Founding President Rauf Raif Denktaş, one of many essential actors of Turkish Cypriot political historical past, might be commemorated with ceremonies and occasions on his thirteenth dying anniversary tomorrow.
Rauf Denktaş, who devoted his life to the Turkish Cypriots' wrestle for independence, served because the president of the Turkish Cypriot Federated State after the 1974 Completely happy Peace Operation and because the Founding President after the institution of the TRNC, was an writer and photographer with greater than 50 books along with his id as a politician and lawyer.
Rauf Denktaş handed away on January 13, 2012, on the age of 88, after a lifetime of wrestle.
-A childhood with no mom
Rauf Raif Denktaş was born on January 27, 1924, within the city of Paphos, Cyprus, because the fourth and final baby of Emine Hanım and Choose Mehmet Raif Bey. Denktaş, who misplaced his mom Emine Hanım when he was just one.5 years outdated, was raised by his father, maternal grandmother, and his grandfather, Şeherli Mehmed, who was a police officer through the Ottoman interval. He spent his childhood in Aybifan village, which is constructed on a hill within the valley generally known as Solya Valley, south of Lefke.
Denktaş, who began his main training at Arabahmet Kindergarten in Nicosia in 1929, went to Istanbul in 1930 with the steering of his father. He began to review as a boarding pupil at Fevzi Ati Excessive College, which supplies training from main college to highschool in Arnavutköy. Nevertheless, he returned to Cyprus after secondary college and continued his training on the island. Denktaş graduated from Nicosia British College in 1941.
After graduating from the British College, he labored as a translator in Famagusta, as a civil servant on the court docket, and as a instructor on the British College for a yr. Denktaş, who got interested within the issues of the Turkish Cypriots when he was solely 18 years outdated, began writing articles in Halkın Sesi Newspaper to precise the issues of the society. Rauf Raif Denktaş and Dr. Fazıl Küçük met for the primary time in March 1942, when the Halkın Sesi Newspaper began to be revealed.
– Newspaper articles signed by Akın Yılmaz
Halkın Sesi Newspaper, which has the title of the longest-lived newspaper within the Turkish Cypriot press, defined its ideas in its first situation as “to guard the rights of the Turkish neighborhood, to precise the issues of the society, to be impartial, to combat in opposition to the colonial administration and Greek ambitions, and to take care of the love of the Motherland and loyalty to it”. These ideas listed by the newspaper coincided with the statements Denktaş heard from his father and his nationalist and Ataturkist mates, particularly through the time he spent with him. Because of this, Denktaş started to write down articles in Halkın Sesi Newspaper, signed or unsigned, generally beneath the identify Akın Yılmaz.
– Leaving the island for training
Rauf Raif Denktaş studied regulation at Lincoln's Inn in England with a scholarship he received from the British Council in 1944. Denktaş, who graduated from the School of Legislation in 1947, returned to the island with out losing any time and began working as a lawyer in the identical yr. As quickly as Denktaş returned from England, the place he went for training, Dr. He started to work with Küçük as an in depth good friend and, when obligatory, as an advisor.
Denktaş grew to become engaged to Aydın Hanım, the daughter of Pharmacist Münir Bey, who was born when he was solely 9 years outdated and was given to him saying “right here is your fiancée”, they usually obtained married proper after returning to the island.
-Denktaş's first take a look at in opposition to the Turkish Cypriot individuals
Though he wrote articles in Halkın Sesi Newspaper, the Turkish Cypriot individuals had the chance to get to know Denktaş on the first huge rally organized for Enosis on 27 November 1948. By addressing the Turkish Cypriots for the primary time at this rally, Denktaş took his first step into the Turkish Cypriot political life. Describing that day in a particular interview Denktaş later gave, he stated: “It was time for the rally, we went. Selimiye was full and overflowing… My first handle to the general public. I’ll converse for the primary time. I gave a very good speech. All hell broke unfastened. “I feel these applause pushed us on this path,” he stated.
After this course of, Denktaş started to actively combat for the rights of Turkish Cypriots on completely different platforms. In 1948, he served as a member of the Constitutional Council established by the then Governor of Cyprus. The Communist Akel Celebration, which participated within the Council beneath heavy strain from the Greek Church, later withdrew from the Council and the Meeting was closed.
Following this case, the “Turkish Affairs Fee” was established beneath the chairmanship of Choose Mehmet Zekâ Bey, with intensive contacts of Turkish representatives. Denktaş additionally took an energetic half on this fee. He performed an energetic function within the preparation of a report for the return of the rights usurped by the British Colonial Administration. Nevertheless, the report despatched to the Chief Public Prosecutor's Workplace didn’t have the specified impact as a result of there was no Turkish prosecutor within the Chief Public Prosecutor's Workplace. Thereupon, Denktaş left the regulation agency in 1949 and determined to grow to be an assistant prosecutor.
– The highway to the Chief Public Prosecutor's Workplace
Work on the legal guidelines labored on by the Chief Public Prosecutor's Workplace couldn’t be accomplished till 1954. Because of the passage of time, Denktaş was promoted to chief prosecutor. Throughout Denktaş's time period as chief prosecutor, many individuals who tried to sneak into the island from Greece have been caught. Denktaş took care of the follow-up of all these and their referral to the judiciary. Because of this case, Denktaş had an concept concerning the new construction that Greece and the Greek neighborhood have been attempting to create on the island. Predicting that the British would hand over the Island to Greece inside 5-10 years, Denktaş resigned from his place as prosecutor and appointed Dr. He took a extra energetic function in fixing social issues alongside Küçük.
– The interval of pioneering the organized resistance of the Turkish Cypriots
In response to the multifaceted organizations of the Greek Cypriots, Turkish Cypriots determined to assemble all Turkish establishments and organizations beneath one giant group as a way to keep their presence on the island and to face in opposition to ENOSIS actions and established the Federation of Turkish Cypriot Establishments and Organizations. Rauf Denktaş was appointed because the President of the Federation in query.
In the identical yr, the foundations of a distinct group have been laid by Denktaş and his shut mates. The foundations of the Turkish Resistance Group (TMT) have been laid in Nicosia on the night of November 23 by Rauf Denktaş, Burhan Nalbantoğlu and Mustafa Kemal Tanrısevdi.
In truth, this group changed the organizations that existed till then, similar to Volkan, which weren’t as efficient as desired. Over time, because of Denktaş's persistent calls for, it grew to become an efficient resistance group (August 1, 1958). On this method, the political and resistance organizations of the Turkish Cypriots gained a centralized administration.
– Safety drawback on the island: “The native authorities shouldn’t be ready to guard our lives and property.”
Denktaş, who took half within the preparation of the weekly English model of the Halkın Sesi Newspaper, continued to prepare the Turkish Cypriots to combat in opposition to the rising EOKA assaults in 1958.
Throughout this era, the “27-28 January 1958 Occasions” in opposition to the British administration additionally passed off. Afterwards, the individuals began to speak about partition.
Many Turkish Cypriots who skilled safety issues started emigrate from the villages the place they lived blended to areas with a excessive Turkish inhabitants. Throughout this era, the 2 communities started to regularly separate from one another as a result of intra-island migration motion. In his assertion at the moment (Hürriyet Newspaper dated July 21, 1958), Denktaş stated, “The native authorities shouldn’t be ready to guard our lives and property.”
– A brand new web page on the Island
Within the shadow of all these occasions, the Zurich and London Agreements have been signed on February 11, 1959, which opened a brand new web page in the way forward for the individuals in Cyprus. Along with Turkish and Greek Cypriots, the states of the UK, Türkiye and Greece additionally took half within the signing of the settlement. The Greek facet was led by Archbishop Makarios, the Turkish facet by Dr. Fazıl Küçük represented it. The Republic of Cyprus, formally established on 16 August 1960, included the political equality of Turkish Cypriots and Greek Cypriots.
Denktaş, who was within the Turkish delegation attending the London Convention, informed the Minister of International Affairs of the Republic of Turkey, Fatin Rüştü Zorlu, “Makarios will destroy these agreements in the end and set out on the trail of Enosis. It performs a task right here. He made an evaluation that “sooner or later, he’ll break the partnership by arguing that these agreements have been compelled upon him.”
In the meantime, within the partnership Republic established in 1960, Denktaş was this time elected because the President of the Group Council and the President of the Government Committee. Nevertheless, within the third yr of the founding of the Republic, assaults by the Greeks began once more. Denktaş, who wished to announce the rights of Turkish Cypriots to the world on the United Nations after the occasions of 1963, was declared persona non grata by the Makarios administration and was banned from coming into the island.
– Return house
Denktaş went to Erenköy through a secret route in July 1964 and took half within the Battle of Erenköy. He was in peril of dying twice right here. Later, he returned to Ankara utilizing the key methods he got here and informed the İnönü Authorities about what was occurring on the island and requested army intervention. Denktaş, who tried to secretly enter the island once more on the finish of 1967, was caught by the Greeks this time. Denktaş described the dialog he made on the time of his seize in an interview with a non-public tv channel as follows: “The soldier requested me why did you come? I stated, 'You didn't let me by way of the door, I needed to come by way of the window. “I stated, 'I got here house,'” he stated. Denktaş was extradited to Turkey after 13 days with intense diplomatic strain from Ankara.
In any case these tough years, Denktaş was in a position to come to the Island by regular route solely in 1968. In the identical yr, Glafkos Clerides and Dr. have been representatives of Makarios, one of many Greek leaders. As Küçük's consultant, he began the primary inter-communal negotiations. Denktaş, who received the elections on February 16, 1973, took the oath on February 28, 1973 and started his duties as Vice President of Cyprus and President of the Turkish Cypriot Administration.
Nevertheless, the anticipated outcomes weren’t obtained within the inter-communal negotiations that continued all through this course of, and Türkiye intervened militarily on the island in 1974. After the army operation, the Turkish Federated State of Cyprus was established in 1975 and Denktaş was elected president of the State. Denktaş, who was elected President within the elections held for the second time in 1981, declared the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus in 1983.
Denktaş, who was elected because the President of the TRNC in 1985, received the elections in 1990, 1995 and 2000 and continued his obligation as President till 2005.
Denktaş, who was not a candidate for the 2005 elections, performed a decisive function in Turkish Cypriot political life for practically half a century.
– He was not discovered at his son's funeral
Denktaş, who spoke English and Greek very nicely, had three daughters and three sons from his marriage with Aydın Hanım. Denktaş misplaced a daughter when she was solely two and a half years outdated as a result of illness she caught, and he misplaced his 7-year-old son throughout tonsillectomy. Denktaş, who couldn’t attend his son's funeral as a result of he was in Turkey for the rights of Turkish Cypriots, at all times expressed his ache in his interviews. Denktaş misplaced his son in a site visitors accident on the age of 34.
Along with over 50 revealed books, Rauf Denktaş additionally has a movie script. As a consequence of his curiosity in pictures, Turkish Cypriots might usually see the Founding Presidents taking portraits of odd residents with a digital camera in hand.
Denktaş, who handed away on January 13, 2012, can be the recipient of the Turkish World Service Award, the Man of the 12 months Award by the Turkish Journalists Affiliation, the Atatürk Worldwide Peace Award given by the Atatürk Larger Institute of Language and Historical past, and the twentieth Century Leaving Folks's Chief Award.
