UNITED CYPRUS MOVEMENT:
Commitment towards a united, peaceful Cyprus.
The Cyprus problem has been in existence for many decades now, and progress on it has been minimal or non-existent for a long
time. Generations of Cypriots up to and including the people who were actively involved in the Cypriot political life in the 70s have
been unable to overcome their fears and prejudices in order to find a way forward.
While recognising that there can be many good starting points for promoting a solution, we feel strongly that the most promising one
is the formation of a movement of dedicated Cypriots from all the communities on the island who are willing to work towards re-
unifying our country
peacefully.
The need for Cypriots to unite their voice and express their
thoughts and desires is pressing. The polarisation and alienation between the two main communities of the island coupled to the
increased political and military tensions in the Eastern Mediterranean make the need for change towards the better exceptionally
urgent. Those of us who want to see a better future for Cyprus and offer their children a better
inheritance than the one that was handed down to us have a responsibility to act now. Simply being a silent but peaceful majority
cannot achieve anything.
The United Cyprus Movement is not intended to be yet another political party, or merely a means of communication between Cypriots
on opposite sides of the green line. It aims instead to provide a vehicle for all Cypriots, both within and outside Cyprus, to voice
openly their thoughts, ideas, wishes and opinions on the present and future of Cyprus, without the fear of personal suffering or
persecution. Such a movement can act as a political pressure group both within Cyprus and, at a later stage, internationally. The
movement is not affiliated with any political party, but will aim to support all moves by any organisation that wishes to contribute to
the just and peaceful resolution of the Cyprus problem.
1. The objectives of the Movement are as follows:
1.1 To develop a consensus opinion on the type of solution, as well as the type of society, that people who feel that they possess
a Cypriot identity, regardless of ethnic origin, religion, or political beliefs, want to see as their common future in Cyprus. Proactive
development of ideas and positions should be aimed at, where possible.
1.2 To suggest and develop mechanisms through which to counter chauvinistic influences on Cypriot consciousness and to
ensure that further nationalistic extremist behaviour can be neutralised and thus rendered harmless to any peace process.
1.3 To develop a common, articulate view of history, admitting openly past mistakes, countering narrow, one-sided
revisionist attempts at altering the recorded version of events in living memory.
1.4 To dispel prejudices, misconceptions, and simple factual ignorance, that over two decades of separate existence have
generated in Cyprus.
1.5 To encourage healthy discussion of all of the above objectives amongst all the people of Cyprus, in order to educate them to
think for themselves, rather than accept dogmatically what vociferous individuals and groups say. This can only be achieved if the
members of the Movement lead by
example, rather than preach their ideas.
2. The Cyprus problem is a multi-faceted one: it comprises the international interests of many countries (including Greece, Turkey,
UK, USA), the overbearing presence of foreign and domestic troops on the island, the ever-increasing alienation and mistrust between
the two main communities in Cyprus, and the internal wrongs of the Cypriot society. An open recognition of all of the above problems
and their complex inter-relationships is a necessary pre-requisite to any progress in Cyprus. The Movement will produce increasingly
detailed positions on all of the above problems (e.g. demilitarisation and security) and will work towards solving them.
3. Outline of organisational structure:
3.1 Membership of the Movement is open to all Cypriots, within and outside Cyprus, who are willing to actively participate in
pursuing the above aims and work towards a peaceful reunification of our island. A clear demonstration of the sincerity and
commitment of new members to the Movement's stated objectives will be required for all members.
3.2 As the members of the Movement include Cypriots currently located all over the world and since communication between
the divided parts of Cyprus is highly restricted, the main means of communication between the members will be through the internet
in the first instance. Other methods of
communications, as well as group meetings will be organised when necessary.
3.3 All external communications will be published (initially in electronic form) by the Movement rather than individual
members and the final form of these will be agreed between all the members by democratic procedures
agreed upon by all the members.
3.4 There does not exist a hierarchical organisational structure within the Movement, i.e. an executive council, president, or
classes of membership, but all the members have equal status. A core group of members exists only in order to facilitate, but not
censor, internal communication.
As the movement develops, it may choose to internally structure itself in any way its members wish.
3.5 The Movement can be contacted via internet, ucm@unix.gaianet.net. A postal address will be also available shortly.
Movement's public announcements can be found on WWW at; http://www.gaianet.net/~ucm
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