrendered to Ankara many years ago. Ozersay believes that only if the Turkish Cypriots “act together” would they be able to “convince Turkey” to pursue policies that were in line with the community’s interests and not just Ankara’s. Being an academic he chooses his words carefully, not wanting to make enemies before his social movement has even been established, but he does not hide the fact that time is running out. “This is the last chance for the Turkish Cypriots,” he told the Sunday Mail, adding that “it is a struggle for existence.”
Ozersay’s fears are clear, even though he avoids spelling them out. The uncontrolled Turkish immigration to the north has turned the Turkish Cypriots into a shrinking community that will eventually be swallowed up by the settlers from Turkey and have no say in their future. It would be only a matter of time before they lost the hold on power they still enjoy and become an inconsequential minority of the north’s constantly growing Turkish population. How can the tide of immigration be stopped?
The idea that Ankara could be convinced to change its policies towards the north, by a well-supported social movement, seems rather wishful, considering the north’s total financial dependency on Turkey. If Ankara does not release funds the pseudo-state would not be able to pay the many thousands of public sector workers it employs. The bloated and inefficient public sector was cited as one of the big problems faced, Ozersay noting that even if the isolation of the Turkish Cypriots was lifted, it was questionable whether the north would be able to take advantage of it.
This is inevitable after decades of dependence on Turkey, which always picked up the bill in the north. This practice may have suited the Turkish Cypriot politicians, giving more and more public sector jobs to voters, but it cultivated a dependency culture which has prevented society from progressing economically. Being an academic, Ozersay knows that only by changing this culture, can the north hope to reduce its dependence on Turkey. But such an undertaking could take years before producing results, by which time it could be too late for Ozersay’s social movement.
