The volunteer heroes who have contributed to the search for the missing in Cyprus are honoured with the beautiful phrase, ‘healers of their communities’.
These wonderful people, who have helped the missing and their families emerge from the darkness, fully deserve this title.
Sevgül Uludağ was the muse of these volunteer heroes… First and foremost, she was an exceptional healer of her own community, and had inspired many others to become ‘healers of their communities’…
I recall that in 2023, following a proposal by the Bi-communal Peace Initiative – United Cyprus, an event was organised by over a hundred Turkish Cypriot and Greek Cypriot civil society organisations, trade unions and political parties, at which three selfless Turkish Cypriots and three Greek Cypriots who had helped locate the missing were honoured with awards. They had named this event ‘Honouring Those Who Heal Our Communities’.
A few days ago, we lost Sevgül Uludağ, the muse of those who heal our communities. It makes one want to rebel… This is a untimely, shocking farewell…
I say ‘untimely’ because Sevgül Uludağ was truly not at an age at which we could accept her passing. You know how, at certain ages, when death comes, we find solace in saying, “She lived a full life; she did everything she needed to do,” even whilst we are saddened, don’t we? We cannot say that about Sevgül Uludağ… This wonderful person, who dedicated her life to goodness and humanity, did not deserve such an early passing…
Sevgül Uludağ is remembered above all for her ‘dedication to finding the missing’, but she was also one of the staunchest defenders of the feminist struggle… She always stood against gender-based inequalities. She was also one of the guardians of our cultural values and cultural heritage… The division of her country was her greatest concern. She was a fierce peace activist; she faced threats because of her struggle for peace, but she never wavered. She never made any discriminations based on ethnic origin; for her, what mattered most was the human being itself. She succeeded in creating a common language for the shared sorrows of the two communities and helped many people to embrace it.
Sevgül Uludağ was a dear friend of mine and a colleague I held in the highest regard… I learnt so much from her… She was exactly ten years older than me; many people my age called her ‘big sister’ [abla], but for some reason I could never bring myself to do so. I always addressed her as ‘my friend’. She responded to me in the same way…
During those days when she was once again working tirelessly to raise the profile of the struggle regarding the missing and to encourage those who knew where the missing were buried to speak out, I had suggested that we also make these appeals on television. Sevgül didn’t much like appearing on television; she would list many reasons not to, but I had managed to persuade her. During the years I worked at the KIBRIS Media Group, Sevgül Uludağ and I produced many television programmes on KIBRIS TV.
Sevgül would say, “I’ll only be a guest on your programme; I won’t appear on anyone else’s – appreciate what you’ve got.” Back then, of course, I did appreciate the fact that she was only a guest on my programme… These were very meaningful and useful programmes…
Although Sevgül shared very painful and harrowing information, she never resorted to emotional manipulation, or melodrama; she never allowed these issues to be exploited. Relying solely on facts, documents and eyewitness accounts, she would perfectly convey the stories of ‘Turkish Cypriots and Greek Cypriots who went missing during the 1963–64 and 1974 periods’, ‘mass graves’, ‘eyewitness accounts’, ‘the experiences of those who survived’, and ‘the quest for justice and truth by the relatives of the missing’ were all recounted with great skill. She would travel back and forth through time, almost reliving the events…
Sevgül Uludağ had heard from someone she was chatting to that “due to certain problems within the Turkish Resistance Organisation’s (TMT) internal leadership, some incidents had taken place in the village of Klavdia in Larnaca, and that my father was one of the victims of this”. She rang me and said, “So there are incidents like this and you are not telling me? Take me to the village so I can speak to your father and write about these things.” I replied, “I’ll take you to the village, but my father doesn’t talk about these matters.” I knew a little about it, but our parents never gave us any details. As a child, I’d overheard the adults talking about it in secret; that was the extent of my knowledge. My father had been the victim of slander, and even after we’d grown up, he would only ever give us a very superficial account of those events—the difficult days he’d endured until he’d proved his innocence. Some of those involved in those events were still alive; they’d chosen not to tell us, so that we wouldn’t harbour any grudges, seek revenge for the past, and experience any problems with them, or their children…
Sevgül and I went to the village, and with her persuasive manner, she got my father to talk. My father told her many things he’d never told me, or my siblings, and I listened, wide-eyed and astonished. Sevgül wrote about part of what was told to her in Yenidüzen. Her articles attracted a great deal of interest. Following those revelations, others also wrote to Sevgül on the same subject. Some people rang me too. One person, who chose to remain anonymous, said, “The truth isn’t always a good thing; in fact, it can be a curse. Sometimes it’s better not to speak the truth or even hear it.” Yet Sevgül Uludağ was fighting precisely to eradicate that very mindset… We wondered for a while whether this was a threat. Sevgül Uludağ was used to such threats; she would say, “On the contrary, concealing the truth is a heavy burden. We must uncover the truth so that we can bring the missing and their loved ones out of the darkness.” Meanwhile, my mother had cooked some lovely meals for Sevgül that day; she spoke of the taste of those meals for years to come… Whenever she visited the area, she’d pop round to see them; my mum and dad adored her.
Of course, I must mention the book “Oysters With The Missing Pearls”. I remember the preparation process for this wonderful book very well. Sevgül was so excited during this time; during the preparation phase, it was as if she were expecting a baby, and once the book was published, it was as if her baby had been born… I have every edition of the book… I’ve given “Oysters With The Missing Pearls” as a gift to many people… Whenever I travelled abroad for conferences, or trade fairs, the English edition of the book was always my go-to gift for our contacts.
I simply cannot write this piece without mentioning Cenk Mutluyakalı. After becoming editor-in-chief of Yenidüzen, the newspaper, Cenk gave Sevgül Uludağ the freedom to work as she wished; he didn’t burden her with tedious day-to-day tasks. He granted her the freedom to work solely on the topics she was researching, telling her, “Don’t worry about other matters; engage with investigative journalism.” She did so to the best of her ability, and the results were outstanding… Sevgül repeatedly expressed her appreciation of Cenk’s approach. She always held Cenk’s support for her in high regard…
I must also note that Sevgül Uludağ was like a helper from outside the organisation. She would spot spelling mistakes and journalistic errors in the newspapers I worked for, or managed, and would ring me, or send me a message. She made countless comments such as: “My dear, look, this headline doesn’t work”, “My dear, look, the content of the article does not match the headline”, “My dear, look, there’s a logical fallacy here”, “My dear, look, this article was written from a racist perspective”. She was our volunteer editor. For that, I am grateful to her. Of course, she didn’t just point out mistakes; she’d also ring to congratulate me on articles, or opinion pieces she liked. Whenever there were topics in our newspaper that fell within her field and she wanted to quote, she’d always ring me to ask for permission, and if we’d provided her with a news item, or photograph, she’d always credit us as the source. She was very particular about these matters.
I never had the opportunity to work alongside Sevgül Uludağ at the same organisation. I worked at Yenidüzen for three years, but she had left the paper by then. Nevertheless, many people who knew we were friends rang me after her death, asked about the cause of her death, and offered their condolences… The fact that people hadn’t forgotten our friendship, that they remembered it, brought me a bittersweet sense of joy…
Some people are more special than others, because they fight tirelessly and relentlessly to prove that what others call ‘impossible’ can in fact be ‘possible’ – and they do prove it… They spare no effort to uncover the truth, to bring what lies in the dark into the light, and to ensure justice; they do not fear threats, and with a spirit of ‘dedication’, they press on resolutely along their path, sparing no sacrifice… Sevgül Uludağ was such a person… That is why people from all walks of life held her in high regard; that is why people from all walks of life wept for her; that is why people from all walks of life attended her funeral. That is why she received the international ‘Courage in Journalism Award’ in 2008 and the ‘European Citizen’s Prize’ by the European Parliament in 2014. That is why she was honoured with many more awards from both within, and outside the country. That is why she was nominated for the ‘Nobel Peace Prize’ in 2019.
Sevgül Uludağ spent her life healing the people of Cyprus and serving as a source of inspiration to others… She was a wonderful person, a wonderful journalist; she fearlessly pursued the truth and had become the conscience of Cyprus… Farewell, my friend; the void you leave behind can never be filled, and yet, your achievements will never be forgotten…
Source: SHE RAN FEARLESSLY IN PURSUIT OF THE TRUTH AND BECAME THE CONSCIENCE OF CYPRUS…
