Saturday, 28 October 2023
A protest march organised by the Republican Turkish Party (CTP) was held in Nicosia on Friday evening, Yeniduzen reports.
Thousands of people joined the march including various MPs, union representatives, NGOs and members.
The slogans of the march were, “We are here: This path will be walked together” against “poverty, impoverishment, corruption, and migration”.
A crowd gathered at Kuğulu Park in Nicosia and walked to the historic Sarayönü Square with slogans of “Unity, Struggle, Solidarity.”
The march was led by head of the CTP Tufan Erhürman who stated, “This is not a CTP matter; it is a matter for the country. We will walk this path together, and we will govern together at the end“.
Also present at the gathering was former DP Chairman Serdar Denktaş, former MPs from the People’s Party (HP) Gülşah Sanver Manavoğlu, independent MPs Jale Refik Rogers and Ayşegül Baybars, BKP General Secretary İzzet İzcan, and Mehmet Küçük, Chairman of the Dr. Fazıl Küçük Foundation Board of Trustees and son of Dr. Fazıl Küçük, Mehmet Küçük, among others. Various union leaders and civil society organisation leaders were also present.
Afterward, the crowd proceeded to Sarayönü Square, where a large stage was set up.
Addressing the crowd in Sarayönü Square, Erhürman said, “We may have different opinions, different thoughts about the future of this country, but we have one common point we agree on, and that is that we love this country. We love this country!“
Erhürman stated that those who claim to govern the country have stolen from the past and are now stealing from the future, and he drew attention to the children in the ongoing war in Palestine. He mentioned that the world is not a fair place, and they want peace on this small island and all over the world.
He went on to accuse the government of playing musical chairs saying that its only aim was to hold on to power.
Politicians and representatives who attended the march included:
Former President Mehmet Ali Talat, CTP MPs, CTP mayors, independent MPs Jale Refik Rogers and Ayşegül Baybars, former Prime Ministers Ferdi Sabit Soyer, Ömer Kalyoncu, and Özkan Yorgancıoğlu, President of the Turkish Cypriot Medical Association Ahmet Özant, President of the Journalists Union Emin Akkor, President of BASIN-SEN Ali Kişmir, President of the Turkish Cypriot Primary School Teachers’ Union Selma Eylem, President of the Turkish Cypriot Secondary School Teachers’ Union Mustafa Baybora, President of DAÜ-SEN Ercan Hoşkara, President of DEV-İŞ Koral Aşam, President of KTAMS Güven Bengihan, President of KTMMB Tunç Adanır, President of the Chamber of Mechanical Engineers Ayer Yalkıner, President of the Chamber of Architects Kozan Uzunoğlu, BKP General Secretary İzzet İzcan, experienced politician Serdar Denktaş, President of Koop-Sen Mehmet Ali Güröz, President of Kamu-Sen Metin Atan, President of Kamu-İş Ahmet Serdaroğlu, Chairman of the Dr. Fazıl Küçük Foundation Board of Trustees, and Dr. Fazıl Küçük’s son, Mehmet Küçük, President of the Animal Producers and Breeders Union Mustafa Naimoğlu, President of the Cyprus Turkish Chamber of Artisans and Craftsmen Mehmet Ali Ardıç.
