‘We continued our struggle with hope without ever losing our faith.’ Erenköy Mujahideen Prof. Dr Salih Saner Interview

Prof. Dr. Salih Saner participated in the Erenköy resistance in July 1964 and continued his struggle until 1966. His Cyprus Cause and struggle, especially Erenköy, never ended. As he himself expressed; ‘Youth is not a period of life, but a state of mind. We are happy to live free today, we know its value well and we are determined to protect it.’

Salih served as a professor and Programme Coordinator of Petroleum and Natural Gas Engineering at Middle East Technical University Northern Cyprus Campus between 2009-2018. In addition to his education and training activities in his field of expertise, he continued to tell the history of the Erenköy struggle to students, lecturers and employees through the trips he organised to Erenköy, which is considered the Çanakkalesi of Cyprus.

Those who know him know that he is determined, persevering and has endless energy, especially when it comes to Cyprus... He is also a volunteer ambassador of Cyprus. With the nature walks he organised, he took us all in front of him, and with his lyrical and cheerful narration, he enabled us to see the unique places of Cyprus, from history to nature, from green to plants. Sometimes you will hear the music of Cyprus with his kemencha, sometimes you will eat local dishes that you have never tasted before...

Salih Hodja has been the school of Turkish Cyprus and Turkish Cypriots...

Salih Hocam is one of the most exceptional and valuable people you will meet in Cyprus. I learnt a lot from him, I was proud to have worked with him. Together, we took our students to Erenköy and refreshed our historical memory every time. We realised a project together on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the Erenköy Resistance. And more...

Our pain and memories about the Glorious Erenköy Resistance are still very fresh... It is possible to access some of these memories in written and digital sources...

On the occasion of this study/project, which was carried out under the leadership, contributions and support of the METU Northern Cyprus Campus Atatürkist Thought Society, we would like to share with you what we have learnt from our interviews with Salih Saner at different times and some of the interview with him.

Salih Saner is one of the 500-540 university students who participated in the glorious resistance. One night, with a small caravan, he reached Erenköy by sea. He was in a place he had never known before, a timid and anxious journey under heavy bombardment.

However, as he himself expressed; ‘after the first half hour, all the fear passed’.

How did they come to Cyprus, Erenköy? ‘We were receiving news about the situation on the island from our families and friends. We were students in Turkey at that time. We would all gather at night and stay up all night. We would think about what to do. We would think whether we should send a representative or organise such and such a demonstration. We were constantly active. We were asking for help and support from Turkey with the marches we made. With our request, Turkey gathered volunteer students and took them for training in the Zir valley in Ankara. We completed our training in a very short period of 15 days. We were approximately 500 students. At the end of 15 days, these 500 students were taken to Erenköy accompanied by assault boats. Turkey also provided us with our weapons. Even though they were old World War II weapons, they distributed these weapons to us. We achieved our organisation by receiving contributions in this way.’

What was the motivation of the generation that participated in the war?

‘First of all, I would like to point out that the periods of 1964 and 1974 are two different war periods. Although their reasons are united in a common denominator, these two periods should be handled separately. I was a mujahideen in the 1964 generation. I can give you brief information about this generation. Erenköy, one of the villages of the Dillirga region, is the region where I fought. Before I came to Erenköy, I was a student in Turkey. As I mentioned before, we were receiving news from our families and friends. They were saying that the Greeks had negative attitudes towards the Turks.

As far as I remember, in December 1963, the Greeks claimed that there were disagreements within the Republic of Cyprus and started their activities with the desire to destroy the Turks on the island. For us, this was something that was expected, but we were caught unprepared. We were only receiving news of what was happening from afar. The only thing we could do at that time was to organise marches in Turkey, to draw attention and to provide aid to the island. At the end of these marches, they started to prepare us for the struggle on the island. In short, when we look at the situation before the war period, we see the Greeks trying to destroy the existence of the Turks in the island and the Turks who were powerless and waiting for contributions to fight against this.’

The Effect of the War on the Relations between the Turkish and Greek Cypriots

‘First, let us focus on the period of British rule on the island. There was clearly never a close relationship between Turkish Cypriots and Greek Cypriots. In fact, when we look back in history, we realise that relations were not bad in Cyprus alone, whether it was the conquest of Constantinople or the War of Independence. The British were also aware that the relations between the Greek Cypriots and the Turks were not good during their period, and from time to time they took Turks and used them against the Greeks. Therefore, Turks and Greeks were facing each other. When we look back to 1960, we can see that there was an artificial friendship between the two sides on the island. The Republic of Cyprus was trying to give the message ‘look, we get along well, there is no problem between us’. However, we all know that this was short-lived. Turkish and Greek Cypriots eat and drink at the same table, but when it comes to domestic politics, everything ends. In other words, there has never been a situation of friendship in general, so that it would be spoilt.’

What did they feel?

‘When we first landed in Erenköy, we did not know where the enemy would meet us. This naturally created an uneasiness, but we were confident in ourselves. We thought that if they were taking us to this point, there must be something they knew and believed in. We continued our struggle with hope without ever losing our faith.’

The Preface of the Gallipoli - War of Independence, Erenköy - Cyprus Struggle

‘That is to say, a large number of young people took part in both struggles. In Çanakkale, these people actually participated in the battles and lost their lives. Despite these losses, the struggles in this region were successful. This, of course, was reflected in the War of Independence. In our country, many students fought in Erenköy. The spirit of struggle existed on the island before Erenköy, but of course, this was reinforced with Erenköy. Students from all over the island gathered and defended themselves against the Greeks. Our defence here of course contributed to the island-wide struggle.’

Does the new generation know about the Cyprus Struggle?

‘Of course we are doing our best. However, there are external games in this regard. Maybe armed conflicts have ended, but conflicts in other ways still continue. Our defeat in the political field still continues. Within this framework, they are trying to make the new generation forget their Turkishness. Or they are trying to make them feel like they are deficient because of their Turkishness. Of course, this situation is not only in Cyprus, we can also find examples in Turkey and abroad. However, in Cyprus, the youth are currently shaping their thoughts under these influences. They go to joint work between the two communities and are naturally under their influence. We are trying to do our best and keep our cause alive, but your peers are currently approaching things differently than us.’

What is the Cyprus Problem and where is Turkey in the problem?

‘The problem is definitely between the Greek Cypriots and the Turks. A minority of brainwashed people think that the problem is between Cyprus and Turkey. Some foreign powers who want to have an influence on Cyprus prepare the ground for these thoughts. A student is preparing a thesis on Nicosia, the only divided city in the world. However, by stating that Turkey created this division. Turkey is being vilified. However, the events of history are clear, and nothing can be covered up by brainwashing. Turkey may have withdrawn its support in the last 5-10 years and started to pursue a partisan policy instead of a national policy, but I am sure that any damage to Cyprus today will affect Turkey in the same way as it affects me. Therefore, Turkey can never form the basis of this problem.’

What is a solution, does unification lead to peace?

‘Why should peace be unification? Why is it characterised as unification and not division? I am against unification. In case of unification, I think we will experience the old problems again. The problems we will experience in such a situation will be repeated as in history. There will be an environment where Turks will be oppressed. Then it is arguable that there will be an environment where peace will be achieved. Division is much better for us at this point. However, if a confederated state is established, this situation may be better. It is much more logical than the idea of unification.’

As a final word, Erenköy and the spirit of resistance born in Erenköy have played an important role in the Turkish Cypriots' struggle for existence and today. This resistance, which lasted for nearly two years, took place under very severe isolation conditions and caused not only human losses but also material and moral losses. In international documents and in the memory of the Turkish Cypriots, the traces of the heavy isolation, which damaged the honour of being human in many ways, are still very vivid.

And today, on the 50th anniversary of the Glorious Erenköy Resistance and the subsequent Cyprus Peace Operation, which we have reached the 60th anniversary, we are on the 41st anniversary of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. We commemorate the sainted martyrs and mujahideen of the Turkish Cypriot struggle, the personalities who fought for the Cyprus cause and the founding President Rauf Denktaş with respect and gratitude...