Your first job: Learn how to kill!

The army. Two words we try not to think of, but our time will come, just like everyone else, when our ‘homeland’ will need us, to do ‘our duty.’ The army is an institution which violates young people’s freedom, wastes their time, and tries to make youths into soldiers, ready to fight and die for a homeland they did not choose.

· We will not negotiate wasting two years of our lives. 24 useless months, trapped in camps and forced to obey any orders, sane or insane, ethical or unethical. During the 24 months of duties and punishments, the democratic rights of youths are destroyed: no rights to choice, no rights to appearance.

• The army oppresses people who are ‘different.’ Militarism promotes and imposes uniformity, displaying appearance, religion and ideology templates. The argument that in the army you will ‘meet yourself,’ is made invalid not only by the imposture of uniformity but also by the fact that youths are kept for 24 months, away from their interests. We will meet ourselves in our own manners! The army also acts homophobically, oppressing and humiliating homosexuals.

• The army promotes hatred. The medieval chants such as ‘A good Turk is a dead Turk,’ on the south side of the island and ‘All of us were born soldiers,’ on the north side which are considered necessary to increase morale, fanaticize youths, poisoning their souls and ideas. Constantly, youths are exposed to racist propaganda to be convinced that their enemy is the person on the other side, making it easier for them to become killing machines, overcoming their morale suspensions and following any orders received. This happens on both sides of the island, and results in youths hating those on the other side, the ‘others,’ while ignoring that their problems. As long as we continue to put up with this, peace will not be achieved.

· The army is not aimed so much at fighting ‘external enemies,’ but is aimed at disciplining youths with anachronistic methods. The army is one of the most important propaganda machines, blinding youths with nationalist hatred, convincing them that our enemies are all Turks, Bulgariands etc, while all peoples face common problems and common oppressors, and should be looking for common solutions.

Each year, during the summertime we watch as some men wearing suits and ties cry over the high levels of youths avoiding the army and suggesting ‘modern’ solutions such as the forbiddance of driving a car or the forbiddance of working in the public sector be applied to those who did not serve in the army. They state that youths who refuse to become killers are traitors and irresponsible. At the same time, alternative ways of serving for those who chose not to enlist are at least vindictive since they last much more months and are composed of a series of useless work.

It is completely natural for youths to not wish to serve in the army.

We, as youths and thus in the heart of the matter, are obliged to show the futility and non-necessity of serving in the army. Let us realize that there should be nothing separating us. After all, we are all humans, Turkish, Greeks, Cypriots; the geographical location in which someone was born does not matter: we are all equal. Let’s realize that our enemies our common: those who promote hatred between us, and that turning against each other definitely does not serve our best interests. Greek-Cypriots and Turkish-Cypriots alike, let’s accept only one battle: that for the removal of all armies from the island!

Planodio Steki Dromou

Hands off Manolis!

Reporters, politicians, investors and police have launched an attack against us and other youths who spend time at Manolis square in Faneromeni and the surrounding area. This attack is not at all random. Their purpose is to terrify people, make them afraid and turn them against anything different going on in the town and also to convince people of the necessity of strong police forces in the area. It is almost certain that they are preparing the ground for another police operation, like the ones which took place last September and October.

There is no doubt why Manolis square is being targeted, alongside the whole area of old Nicosia. “The climate of insecurity and criminality delay, maybe completely ruin the plans for investments of many millions of Euros in the city’s centre” (Fileleftheros, 23/4/2010 – the quote has been translated from Greek into English). This did not surprise any of us. A week ago we wrote in our article ‘For a more humane city,’ that “For them, the citizens and others who are active in the area are an obstacle in their plans because they oppose the commercialization of their neighborhoods. The immigrants are also an obstacle because, according to their opinion, they ruin the nice ‘display’ which they have created. The media as their advertising agent and the police as their natural partner provide full cover to the investors in their efforts to overcome the said obstacles.”

Member of Parliament I. Nicolaou stated that “youths who gather there (at Manolis square) are looking for an alternative way of entertainment but no one has managed to communicate with them.” That is correct; you sirs have not been able to communicate with us because we don’t speak the same language. You, members of parliament, television channel managers and all kinds of ‘responsible’ and ‘respectable’ people can only speak the language of money and profits. As to the statement that youths have fun “until morning with the music at full volume,” this is simply a myth created by those attack ing Manolis square. Loud music is played only when there is a street party, about once a month, with permission from the local authorities and the music is turned off by 11:30.

Manolis square is a multicultural, multidimensional area which we respect and protect, and invite anyone to discover this in person. In this area one can find politically active groups of people, with their opinions and social sensitivities. These are people with their own judgment, without the need for leaders and guidance. All the people who would hate to see the area become an enormous, commercial center and prefer to socialize in open, public, free spaces are an obstacle to the investors. The feeling of insecurity is created by the media, and those who pass by the area will understand that the media’s arguments are invalid.

The media’s misinformation will not stand.

Those who sacrifice human communication and creativity in the name of greed and profits will find us blocking their way.

Reporters, politicians, investors and policemen – hands off Manolis!

Planodio Steki Dromou

The article does not mean to represent all those who spend time at Manolis. It is the expression of opinion of one group of people among those many who spend time at Manolis. (the “Planodio Steki Dromou” organization)

For political action and social solidarity

We create relationships through Facebook, we play games with a joystick, we pass endless afternoons in classrooms, and at night we sink tired in the couch to watch television.

We go to school and afternoon classes for a future position in university. We go to university for a good future job that will guarantee us a good wage. We work for so many years to afford the “perfect” house and the “perfect” car, and then we work for the same amount of years to afford a second house in the country and get away from the “perfect” house we previously bought!

Let’s just think for a moment of the consequences of this modern way of life. Endless hours in the traffic, time divided into work and consuming (malls, cafés, clubs, football), the restriction of the “institution” of the neighborhood and the continuous destruction of the environment.

What does really separate us from loneliness and alienation? Only when the last tree has died and the last river been poisoned and the last fish been caught will we realize we cannot eat money?

Ø Let’s fight the devitalization of our time with our imagination and creativeness. Let’s transport the idea of gaming from the video consoles to the streets and fields. Let’s bring sports from the television channels to our neighborhoods.

Ø Streets are not only for shopping malls and politicians’ huge advertisements. Let’s all walk down in the Streets, in the Neighborhoods, in the Parks and the Squares to build our lives as we want them to be. We should introduce ideas like solidarity and open assemblies in every neighborhood with the aim of taking decisions in our hands. Let’s stop waiting from the “responsible politicians” to decide for us.

Ø We should be enjoying the joys of knowledge, not of “instructions” and “training”. Knowledge and learning must not be trapped into dead certificates and diplomas, but it should rather be a continuous process of creativeness. We should aim for mutual teaching and learning, outside the limits of competition and exams.

Ø We want to feel the joy of impulsiveness and human communication. Such a communication will not take into account “lifestyle” models and taboos. We want to come close to nature again. We want to have daily contact with her rather than watching “virtual trees” from our computers. Let’s leave our cars for a while, and try riding our bicycles again. Let’s stand on our own feet.

Ø Street art is a continuous, collectivized, interactive process. The artist should not be hierarchically separated from the public. We are against the idolization of the artist and the spiritual sterilization of commercial art. We shall set up our own concerts, our own street theatres and street galleries. All these will be done only with our efforts, away from sponsors and huge profits.

Let’s set our talents free. Let’s emancipate the artist we hide inside us.