ILPS Global Day of Action

ILPS calls on its members to take actions in commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the Turkish invasion and occupation of Cyprus and in solidarity with the Cypriot people’s call for national unity and national liberation.

Background Context:

On the 50th anniversary of the NATO-planned Turkish occupation of Cyprus, the International League of Peoples’ Struggle stands in solidarity with the Cypriot people in their ongoing fight for liberation and resistance against crimes against humanity on the island.

The US-backed fascist Greek junta, already in power in Greece, orchestrated a coup in Cyprus against then-President Makarios. This disturbance opened the door for Turkey to carry out its invasion on July 20, 1974. These events occurred because, while both Greece and Turkey were part of NATO, Cyprus, having waged a national liberation struggle against British colonialism and gained independence in 1960, positioned itself with the non-aligned world.

For half a century, imperialist occupation and Turkish settler colonialism have persisted on the island. Ongoing colonial policies oppress Turkish-speaking Cypriots, who were forced to relocate to the occupied areas, while preventing Greek-speaking Cypriots, displaced during the Turkish invasion, from returning to their homes. Today, five NATO powers, including Turkey, the United Kingdom, Greece, the United States, and France, maintain a presence on the island, using it to spread imperialist terror throughout West Asia and North Africa. This situation, a direct consequence of the 1974 occupation, is evident once again as British bases in Cyprus are used in operations against the Palestinian and Yemeni people.

NATO powers continue to treat Cyprus as an “unsinkable aircraft carrier,” imposing apartheid-like arrangements such as the “bicommunal bizonal federation” or the “two-state” solutions to facilitate war crimes, despite Cypriots repeatedly expressing their desire for a unitary Cyprus free from foreign military presence.

The International League of Peoples’ Struggle supports the call by its member organization, the Union of Cypriots, to recognize October 10 as International Solidarity Day with the Cypriot People. We invite anti-imperialists worldwide to join or initiate solidarity actions for Cyprus.

October 10 marks the important day when the Non-Aligned Movement adopted a declaration supporting the independent Republic of Cyprus in response to Turkey’s early actions against the Cypriot people. This position was later reinforced by United Nations General Assembly Resolution 2077 (XX) in 1965. The Non-Aligned Movement’s declaration called for “respect the sovereignty, unity, independence, and territorial integrity of Cyprus”, urging the international community to “refrain from any efforts to impose unjust solutions unacceptable to the people of Cyprus.”

The International League of Peoples’ Struggle expressed its unwavering support for the national, democratic, and class unity of Cypriots, as well as the territorial and social integrity of a unitary Cyprus free from foreign military presence, by adopting the Resolution on Support for the National Unity of Cypriots Against the Turkish Occupation and the Presence of NATO on Cyprus at its 7th International Assembly in Malaysia in 2024.

Day of Action Concept:

Union of Cypriots’ call can be accessed on their website here

The following calls can be issued during these actions:

• Liberate Cyprus, Free West Asia and North Africa, Defeat Imperialism!
• Against the Settler Colonialism: Cyprus belongs to Cypriots!
• No Separation! No Federation! Independent Unitary Cyprus!
• Cyprus is not an “Unsinkable Aircraft Carrier” of NATO!

Actions that can be taken around or on October 10

✊ HOLD ACTIONS outside of Turkish or British embassies (calling out Turkey for its brutal and illegal settler occupation, and Britain for its military bases on the island)

• Footage in the form of pictures or videos can be sent to [email protected] for compilation. If posted online, be sure to tag @ilps_official 

📸 TAKE A PHOTO of yourself or members of your organization holding up signs of the above calls

🚩 SHARE POSTERS online or print out to distribute from Union of Cypriots’ website

📚 HOLD POLITICAL EDUCATION sessions publicly or within your organizations.  Use the material found in Liberate Cyprus! Free West Asia and North Africa! End Imperialism as the content for these studies.

📝 WRITE AND PUBLISH STATEMENTS in solidarity with the people of Cyprus and their struggle for national unity and national liberation.  Content can be drawn from the background context of this paper and the Liberate Cyprus primer linked above