By Nehir Kartal

Throughout the centuries, girls in many nations have experienced discrimination because of their gender. They have been treated as second-class citizens in their own homelands, denied of their own rights and taken advantage of and exploited continuously. Their power and abilities have been oppressed to the point they became fully dependent on men. Turkish Cypriots are no exception to this case. Against their own will, they were forced to get married and immediately sent away from their homes. But opposedly, their stories have not been talked about in any aspect of history; as if women were invisible back then. In this writing, I want to shed more light on these Cypriot girls’ lives and bring the awareness that the past is not only History but also Herstory as well.

During the First World War (1914-1918) Cyprus was a part of the British colonies. Many Cypriot men (more than anticipated) fought in the war in favour of the “Triple Entente” as paid volunteers. Turkish Cypriots, especially, used to make a living from farming. During these years, they struggled with drought and famine- their earnings got even lower. Also the government implemented higher taxes to compensate for the lost wealth due to war. In addition, families were persuaded to have as many children as possible to serve for the British. Due to these conditions Turkish families experienced financial difficulties. Hence, to take care of their children and wife; fathers joined the military force.

In 1920s, poverty on the island continued for the worse. In 1925, after the Lausanne Peace Treaty was signed, British government granted the right for Turkish Cypriots to migrate to the Republic of Turkey- “Hakk-ı Hıyar” if they refused the British citizenship. Many Turks who did not see a future on the island chose to leave. In addition to the men lost in the war these emigrations resulted in a significant fall in Turkish population size. According to various resources, the Turkish population which previously occupied around 1/3 of the total number; nearly fell to 1/5 (Muezzin, 2009).

Photos of Turkish Cypriot girls who were sold to Arabs

For years, Arabs and Cypriots had close relationships by means of trade and culture. Since both Cyprus and many Arabic countries such as Palestine, Syria and Jordan were British colonies at that time, trades with these countries was relatively easy. Arabic merchants would often visit our ports and vice versa. People living in villages close to the ports would even have personal relationships with these foreigners. These relations impacted our socio-cultural structure as well. Our cultures and traditions with Arabs have become intertwined together that even our traditional desserts and dishes bear unbelievable similarities.  Moreover, Turkish Cypriots were members of the same religion (Islam) with Arabs as well. Considering such close interactions, it is no wonder that marriage between these two Muslim communities occurred frequently.

Turkish families in Cyprus facing economic difficulties at that time would marry off their daughters to Muslim Arabic men in exchange of money. These girls were usually aged between 12 to 20 and their beauty determined their “price”. The grooms- usually from Jordan, Egypt, and mostly Palestine and Syria- would usually be either wealthy, or with a stable financial situation. These young women were “sold” for around 10 to 15 liras which was equivalent to an official’s three-month salary. This cost was much cheaper than what was needed to marry an Arabic girl in the groom’s motherland so quite a lot of Arabic men were interested in marrying our pretty girls.  

Most of the marriages with Arabs would take place through people called “simsar”. These people could be male or female and they played an important role in catalysing the interactions between the bride and groom’s families. They would visit every village in Cyprus- usually the ones close to the ports- and ask families whether they wanted to give away their daughters and get money in return. These matchmakers would have good social relations with many people and usually work in trade business. Their share from marriages would be a commission price. A few well-known matchmakers were Simsar Pembe, Simsar Ahmet, and Simsar Şifa Hasan (Cahit, 2010).

Usually the wedding ceremonies would last between 3 to 7 days and it would be done meeting the necessities of the Islam. Immediately after the wedding, the bride would depart to the groom’s homeland to possibly never see her family and home again. Getting divorced was not a possible option for the bride due to her role as a mother and pressure of the social oppression she had to obey. By all means, she was dependent on her husband.

The Turkish Cypriot girls being married had no say in the decision and had to accept the fate their families decided for them. In 1879, the British government legislated prohibitions against hunting wild animals and birds but there were no laws against women’s rights until year 1951. Hence, no one had the power to save these girls from a possibly twisted fate. Only a few intellectuals and newspapers from the whole society wrote about this issue initially. Their attempts, unfortunately have reached only a very small audience.

It was not until the second world war (1939 to 1945) that any light was shed concerning the situationship of these girls. As their relatives who joined the British army were sent to where these girls lived, they first-handedly observed all the hardships the Cypriot brides endured. According to the notes of these soldiers, some of the girls lived an unfulfilling life in destitution, some became the “second/third wife” of their husbands or experienced abuse and assault from their spouses. Also it is known for a fact that some of the girls ended up working as sex slaves to save their lives.  On the contrary, only a minority of them lived a pleasant life.

Mustafa Bitirim, one of the most important names in bringing these girls’ stories to life, published a report “Biz Kızlarımız ve Araplar- Aman ne oluyoruz? / We Our Daughters and Arabs- What are we doing?” on his behalf in 1944; sharing his experiences while visiting a few of these young women.

Preface:

“…As you will read below, the inhumane treatment and suffering our girls experienced that I witnessed is not in a nature that can be spoken or written. However, there is something I persistently want to ask for to my dear readers. I want those who read these lines to take my writing into consideration with a pure heart- just as the author. Doing so, we can at least save our young girls from falling into a catastrophic abyss they would have to bear all their lives…”

İsmet Konur is also one of the most important people to speak up about this issue in his book “Kıbrıs Türkleri” (1938)

The phenomenon of “selling girls to Arabs” continued until 1950s. In 1949, Palestine saw a series of political developments such as partitition while other Arabic countries like Syria experienced their own internal conflicts- like Coup d'état-, depriving Arabic men of their power and allowance and reach to marry our girls.

From 1920s to 1950s, four thousand girls were married against their will. Not all of them had their fairy tale ending or made their voice heard maybe for the only time in their lives. On behalf of thousands of sufferages, I want to mention two hidden stories.

Hamziye’s Story (From Neriman CAHIT’s “Araplara Satılan Kızlarımız”- page 394)

Azmi İbrahim Selim Ömer…

His mother was born in 1919, Hamziye.

She married her Palestinian husband in 1935. She was 15. Her husband would transport citrus fruits from Cyprus to Palestine and then would export them to England. So he would visit Cyprus very often.

During his visits, he met a “simsar” that found women to Palestinian men. The woman took him to Hamziye’s house and her family also saw and liked him. Hamziye and the man married and he took her to Palestine; to a village called Al Hayriye in Jaffa.

After marriage, Hamziye went to Cyprus for the first time in 1947; but they emigrated to Jeruha Akbeh Ceber opposite to the dead lake in 1948 due to the Jewish attacks to Palestine. The family had 3 daughters and 2 sons. (Vecihe, Sundus, Azmi, Fatma, Mehmet Emin)

A concrete communication with her family in Cyprus occurred in 1952 when Hamziye sent 6 liras to her family via a bank. Mr. Azmi does not remember whether any of her relatives visited them but he remembers his mother often visiting Cyprus and even giving birth to Fatma there.

At first, with their immigration, the family lived in harsh conditions. Immigration, living in tents, was apparently very challenging in Yeruha. It was one of the oldest cities in the world, but this wasn’t obvious from the tents. Even when it snowed very heavily, they would have to sleep in water.

In 1958 he studied at an art school and moved abroad when he graduated. He was studying in Nigeria at 24. He returned home after earning money and opened iron welding workshops there.

“My mother was the captain in our house. Never in her life has she said a bad word to us, but she was always upset at life because she lived away from her home, and she accepted it like it was God’s command. At every chance she got, she would tell us about Cyprus. About Cyprus and her life and relatives there, she never forgot anything. When she visited Cyprus, she would bring along her smallest two children- Fatma and Emin.

After marriage their fathers worked as a police man. He passed away in 1973, and their mother in 1989. According to them, their mother’s condition got better following her husband’s death. She would spend most of her time reading the Quran and fasting.

“In her old ages, she lived with Mehmet Emin. She did not have pension so when I started working, I would give her adequate money.”

I asked if their mother talked to them in Turkish, if they knew Turkish: “My mother tried talking to us in Turkish, but because Atatürk founded the Republic of Turkey and pulled Turks out of the Islamic line; I was so mad. I never wanted to learn Turkish.”

And added a few more things: “I never allowed my mother to go to Cyprus and settle there. I would determine her exact travels. Once she stayed in Cyprus for too long. In one day, I went to Ankara to get her. She died after a short time. She is buried somewhere close to here.”

Didn’t she want to revisit Cyprus; didn’t she have a will…

“She had a will, but I don’t have to tell you this. And I won’t!” (What can we say!!!)

We heard about the Cypriot Hamziye from her grandchildren…

“Our grandmother, Hamziye İsmail İbrahim, born in 1919, loved her homeland- Cyprus- so much. She would never allow anyone to make a comment about her country. The first thing she did when she woke up would be to say ‘look at the greenery’. She would tell us about how green Cyprus is and her longing. Everybody would know and love her. Her husband would, also, and would be jealous of any others.”

And her will was very interesting: “When I die, do not look around aimlessly, I don’t have any hidden money; but ask the groceries around and pay them if I have any debt.”. She was quite religious, she passed away in Ramadan. She would badmouth Arabs a lot and say “I hope all of you die and none of you would be left.” She would praise Cypriots and Cyprus so much that her grandchildren face disappointment when they visited.

She was always upset at her family, bitter and sad. That they send her away. At every opportunity she would send letters but never let anyone read her writings. Her greatest wish was to spend her last days in Cyprus and be buried there. But, her son- last- hid her passport so she never could visit Cyprus again!

Emete- Müsteyde Durmuş’s Story (From Neriman Cahit’s “Araplara Satılan Kızlarımız”- page 397)

“She is one of the girls sold. Her husband would beat her a lot. She lost her clear vision because her husband hit her head frequently. She was so unhappy and grumpy. She would cry loudly and curse her family for selling her to this place. She also passed away. Her grave is unknown.”

Now in Cyprus, women have the rights for themselves. They can choose to get a job or pursue their education if they wish, they get married if and with whom they want; and most importantly, they do not have to depend on men to fend themselves. In some countires all around the world, this is still not possible.

.............................................

CAHIT N. (2010), Araplara Satılan Kızlarımız

MUEZZIN C. (2009), ‘İngiliz Dönemi’nde Kıbrıs’ta Sosyo-Ekonomik Yapıya Genel Bir Bakış’ in İngiliz Dünemi’nde Araplara Verilen Kızlar

BITIRIM M. (1944), Biz Kızlarımız ve Araplar- Aman Ne oluyoruz?

KONUR I. (1938), Kıbrıs Türkleri

GURKAN H. (1986). ‘Araplara Satılan Türk Kızları’ in Bir Zamanlar Kıbrıs’ta

………………………..

Note of Mary Pyrgos.. Slavery was illegal, in Cyprus but the authorities did nothing to prevent the fathers who sold their daughters to Arabs during the decade 1930-1940. Selling their daughters was common practice especially for the Turkish Cypriots, but we do have information that some Greek Cypriot families sold their children as well. My father who was a doctor at Stroumbi, witnessed one such incident. He told me that one day when he and his friend were sitting at a coffee shop at Stroumbi, they sow a Turkish Cypriot dragging his young daughter, who was crying and asking for help, to the market where Arab slave-merchants were buying girls. He also said that he and his friend were so sorry for the poor girl, that they bought her, so that she could stay in Cyprus. The girl was sent to work in the house of his friend. One other source informs us that a Greek Cypriot girl from Lapithos sold her young sister and brother, when her parents died, to collect money for her dowry. The young girl who was sold as slave returned το Cyprus, through Turkey, after many years of hardship.