Motorcycle rides from all the cities converged on the Isaac – Solomos in Paralimni, where a memorial and tribute event was held in the presence of the President of the Republic, Nikos Christodoulides, marking the 30th anniversary of the murders of Tassos Isaac and Solomos Solomos.
After the event, the motorcyclists will spend the night at the Deryneia roadblock, to attend the 30th annual memorial service, which will be held on Sunday, August 9, at the Church of Saint Demetrius in Paralimni.
ΣΧΕΤΙΚΑ ΑΡΘΡΑ
For its part, the President of the Republic, Nikos Christodoulides, was reiterated by the President of the Republic, Nicos Christodoulides, in his speech. As he noted, following the investigations conducted, 13 national and five international arrest warrants have been issued, which remain unenforced due to the refusal of the occupying regime and Turkey to implement them.
“Accountability and punishment are not over,” the President stressed, among other things, emphasizing that bringing the perpetrators to justice for the murder of the two heroes is a universal demand of the Cypriot people, but also an obligation of the European Union and a duty of the international community. “Justice is not an act of revenge. It is a matter of principle; it is a matter of dignity. And we will fight for it until we achieve it,” he stated emphatically.
Journalist Kleio Vourkou was in Paralimni:
President Christodoulides’ speech in its entirety:
There are moments when no words, no statements, and no speeches can capture the images etched into the collective memory of a people and an entire nation— images that have become synonymous with courage and a banner for every person who claims the inalienable right to live freely.
Two such powerful images were captured 30 years ago, featuring Tassos Isaac and Solomos Solomou, who, through their martyrdom, to put it bluntly, through their brutal murder, not only brought to the attention of all humanity the illegal acts committed by the occupying Turkish forces in our homeland since 1974, but, more importantly—and this is why we are all here tonight, and if we truly wish to honor their memory, this is what matters most—Tassos and Solomos also defined our own duty to this country.
Tassos was martyred at the hands of his bloodthirsty murderers in an inhumane manner, while Solomos was murdered as he was exposing to the eyes of humanity, to the eyes of the entire world, the symbols of the illegal occupation.
The photographs from that very difficult August of 1996, which plunged Cyprus and the Greek world everywhere into mourning, are irrefutable evidence of two heinous crimes, which have both moral instigators and physical perpetrators.
Following an investigation conducted at the time and the appropriate legal proceedings, the Republic of Cyprus has issued 13 national and five international arrest warrants. And despite the refusal of the occupying regime—and, of course, Turkey—to execute these warrants, I want to promise you tonight—I am here with the Minister of Justice, the Deputy Minister of Culture, the Minister of Agriculture, and the Minister of Health—that as the Republic of Cyprus, we will intensify our efforts to execute these warrants. And we know—and have proven in practice in certain other cases—including when we were recently threatened publicly regarding the issue of squatters—that when we want something done, it will be done. And I promise you that we will do so.
Accountability—so I don’t have to hear comments from certain people—and punishment are not over. And holding accountable and punishing those who murdered Isaac and Solomos is a universal demand of our people; it is an obligation of the European Union; it is a duty of the international community. The pursuit of justice is not an act of revenge; we are not here to seek revenge. It is a matter of principle; it is a matter of dignity. And we will fight for it until we succeed.
After all, we owe it to the heartbroken parents of these heroes, Mr. Spyros and Mrs. Tasoula. We owe it to Anastasia, who never had the chance to meet her father, nor to Solomos, who have become the most recent heroes of our people’s struggle for liberation.
Through their heroic sacrifice, Tassos and Solomos unraveled the thread that had been held before them by the honored fighters of 1974 during the Turkish invasion, all those who fought against the Turkish insurgency in 1964, all those who fought in the purest struggle of Cypriot Hellenism—the national liberation struggle of EOKA—the struggle followed by the revolutionaries of 1821, and many other descendants of Leonidas.
And this unique, defining journey through history stands the test of time and is brought to light thanks to the Isaac-Solomos, which highlights the sacrifice of the two young men and places it in its true context—as a conscious act of self-sacrifice unto death— in a homeland that remains under occupation and needs the light of its heroes to illuminate the uphill path toward freedom.
I am here on behalf of the state, but first and foremost I am here as a citizen of this country, to honor the memory of our two heroes, to stand in solidarity with their loved ones, and to support and encourage the members of the Memory Initiative, the motorcyclists, and all the other companions on this unique journey of duty—the journey of dignity.
Tassos and Solomos did not ask for laurel wreaths; they did not ask for glory; they did not ask for privileges. Tassos and Solomos were two simple, pure-hearted patriots, raised on Hellenic-Christian ideals, who fought for what should go without saying: To live freely, to move about freely, to be free in their homeland.
And with their blood, they watered the parched soil of Famagusta—85% of which was under occupation—along the road leading to the rest of our Cyprus.
Through their sacrifice, they became a beacon of light in the darkness of the occupation and gave meaning to the stirring four-line verse that describes our proud people, who endure without breaking:
“Endless years of slavery, their beatings and their kicks. We, however, stand firm, like olive trees and terraces upon their rocks.”
May their memory live on forever.
