Disy marks 50 years with pledge to open ‘a new chapter’

Disy leader Annita Demetriou on Wednesday marked the party’s 50th anniversary by paying tribute to its founding principles, thanking supporters for the party’s recent parliamentary election result and declaring that the centre-right party was entering a new chapter. Speaking at a commemorative event held at the old GSP square in Nicosia, Demetriou said Disy stood “with pride, emotion and deep gratitude” as it reflected on its 50-year journey, while recognising that the anniversary belonged first and foremost to those who founded the party in 1976. She described the party’s founder and former Cyprus president Glafcos Clerides, as having left behind not merely a political party but a political ethos and a way of thinking that placed the country above personal ambition and party interests. “Tonight we do not close a chapter. We open the next one,” she said, adding that Disy now faced a renewed mission: to keep Cyprus on a path of stability, represent those who believe in reason and moderation, and unite those who refuse to accept pessimism and division. Demetriou repeatedly referred to the party’s founding declaration, saying Disy had been created in the aftermath of the 1974 Turkish invasion, when Cyprus was still grappling with occupation, displacement, division and economic devastation. “In that environment, Glafcos Clerides and the founders of Disy took a historic decision, to create a major democratic, patriotic and liberal political movement that would be ahead of its time,” she said. Demetriou quoted Clerides’ well-known political principle on the Cyprus problem, “Tin patrida ouk elatto paradoso” (“I shall not hand over a diminished homeland”), saying it remained a guiding principle for the party today. Referring to Disy’s founding declaration, she said the party remained committed to being “a party of the people and for the people”, rejecting personal political vehicles and closed systems of power. “No individual, no circumstance and no personal ambition can be placed above the party and above the homeland,” she said. Demetriou also stressed the party’s commitment to democracy and parliamentarianism, saying Disy rejected “all forms of totalitarianism and oppression” and condemned violence in all its forms. “These principles were not self-evident in 1976 and, unfortunately, they are not self-evident today either, in an era where toxicity, threats, digital violence and polarisation seek to replace democratic dialogue,” she said. She also reaffirmed the party’s traditional pro-European orientation, noting that Disy’s founding declaration had stated that Cyprus belonged “historically, geographically and culturally” to the West and particularly to Europe. “That choice was the path that led us to the European Union, the strongest shield the Republic of Cyprus possesses today,” she said. Demetriou thanked party members and supporters for the result achieved in the May parliamentary elections, describing it as both an honour and a clear mandate. “The citizens recognised the seriousness of our people, the strength of our ideas and the need for a major political force that thinks institutionally, patriotically and in European terms,” she said. She also defended the record of the administration of former president Nicos Anastasiades, saying it had brought Cyprus back from economic collapse to growth, credibility and stability. “From bankruptcy we moved to growth, from business closures to the creation of new and quality jobs, from fiscal collapse to credibility,” she said. She added that major social reforms introduced during that period included the introduction of the national health system (Gesy), the guaranteed minimum income, the national minimum wage and the minimum guaranteed pension. Addressing ongoing investigations involving former officials including Anastasiades, Demetriou said Disy supported institutional independence and would allow the justice system to do its work without interference. “We conceal nothing. Everything should come to light. Zero tolerance. No one is above scrutiny,” she said. She contrasted Disy’s position with that of Akel, arguing that Dhsy’s respect for institutions did not depend on who was being investigated. “We do not reject findings when they do not suit us. We do not question justice when the outcome is not in our favour,” she said. On the Cyprus problem, Demetriou reiterated that the party’s highest objective since its foundation had been the liberation and reunification of Cyprus. “Our goal is to hand over to future generations a Cyprus without Turkish troops, guarantees and barbed wire,” she said, adding that Disy remained committed to a settlement based on United Nations resolutions and European principles and values. In a recorded message, European People’s Party president Manfred Weber described the simultaneous 50th anniversaries of Disy and the European People’s Party as a significant milestone. He reiterated the EPP’s full support for efforts to achieve a just, viable and functional settlement of the Cyprus problem, describing it as a “European issue”. Weber said the EPP would “never accept a two-state solution” and called on Turkey to return to the agreed framework for negotiations on the reunification of Cyprus. Representing Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Greek Education Minister Sofia Zacharaki described Disy as “the major political force that emerged from the wounds of national tragedy” and praised its role as a pillar of democracy, stability and European integration. She congratulated Demetriou and Disy on their parliamentary election result in May, saying it demonstrated that Cypriot society had chosen stability, seriousness, reform and national consistency. Zacharaki also reaffirmed Greece’s support for a just, viable and functional solution to the Cyprus problem based on UN resolutions and the European acquis, while sending a message of zero tolerance towards hate speech and violence in reference to recent attacks in Thessaloniki. The event was also attended by Greek deputy foreign minister Tasos Chatzivasileiou, communications adviser to the Greek prime minister Dimitris Zografos, former Disy leader Averof Neophytou, former party officials Panayiotis Demetriou and Frixos Koulermos, and Sek secretary-general Andreas Matsas.