Ken Dunn's articles about North Cyprus in the 1980s

malsancak


Joined: 23/08/2009
Posts: 2874

Message Posted:
05/04/2011 16:26

We're pleased be starting a series of articles by Ken Dunn describing their experiences of North Cyprus in the 1980s. He starts with a description by his in-laws about their experience of the Turkish Intervention in 1974 - http://www.northcyprusfreepress.com/2011/04/04/almost-a-regatta-%e2%80%93-first-hand-story-of-the-1974-turkish-intervention/ and then details his arrival via Larnaca Airport in 1981 - http://www.northcyprusfreepress.com/2011/04/05/arrival-in-cyprus-by-ken-dunn/

There are other stories in the pipeline including early experiences of going shopping and of the people on the island at the time.

Suffolk



Joined: 31/08/2008
Posts: 222

Message Posted:
05/04/2011 16:40

I have enjoyed reading the first two pieces in NCFP and look forward to more to come!



Equally the other articles are always interesting (and some very concerning) - thanks for keeping us up to date on all the news.



Mrs S

greengate8


Joined: 07/12/2008
Posts: 156

Message Posted:
05/04/2011 19:00

I know the author of this article, and have heard some of his experiences first hand, so i look forward to seeing more of them in print.......

Glasbury


Joined: 13/08/2010
Posts: 268

Message Posted:
05/04/2011 19:23

Good read - very interesting.

AndyR



Joined: 23/04/2009
Posts: 317

Message Posted:
05/04/2011 20:05

Fascinating reading, I'll look forward to the rest.

trncoldboy


Joined: 02/02/2009
Posts: 182

Message Posted:
05/04/2011 21:56

Very good Reading. My Wife and I first visited Northern Cyprus in May 1982. Maybe we can relate to the next installment by Ken. Interesting observation about some things having NOT changed despite the prolification in development and indeed the motor car.

Earlybird


Joined: 28/04/2009
Posts: 816

Message Posted:
05/04/2011 22:05

Very good articles and I will be looking forward to more from Ken Dunn. Of course NCFP is very good too at keeping us up to date on the TRNC news. Thank you to both.

pollymarples


Joined: 08/08/2010
Posts: 1778

Message Posted:
05/04/2011 23:35

Ken tells me he is coming over for eight weeks at the beginning of June, Pauline is very much looking forward to meeting him. I hope she takes me along too. Pauline's sister is also coming over for the first two weeks in June so I will have to try to keep her out of trouble during that time. She seems to have a thing about secret service policemena and rare plants. It is a full time job looking after her.

Zoots


Joined: 05/02/2011
Posts: 669

Message Posted:
05/04/2011 23:58

I was quite enjoying it until I got to this part:



>>...we have seen how well the TRNC has, year by year, steadily improved conditions for everyone apart from the several, private and dubious developments which have appeared. For all that it is still a wonderful place to live.



Should anyone think of taking a holiday, or even taking up residence in this country, a book by Harry Scott Gibbons, the title of which is ‘The Genocide Files’ must be read. It tells the actual truth of the recent, and past, history of this delightful island without any shred of propaganda...<<



It's supposed to be non-fiction. Why did he have to go and spoil it?



Long Live the TRNC!

brother



Joined: 29/01/2010
Posts: 446

Message Posted:
06/04/2011 00:37

I have looked at the reviews of Mr. Harry Scott Gibbons' book on Amazon.co.uk (see http://www.amazon.co.uk/product-reviews/0951446428) and whilst there are a majority of favourable respondents I am intrigued by the accounts of Jonathon Penn who he says was serving in the UN Medical Corps in Cyprus during 1970-75.



Putting aside the question raised on the bias in Gibbons' accounts, any reader needs to put into perspective the creation of the TMT on the TC side and the existence of EOKA as a movement on the GC side. There is no doubt that the 1974 intervention by TR caused retaliation by the GCs but it is not factual to say that there weren't any killings of TCs prior to that date. A long story cut short (with respect to all the dead) the root cause was the wish for enosis (union with Greece) after independence from GB.

Zoots


Joined: 05/02/2011
Posts: 669

Message Posted:
07/04/2011 00:53

msg 10,



I agree. There is no such organisation as the UN Medical Corps hence all the more reason to suspect Gibbon's stuff is purely for the gullible and educationally challenged.

erolz


Joined: 17/11/2008
Posts: 3456

Message Posted:
07/04/2011 01:29

Zoots you seem to have misunderstood msg 10. Mr Gibbons does not refer to 'UN medical corps' in his book. That claim is made by a person reviewing the book on amazon, who claims the book 'does not give a true account ..."



Thus to dismiss the book based on a 'review' of the book on amazon by someone who does not think it is accurate and who refers to being in the UN medical corps is not a sound reason to suspect the book is for the educationaly challenged. This same person claims to have been in the UN medical corps from 70-75 and then relates a story of how they treated GC in 1964 following attacks by Turkish jets. If there is any doubt raised by this claim then it must fall on the reviewer not the author or book.



It seems to me that someone who can so totaly misunderstand the above , who said what and what that implies about the book in general, as you have done, should be careful about using phrases like 'gullible and educationaly challenged' imo.

Zoots


Joined: 05/02/2011
Posts: 669

Message Posted:
08/04/2011 01:40

I stand corrected. The reviewer is the one with suspect facts.

What do you think about Genocide Files, Erolz?

erolz


Joined: 17/11/2008
Posts: 3456

Message Posted:
08/04/2011 02:16

I think the Genocide Files presents the TC side of events of that time. It is not and does not seek to be an impartial or unbiased account of those events but to relate them from this perspective only. It is in my opnion largely accurate though should be read and understood as being one sides perspective.

It is progandistic in essence, though that does not mean it is untrue. In the wider context it does in my opinion offer a form of balance when viewed in context against the standard progandist perspective pushed by the RoC and many GC. This is , in my opinion, even more the case when it was written than perhaps today.

I would personally recommend that anyone that has an interest in Cyprus and its troubles read this book but only as part of a much wider list of resources and understanding it for what it is and to not take it a single source or truth. Much as I would say the same about say Clerides' books to take a counter example.

malsancak


Joined: 23/08/2009
Posts: 2874

Message Posted:
08/04/2011 08:37

David Carter's new book, Aphrodite's Killers aims to be a lot more impartial and uses over a 1000 personal accounts http://www.northcyprusfreepress.com/2011/04/06/aphrodite%e2%80%99s-killer-by-david-carter/

Zoots


Joined: 05/02/2011
Posts: 669

Message Posted:
09/04/2011 10:24

Erolz,

Fair comment. Unfortunately, perhaps the majority of people on this board who have read Genocide Files have read NO other books about the Cyprob hence their confusion about the reality of the situation in its entirety.

Zoots


Joined: 05/02/2011
Posts: 669

Message Posted:
09/04/2011 10:27

Malsancak Msg 15,



I suppose David Carter's book will be as impartial as as anyone's who was a family friend of Rauf Denktas.

misunderstood


Joined: 08/04/2011
Posts: 1004

Message Posted:
09/04/2011 16:34

Ken seems to be getting the natives south of the border a little hot under collar. You'll get used to it Ken.

malsancak


Joined: 23/08/2009
Posts: 2874

Message Posted:
09/04/2011 16:36

zoots, or as impartial as the 1000+ accounts it contains

brother



Joined: 29/01/2010
Posts: 446

Message Posted:
09/04/2011 16:45

It seems that there is almost a cat-and-mouse game when it comes to chronicling the exact events and in particular when it comes to establishing the causal. This is not so much a challenge for those of us who lived through the troubles but it is made challenging for those who haven't, by the colouration from the conflict of interest from those with whatever vested interest.

IMHO it is odd when a TC leader such as Denktas is named as a bias reference when one needs to remember the Makarios influence on the overall matter.

It is probabley best to wait until Mr. Carter's book is available for scrutiny before deciding throw the dice for another turn in such a game of cat-and-mouse.

Bearing in mind the starting point of these troubles, it is odd to observe such vehemence in by the instigators.

It is important therefore that the casual reader of these messages is immediately reminded of how avoidable all of it was - but for the wish for enosis by the GCs.

teatime


Joined: 20/10/2008
Posts: 852

Message Posted:
09/04/2011 18:16

Re msg 17.

Zoots, the late Mr David Carter may have been a friend of Mr Denktas but he was also friends to many GC's as well. He always did try to tell the story of Cyprus in an un-biased fashion, albeit with attempts to silence him from sources south of the border (One wonders why?).

Zoots


Joined: 05/02/2011
Posts: 669

Message Posted:
11/04/2011 00:48

teatime,

If David was still around I'm pretty sure he would confess his bias was towards the Turkish position. He never really denied it to me and we had many a run-in over it.

However, being well educated and knowing the historical score he was head and shoulders above the vast majority of others who engaged in the threads on these forums.

I can only imagine that his inclusion (this time) of Turkish/TC atrocities was in an effort to show balance and get a publisher interested. You only have to look at Genocide Files to see the alternative.