Papandreou wants Cyprus’ wall down

Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou on 9 November called on Europe to tear down the last remaining wall within its borders, namely, the wall that still separates and divides the island of Cyprus. He was attending celebrations to mark the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. As Greeks and as Europeans we must shout out: Tear down the last wall, the one that divides Cyprus in two, Papandreou underlined in his address. The Greek premier underlined that a free and united Europe should not tolerate walls or occupation forces, and promised to fight for a Europe free of any kind of wall. This is the kind of Europe we want and it is not just our intention but also our promise to fight for such a Europe and for the Cyprus that we envisage, he emphasized. Papandreou described the current day as a historic anniversary when Germans and European citizens stood up and demanded that the Berlin Wall be torn down, along with all walls that trapped the so many people of Europe in totalitarianism, autocracy, fixations and prejudices, opening the horizons for democracy and freedom. These heroic actions and moments underlined the wager of democracy, which is to daily tear down walls that keep citizens away from politics and do not put him at its centre, the premier said. ( see page 11)