The premiere of the documentary titled “Gol Atan Cepheye” that translates to ‘Goal scoring front’ and details the stories of resistance and struggle waged by the Turkish Cypriots through football clubs, was realised on Wednesday night.

During the speeches delivered at the event, it was emphasized that football has a special place in the struggle for the survival of the Turkish Cypriot people.

The documentary, shot with the contributions of the Republic of Türkiye’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism and the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA), tells the stories of the resistance and struggle waged by Turkish Cypriots through football clubs between the years 1955 and 1974.

President Ersin Tatar, Speaker of Parliament Zorlu Töre, Prime Minister Ünal Üstel and the visiting Turkish Minister of Culture and Tourism Mehmet Nuri Ersoy as well as many guests attended the screening at the Near East University’s Atatürk Culture and Congress Centre.

Delivering the first speech of the night Director Erdal Hoş said that when the idea for the football documentary was first pitched to him he had no idea of the history of football in Cyprus.

“As someone who researches football stories in many parts of the world, I am ashamed to admit that I did not know the story of our own football clubs and I want to apologize to all the heroes” said Hoş.

Noting that he realized that the Cyprus issue was not known in Turkey while editing the documentary, Hoş emphasized that such documentaries are needed so that new generations become aware of the realities on the island.

The Turkish Minister of Culture and Tourism Mehmet Nuri Ersoy for his part pointed to the importance of the documentary in terms of telling the Cyprus cause to the new generations and congratulated everyone who contributed to the documentary.

“Being with the Turkish Cypriots today also requires knowing the past correctly” said Ersoy and added that the Turkish Cypriots had experienced great difficulties in the past, but never compromised its freedom and independent stance.

Emphasizing that they will never forget the heroes of the struggle for justice in Cyprus, Minister Ersoy said, “We will continue to work in different fields in order to explain the Cyprus cause to the world in its entirety.”

Noting that football was seen as both a motivation and an organizational tool against the attacks towards Turkish Cypriots in the 1950s, Ersoy said that many legendary football players of the period were interviewed in the documentary and they aim to show this documentary internationally.

President Ersin Tatar also emphasized the importance of such films during the speech he delivered.

Stating that very important football players are being raised among the Turkish Cypriot people, President Tatar said, “Just because the names of the football clubs were Turkish the clubs were removed from the leagues. We were excluded but we continued our struggle by establishing the Turkish Cypriot Football Federation.”

“Football was also a reflection of Greek Cypriot politics. Football has a special place in our struggle to maintain our existence as the Turkish Cypriot people,” said Tatar and added that the important thing is for the Turkish Cypriot people to continue their struggle with the support of Motherland Türkiye and work out a way to remove the unjust and unfair embargoes imposed against it.