By Pavlos Anastasiou

• Member of the EDEK Central Committee / AGONAS for the Reconstruction of EDEK

The recent Extraordinary Pan-Cypriot Congress of EDEK was not merely an initial, coordinated, and decisive response to the results of the parliamentary elections, but the first democratic upheaval within EDEK in many years. It was the action that laid the groundwork for a radical change of course and marked the beginning of the end of the inward-looking attitude and the destructive trajectory of the past decade. The “Struggle for the Reconstruction of EDEK” Initiative was the force that succeeded in adding the necessary democratic elements to this ferment: The free expression of dissenting views and respect for democratic decision-making.

The decisions made at the Congress leave no room for misinterpretation. The EDEK membership decided to completely abolish arbitrary expulsions and to appoint a five-member committee of mutual acceptance to review all disputed cases of loss of membershipall members. It also decided to convene a Constitutional and Electoral Congress and to appoint the Credentials Committee by name. The above decisions constitute the most legitimate and highest expression of the movement’s grassroots, which is binding on all bodies and members of EDEK. 

Driven by our vision for the reconstruction of EDEK, we, as the “Struggle Initiative,” have succeeded—through our passion, vitality, and substantive proposals, to mobilize the movement’s members—who are proud yet weary from chronic disagreements and conflicts. A decisive factor in this response was the fact that we asked for nothing more than the obvious: respect for democracy, openness, and adherence to legal procedures.

The clear and indisputable conclusion is that the EDEK community is now demanding, in the clearest possible terms, that the movement’s leadership and officials put aside past grievances, exclusions, sabotage, and personal attacks, and to operate in a spirit of consensus, mutual respect, and compromise. In two words: collectivity and openness. Proof of this can be found in the Congress’s other decisions regarding financial oversight and the organizational restructuring of the movement. These decisions demonstrate that the EDEK community demands transparency, accountability, and substantive changes. It demands that party leaders “settle accounts” with the past so that the movement can move forward on a new, clean path.

The history of EDEK was not written behind closed doors, through exclusion and undemocratic processes. It was written in the streets, in the squares, in the struggles, and in the conference halls. It is etched in the heart of every person who believed in, fought for, and fell in love with this movement. Today, there is no more time for procrastination, nor any room for introversion. The struggle for reconstruction has begun, and it calls for all of us to be present—heads held high, with absolute transparency, integrity, and a collective spirit—on the front lines. We extend a direct and sincere call to every comrade who has distanced themselves, to every member and friend who believed in us and was hurt, to return home. Let us leave behind whatever has divided us, rebuild trust, and shape the EDEK of this new era together.