They killed their families but could not prevent the friendship of the children…

*** Sevilay Berk's mother and father were killed by some Greek Cypriots in 1964… Maria Georgiadou's mother, father, sister and brother were killed by some Turkish Cypriots in 1974… These murders did not prevent them from becoming friends… The two relatives of "missing" became very close friends…

They killed their families but could not prevent the friendship of the children…

Sevgul Uludag

caramel_cy@yahoo.com

Tel: 99 966518

Two women: Both of them relatives of "missing" persons… In total they have six "missing" persons in their families: Two of them Turkish Cypriots and four of them Greek Cypriots… Two Turkish Cypriots were killed and "disappeared" in 1964 and four Greek Cypriots killed and "disappeared" in 1974…
Sevilay Berk's mother and father were killed by some Greek Cypriots in 1964… Maria Georgiadou's mother, father, sister and brother were killed by some Turkish Cypriots in 1974… These murders did not prevent them from becoming friends… The two relatives of "missing" became very close friends… They killed their families but could not prevent the friendship of the children…
When the mother and father of Sevilay Berk were killed and "disappeared", she was barely a 17-year-old girl, the eldest of the five kids and the youngest was only two years old. They were from Pervolia-Trikomo… Her mother Shefika Huseyin and her father Huseyin Ahmet Kamber were taken by some Greek Cypriots from the road they were travelling in May 1964 and "disappeared". Huseyin Ahmet Kamber also known in the area as the "Milkman" was collecting and selling milk and helping his family survive in the area… When in May 1964 he would be taken together with his wife and turned into "missing", they would leave behind five kids… The eldest was Sevilay, the 17-year-old girl. She would have to become both a mother and a father for her siblings, would raise them with love and care and would become one of the greatest peacebuilders in Cyprus among all this tragedy… We have found the remains of Sevilay Berk's parents in a well in Trikomo with the help of my readers, but we have not found any of the "missing" relatives of Maria Georgiadou yet…
Maria Georgiadou was born and raised in one of the most beautiful and important villages in Cyprus with an abundance of water… She would have a happy childhood in the old Cyprus that we used to know… In 1974 her mother Chrystalla, her father Andreas Orphanides, her sister Militsa would be killed and become "missing" from their own house in Kythrea. Her brother Stelios Orphanides would be killed and become "missing" in 1974 between Gypsou and Trikomo…
Maria Georgiadou was the only one from her family who remained alive – this was because she had been married in Nicosia. If she had stayed in Kythrea, perhaps today we would be looking for her whereabouts today…
Although Maria lost four of her closest relatives, she never nurtured hatred, enmity or anger and became one of the greatest peacebuilding persons in Cyprus…
When I had introduced Maria and Sevilay to each other, right after the crossing points "opened" back in 2003, I had told them that "Your stories are so similar to each other – almost the same… You are so much like each other… I am sure you will like each other a lot…"
And in fact, Maria and Sevilay, a Greek Cypriot and a Turkish Cypriot, both relatives of "missing persons" struck up such an extraordinary and beautiful friendship that they became a symbol of peace in Cyprus.
Even though their families have been massacred, their close friendship as their children could not be shaken by anything at all…
If one of them would get sick, the other one would run, cross the checkpoint, bring a pot of soup to help heal…
They would go on holidays together, they would celebrate the Easter, New Year and the Bayram together…
They became shining examples for all of us…
They showed us through their own lives that the pain of the relatives of "missing persons" is not "Turkish pain" or "Greek pain" but human pain… That it is a universal pain felt by all whoever have "missing persons" in their families, no matter what language they speak or what colour or ethnicity they are from…
They opened a path for the relatives of "missing" persons in Cyprus, both Turkish Cypriots and Greek Cypriots to walk together this path called life and to stand together next to each other, empathising and understanding, instead of being drowned in hatred…
Due to their extraordinary friendship, the Bicommunal Association of Relatives of Missing Persons and Victims of War called "TOGETHER WE CAN!" could have a strong basis and Turkish Cypriot and Greek Cypriot relatives of "missing persons" and victims of war with similar thinking could come together just like them and form friendships… And beyond friendships, work together in order to find other "missing persons"…
Maria and Sevilay participated in many local and international activities together as speakers…
They went around schools and showed their extraordinary friendship in flesh and blood to the kids…
So that there will be no more wars, no more killings, no more "missing persons" in Cyprus they spoke and spoke and spoke…
A lot of documentaries were produced about their friendship both in Cyprus and abroad…
The crimes committed against civilians both in 1964 and 1974 could not cast any shadow over the unique friendship of these women whose families also share their feelings and constantly visit each other… They chose the path for peace… They chose the path for friendship and mutual understanding…
On the night of the 19th of October 2018, Sevilay Berk's daughter, opera singer Beste Berk was getting married with Barish Topal in Mersin-Turkey at the Navona Hotel… There would be the wedding ceremony…
The speciality of this wedding was that Sevilay's friend Maria Georgiadou would also go to Turkey from Cyprus, to attend the wedding in Mersin.
Maria would be next to Sevilay and Mustafa Berk in the family to celebrate the special day of the daughter of Sevilay, Beste with an extraordinary voice, an opera singer, like someone from the close family…
Another Greek Cypriot would go from Cyprus to Mersin for this wedding: Eleni Vasiliou was a childhood friend of Sevilay from Trikomo and she too would share the joy of the wedding with her friend Sevilay…
The two relatives of "missing persons", Sevilay and Maria are way ahead from politicians – their lives show us how far ahead they are living…
Their lives show us how ordinary people in Cyprus can form beautiful and understanding friendships despite our tragic history…
Sevilay and Maria are thorns in the throats of those who want to partition our island…
They show us the way we should take: The path we should take is that of friendship, sisterhood, peace…
We also congratulate the young couple, Beste and Barish…
They are very lucky youngsters since in their families and in their lives, there are such women like Sevilay and Maria who have become symbols of peace…

26.10.2018

Photos: Maria and Eleni with Sevilay and family at the wedding…
The black and white photo: The relatives of Maria killed and "missing" since 1974 and relatives of Sevilay killed and were "missing" since 1964… Sevilay's parents, with the help of my readers, we managed to find them buried in a well in Trikomo… We had no such luck with Maria's mother, father, sister and brother who are still "missing"…

(*) Article published in the POLITIS newspaper on the 18th of November 2018, Sunday. A similar article in Turkish was published in the YENİDÜZEN newspaper on my pages entitled "Cyprus: The Untold Stories" on the 25th of October 2018 and here is the link:

http://www.yeniduzen.com/ailelerini-oldurduler-ama-evlatlarin-dostlugunu-engelleyemediler-13130yy.htm