Erhürman Slams Archbishop: “The Church Is Not a Counterpart to the Turkish Cypriot People!”

In a written statement, Erhürman declared, “The Church is not a counterpart to the Turkish Cypriot people,” and urged Greek Cypriot political leaders to clarify who holds legitimate leadership within their community.

Erhürman denounced the Archbishop’s comments on the Cyprus issue, describing them as divisive and provocative. He emphasized that such statements from the Church carry no weight or value for the Turkish Cypriot community.

Recalling the historical political role of the Greek Orthodox Church in Cyprus, Erhürman issued a pointed call to the Greek Cypriot political leadership:

“The Archbishop of the Greek Orthodox Church, Georgios, made a series of outrageous statements in his Easter message—everything from rejecting further compromises, expressing discomfort with the UN's stance on the Cyprus issue, to talking about ‘driving out the Turks’ and ‘liberating the homeland.’

We are not ignorant of the role the Church has played in Greek Cypriot political history and culture. We also remember the troubles this Church has brought upon the island.

Let it be known that these arrogant statements are utterly worthless to us. The Church is not a party to the Cyprus issue and is not a counterpart to the Turkish Cypriot people.

But there is something else here. Greek Cypriot politicians, especially Mr. Christodoulides, must clarify who holds the political leadership of the Greek Cypriot community and who has the authority to speak on behalf of their people on the Cyprus issue.

They may feel comfortable today. But when they once again come face-to-face with the Turkish Cypriot people’s will for a solution at the negotiation table, they had better be ready to answer this question.”