Greeks live in the south. The 1st Border Crossings opened in 2003 but this little exchange. We traveled along the Demilitarized Zone known as the green line and many people whose lives have been affected by 45 years of Political Division what are the prospects for reuniting cyprus. Our journey begins in the southern part of the island the republic of cyprus and e. U. Member states since 2004 our 1st stop is the village of caso pyrgos this is christophes hes 30 years old and opened a Convenience Store here a while back new businesses are rare here. Have you been to. Many of the local residents have moved away. Business is only good 2 months of the year during the Summer Holidays when we get tourists. Thats the only time you see new people around here otherwise the place is pretty deserted the mood in the village is always the same we feel sort of isolated. Around 700 people live in carto peak ass in the 1970 s. The population was about 4000 but when cyprus was divided in 1974 the border was drawn directly between carter beat us and a neighboring village. Ends on a kind of dead in street like many villages christophes also left he spent a few years in the capital nicosia then he returned home and he used to come to this place often when he was a child the beach is a Restricted Military area and has been for years theres a Turkish Cypriot observation post on the hill christophes only knows about the events of the 1960 s. And seventys from his family and from his school textbooks. When we were children we knew that we were growing up in an unusual place and we know about the other side as well. Back then i thought that id never be able to meet a Turkish Cypriot. 1 and i never understood why my friends and i couldnt play on that hill over there. The conflict began in the 1960 s. Cyprus had just gained its independence from britain when tensions escalated between ethnic rakes and turrets instigated by greek nationalists. The majority of casualties back then with ethnic turks Un Peacekeeping troops intervened. The island was divided in 1974. Greek cypriot military officers staged a coup against president makarios. Modern on july 20th 1974 some 30000 turkish troops invaded the northern part of the island turkey said its goal was to protect the Turkish Cypriot population and the Greek Cypriot families fled to the south the troops remained and Northern Cyprus is still under turkish control to this day. A number of Border Crossings have been opened along the green line since 2003 including one between cars hopi across and a Turkish Cypriot village on the other side. Christophe and his friends sometimes cross the border to shop in the north the turkish lira has weakened sharply against the euro in recent years so they get more for their money here. But they dont interact much with the local residents they feel more comfortable back home in qatar peak gusts. You know you. Always have them to court you but you dont actually have any contact with the Turkish Cypriots before the island was divided government there were closer ties between the 2 groups but not now. You know that woman a few years ago they made an effort to bring young greeks and turks together but it didnt work out very well when. Milonga. I think that our village would be better off if they could solve the cyprus problem we wouldnt be cut off anymore but its going to take time a lot of Greek Cypriots here lost relatives during the turkish invasion and 1974 so i can understand why they want to keep their distance ready. Since the Border Crossing was opened it now takes about an hour to try to make a c. R. Instead of 2 and a half hours the road runs through the northern part of the island that means Border Crossings and passport checks many cypriots see this as a major inconvenience we arent allowed to film at the actual Border Crossing. When now back on the road to nikko c. R. Knowing greek has left and in turkish has left. Home to some 300000 people its europes only divided capital. The green line runs right through the middle of the city. There are barricades. Fences and walls. The socalled republic of Northern Cyprus is recognized only by turkey which also provides it with substantial economic support. The un supervised Demilitarized Zone separates north and south we have 10 special permission to film here a spokesman explains why peacekeeping troops have been in cyprus for more than 5 decades. So the better than is the huge. Area of land patrolled by our peacekeepers day and night by thought by bicycle by their cool and also by helicopter and they play an important. Thing with the opposing forces to maintain the military status quo and prevent tensions between the 2 sides from escalating. We filmed our interview at what used to be nice to see is International Airport the facility was shut down during heavy fighting in 1984 and never reopened this side is now the headquarters of the Un Peacekeeping troops reunification talks between greek and Turkish Cypriot leaders broke down 2 years ago but both sides hope that theyll resume soon one of the main sticking points is the presence of turkish troops in Northern Cyprus. One of the longest and oldest peacekeeping operations. Anywhere in the world and i think we share the hope. One day soon there will be a settlement that will facilitate the departure of the peacekeeping operation and see agree unified cyprus for the benefit of all the cypriots. In 2004 cyprus held a referendum on a u. N. Sponsored reunification plan 65 percent of Turkish Cypriots voted for it many of them believed that it would set the stage for e. U. Membership but 76 percent of Greek Cypriots voted against it for a wide variety of reasons. A rest a string deedes has committed himself to the reunification process. He says the politicians the done nothing to help find a solution in fact he claims they dont even want to find a solution because they have build their careers on keeping the 2 sides apart during gayeties makes a personal appeal to the residents of cyprus forget that political nonsense forget nationalism just meet people for coffee i say just go over there and say hey lets have a coffee lets talk the media say that were supposed to kill each other dont do that go over to the other side and talk to people even if you think that theyre morons even if you dont like them just talk to people just say hi. Aristos of them stages public protests to call attention to the continuing division in cyprus here hes trying to break into the Demilitarized Zone and hes invited some reporters to watch him do it he knows he risks being detained i just started destroying things i didnt care i said i want to go over there and have a cup of coffee why do i have to show my passport at the border every day and all that nonsense that sux. We know the 1st attempt failed so arrest us tried another spot and managed to get into the demille tries to zone a few follow him then the un authorities arrived. Someone on the other now get up everybody out is the buffer zone everybody out of here do not enter here. You know that would arrest us was arrested but the police later released him after he paid a fine. A restless is also part of the peaceful group of young cypriots that promotes interaction between the 2 communities. They say the toughest part of their if it is to eliminate prejudice on both sides today theyre taking a bicycle to us through the old town some of these people grew up in this city but theyre only familiar with half of it. Says child youre never to physiotherapists are like you dont have memories you go through and the trigger. Guard is on you to live your life there so its almost like the familiar but its actually still. So far away from knowing. The best suited to be. Heading north the 1st start is a Border Control post where the visitors have to show their passports. Then they move on to wards the citys former a mini in puerto which is making something of a comeback after decades of decline a 1st service was held again after 40 years. This. Religious group of armenians moved to the south says 6 this is the 1st conflict. Episodes we had seen the 1st conflict events. Because. These the western side of nicosia this like region he was very in it was like the core of the conflicts. Aristos is family used to live in this part of the city a lot of the neighbors were turkish like many local residents the family lost their home and their business joined the conflict and then the green line officially divided the city into 2 parts it used to be a traditional him and he mixed with the turkish speakers because he spoke turkish as well as a refugee from asia minor so my grandmother was around and she told me these were houses that were built for poor people. Supports antigones says that efforts to promote understanding between the greeks and turkish communities are slowly becoming more popular especially among people whove been directly affected by the divide. Of course there is a lot of a lot of work to be done in order to create a bridge that all the people and get especially the young people with human age each other. The 2 communities in conflict. Next we head to. A village in the north that is almost completely surrounded by the buffer zone. Greeks and turks both used to live in this village back then it was called lucina. During the conflicts in the 1960 s. The greek residents left and Turkish Cypriots refuge there among them was the family of historian a yard. Seen here on the left. Yes he would light a study in germany he was 4 years old when his family fled to the village. A lot of Turkish Cypriots moved here including my family which we. Are going to get these people came from pitot mia dali and other villages and we all ended up here it was almost like a ghetto. Man house on battles was a child at the time he says that during the clashes up to 5000 people lived. Here surely could the village was quite secure back then we had a lot of people and we could defend ourselves well because the village is surrounded by hills. And little of you. It was difficult for the greek troops to attack us so they kept their distance so much consider them of the need. For the 1st 5 years following the conflict the village became part of the Restricted Military zone the residents were not allowed to leave. As he visits the place where he and his family lived after they fled. They moved away. So did many others today the village has only about 300 residents. Neons you moved to germany to study. To do your own indulged on this writing and scripts are here the years that i spent in germany were quite valuable from a pretty sure i learned that germany was able to take a selfcritical look at its past and that helped me to ask questions and look for answers and thats when i started writing about peace and reconciliation for joining the church etc. Earlier this year new yasi was elected a member of the European Parliament parties from the north are not allowed to take part in a you elections but its residents are allowed to vote they have to go to polling stations in the south and theres no Border Crossing need the village. They couldnt go right if we could vote right here all of us would get it but to cast our ballot we would have to go to the capital with and it takes at least an hour to get there. But. The residents of i can speak a mixture of greek and turkish something very seldom on the island but the 2 cultures remain shop they divided especially in the schools. Yasi says hes concerned about that one often by those i wouldnt theres a lot of nationalism in the School System and quite a bit of serious prejudice on both sides of. The main shows as a hilly area where fighting took place between gregson turks. This tank serves as a memorial has signed says he would like to be able to walk across to the next village but that its just not possible. For them and all of the uk as long as i live i will have hope that we can make reunification work that the politicians may not wanted but i still have hope. Ready we move further east to the village appeal. Much of the village lies within the Demilitarized Zone and the population includes both greek and Turkish Cypriots. A contingent of Un Peacekeeping troops has been based here since 974 about half of the village lies south of the green line and theres a border to the north but not to the south it is home to both greek and Turkish Cypriots theres both a church and a Mosque Street signs in greek and turkish and 2 men one for the greeks and one for the turks. But theres not a lot of interaction between the 2 communities. That separation begins at school and of course there are 2 of them. John at school is a teacher at the Turkish School for many years critics said that the curriculum a would 2 nationalist oriented reforms were introduced on the turkish side in 2004. But chances that his Greek Cypriot colleagues have some catching up to do so i know that they still have some problems because unlike us they didnt carry out teaching reforms and i going to stand out i dont know the details but the Greek Cypriot teachers i know are definitely opposed to it. That some of the turkish pupils dont have much contact with the greek children away from school and theres a good reason for that it has nothing to do with prejudice. Youre. The great kids dont treat me like im different i think you know that we have to talk to each other in english because i dont speak greek and they dont speak turkish but i have fun with the great kids anyway because even if youre in. The residence of pila used to speak both languages but that changed after the island was divided. A common cypriot culture was gradually replaced by separate greek and turkish cultures. To it. Teaches say that its not a good idea for the 2 groups of School Children to grow up isolated from each other. We dont want to repeat the experiences of the past so we all have to Work Together to change things so on teachers can play a key role. By gum tree is flexible and what the children learn in school will probably influence them as adults and i mean thats why we teach them to treat others with respect and love. Maranatha on at their last. Until the 1st Border Crossing in cyprus was opened into. Mariners are there to another all at their last. Ready until the 1st Border Crossing in cyprus was opened in 2003 pilo was the only place on the island where great and Turkish Cypriots could meet a new troll ground so to speak. Ready ready ready ready ready ready ready ready Un Peacekeeping troops keep a close watch on the community. Ready a number of intercultural events take place here and they usually attract politicians. Today the local residents have gathered to watch a football match one team is from Northern Cyprus the other from the south. Senior politicians from both sides to attend but even before the match begins there is some complications. Students from both schools in also here the Great Children are wearing red shirts the turkish green. Once. The president of the republic of cyprus Nicholas Anastasio addus has just arrived. Back it turns out that the turkish later mustafa will not be attending. He was stopped at the border because he had a Northern Cyprus flat on his car. Because thats that. It was originally blonde for my dearest friend and stuff i can to our jane in order for both of us to send a message. For the reasons one known to fail to attend. Despite any differences we might have with my friend. Him and i share a common vision for achieving lasting peace. Reporters dont pay much attention to the game the festive mood of the crowd or the positive interaction between the schoolchildren theyd rather focus on the negatives. Ready ready later one journalist wrote we cant even manage to play football together ready how will we ever be able to achieve peace ready ready. Now the end for our final destination the village of terrain yeah the local mayor is working hard to bring greek and Turkish Cypriots together. Man and us cut a young us really visits this small chapel because it lies inside the Demilitarized Zone the local residents are allowed to attend services here just twice a year we had to get permission from the un to take the speeches. The chapel is located near the beach but that is off limits to the residents. Whose it supports and for new forms that are fully how many years from now after 97475 percent of the village ended up in the north including the beach. Gets a say in the area thats 2 and a half kilometers long it didnt have any hotels before 974 or your part of. The village lies just south of the town of farmer in Northern Cyprus some buildings including some former hotels border right on during our until 974. 00 found a ghost it was a Major International tourists resort. Today the entire area is a Restricted Military zone occupied by turkish troops many locals say it resembles a ghost town. There is no Border Crossing here but the mayor is trying hard to change things and remains optimistic. You know its a form varying you know the people of the renia and the Turkish Cypriots of Work Together theyll create a dialogue and find a solution. But some Greek Cypriot ultra nationalists are opposed to it they often refer to the events of 996 when Greek Cypriot nationalists stormed the Demilitarized Zone between the 2 towns in the resulting clash with Turkish Cypriot nationalists 2 greeks were killed. One was 26 year old solomons solomon. He climbed a pole to try to take down a turkish flag and was shot and killed. This is solomon says father spiro his house is located on a street that now bears his sons name the family used to live in farmer but fled to the south after cyprus was divided the hated and turkish feeling became part of everyday life miserable ready i used to stand on the terrace and look over it from across the whole family used to gather there and we said the entire city is ruined. And. That solemn awestruck those comments very seriously or are you. The living room is filled with pictures of solemn us spiro himself a committed Greek Cypriot nationalist sees his son as a hero to that cause he doesnt believe that simply opening more Border Crossings will create trust and eliminate decades of resentment. Im disgusted and ashamed just thinking about it. The checkpoint should stay closed until the cyprus problem is resolved people shouldnt be allowed to travel from one side to the other at all or part amanda. Many cypriots would disagree with those sentiments on the day that the new local Border Crossing opened hundreds traveled north for the 1st time in decades some drive past the houses what they used to live. Anyway when im overwhelmed we ask him when he was he asked. The opening of the crossing was a big step forward for. Us as he tries to bring greek and Turkish Cypriots closer together. Until you see any violence here today people are hugging each other and thats just what we want. To be a one of them to. The u. N. Secretary general is trying to get negotiations on reunification stosh again many of the cypriots we met on this journey hope that he will succeed at a time when populace are questioning the need for a united europe the people here are demanding it. 2 was. I did nothing yourself its not easy to go to another country you know nothing about why for i dont do this because we cant. Stay on venezuela i nag on the subway that. Closely global news that matters d. W. Made for mines. The quiet melody resounds michael lighten the mood. Resonate with and its all. The mind and the music. Beethoven festival on 2019 from september 6th to september 29th. This is g w news why but from berlin tonight violent clashes in hong kong as protesters stormed the seat of Government Police fired tear gas at prodemocracy demonstrators forcing them to evacuate the citys government building which they had occupied just hours earlier the protesters are fighting a proposed bill to allow the extradition to china also coming