u/gullicik

Hello All,

Were there any marches this evening in Nicosia in commemoration of the 20th July events in 74?

I ask because I heard shouting and chanting but couldn't quite understand what was being said. Close to the Presidential palace around Kyriacou Matsi.

Thank you in advance.

The reason Selimiye Square has been in the news lately is the opening of a representative office of Türkiye's ruling party, the AK Party.

The debate isn't just about the opening of a new political office. It's not about just any square or any political party.

On one side, there's Türkiye's ruling party.

On the other, one of the most symbolic public spaces in Cypriot history.

Therefore, the debate today isn't about a sign or a building. It's about sovereignty, public space, and cultural hegemony.

According to the Italian philosopher Antonio Gramsci, power isn't maintained solely through force. Lasting power succeeds to the extent that it can shape what people consider normal, right, and legitimate. Therefore, religious institutions, educational institutions, cultural organizations, and public spaces are the most important tools of power.

The history of Selimiye Square is precisely this story.

The Saint Sophia Cathedral, which rose here in the 13th century, was not merely a place of worship. It was a center where the Lusignan kings were crowned and their political power was consecrated.  The Archbishop's Palace, directly opposite, was the center of the religious and intellectual authority of the time.

When the Ottomans conquered the island, they did not abandon this center. They transformed the same space. Saint Sophia became the Selimiye Mosque. The Archbishop's Palace took on different administrative functions. Madrasas, foundation buildings, and libraries were placed around the square. Thus, the square became a center that produced the political, cultural, and religious legitimacy of the Ottoman world.

Governments changed, flags changed, ideologies changed. But the function of Selimiye Square remained the same.

Because those who wanted to govern Cyprus have, for centuries, also wanted to gain control of Selimiye Square.

Looking at the square today, we see a similar picture.

On one side, the Selimiye Mosque.

Across from it, the historical Kadı Menteş Mansion, now used as the Yunus Emre Institute.

And right next to it, the representation of Türkiye's ruling party, the AK Party.

 Religion, culture, and politics...

They stand side-by-side in the same square, like the instruments of hegemony described by Gramsci.

The issue here is not the existence of individual institutions. The real issue is the concentration of religious, cultural, and political influence in the same geographical area, in one of Cyprus's most symbolic squares.

Even more striking is this:

For approximately eight hundred years, the vast majority of actors who have sought to establish hegemony in Selimiye Square have come not from within the island, but from outside.

The Lusignans.

The Venetians.

The Ottomans.

The British.

And today, a significant portion of the most visible institutional actors in the square are connected to power centers formed outside the island.

Therefore, the history of Selimiye Square is not merely the history of stone buildings.

This square is the history of a public space where powers seeking to dominate Cyprus tell their own stories, spread their own values, and produce their own legitimacy.

Therefore, the issue to be discussed today is not merely a newly opened representation.

 Because the history of Selimiye Square shows us this:

For centuries, kings spoke in this square.

Empires spoke.

Colonial administrations spoke.

States spoke.

Parties spoke.

So when will Cypriots speak?

When will Cypriots construct their own story in Selimiye Square?

When will Cypriots transform this square from a stage where others tell their stories about Cyprus into a center of their shared memory, culture, and dreams for the future?

Perhaps this is the most important question we should ask today.

Hello!

Does anyone have any idea what the four coaches of TR Cypriots and Cypriot police escort are for.

They drove towards the crossing and are at Kermia currently. Just curious?