Dr Fazil Kucuk (1906 - 1984)
A Biography
Dr. Fazil Kucuk was born on 14 March 1906 in Ortakoy.
He completed his elementary and part of his secondary
education in Nicosia. He then went to Istanbul where he
completed his secondary education and a first year in the
Faculty of Medicine. Following graduation from Lausanne University's Faculty of Medicine, he continued his education
as a specialist in internal diseases and upon returning to Cyprus in 1937, began to work as a private doctor. Although Dr. Fazil
Kucuk begun his political carrier
after returning to the island in 1937, he actually started his
political life way back in 1931. While still a student he
became involved in a bitter struggle against the Turkish
members of the “Kavanin assembly” who insisted on the administration of
the Turkish Evkav by British administrators. Dr. Fazil Kucuk, spent all his political life struggling to
persuade the British colonial administration to transfer the
administration of the Evkaf Foundation and Turkish
schools to the Turkish Cypriot people. On 21 March, 1943 Dr. Fazil
Kucuk won a big victory
against his opponents and was elected as a member of the
Municipality Assembly of Lefkosa and served there for six
years. He was one of the founding members of the Institution
of the Turkish Minority of the Island of Cyprus (KATAK)
which was established on 18 April 1943. Later he established the Cyprus Turkish National People’s Party
(KMTHP) on 23 April 1944. One of the basic purposes of
the party programme
was to prevent the
annexation of the
island to Greece
(ENOSIS) On 23
October 1949, the
Institution of the
Turkish Minority of
the Island of Cyprus
(KATAK) and the
Cyprus National
People’s Party were
merged together
under the name of
the National Turkish
Union Party of
Cyprus. Following the
beginning of the
bloody terrorist
actions of EOKA in
Cyprus on 1 April
1955, the Cyprus Turkish Resistance Organization was
formed by Dr. Fazil Kucuk, so that the Turkish Cypriot People could
resist these attacks, for doing this he was threatened by the Greek
Cypriots. Later, he dissolved this organisation
and secretly founded the VOLKAN resistance organisation
in September 1955. Following an agreement between Turkish and Greek
Foreign Ministers at Zurich, Dr. Fazil Kucuk represented
the Turkish Cypriot People at a conference held in London
and after two days signed an agreement reached in the
name of his people. According to the founding principles of the Republic of
Cyprus, the President of the Republic was to be a Greek
Cypriot and the Vice-President a Turkish Cypriot. Since
the Turkish Cypriot people saw him as a saviour without
any rival he was elected as the first Vice-President of
Cyprus on 3 December 1959. Following Greek Cypriot attacks against the Turkish
Cypriots, which started on 21 December 1963, Dr. Fazil Kucuk became the head of a General Committee created to
deal with the crisis. He also became the head of the
Provisional Cyprus Turkish Administration established on
27 December 1967. On 18 February 1973, Dr. Fazil Kucuk handed over his
Vice-Presidency to Rauf R. Denktas, but continued the
struggle in his newspaper. He made Halkin Sesi newspaper
a banner for the just struggle of the Turkish Cypriot people and continued with his political life in this way. He
never refrained from defending the just demands of the
Turkish Cypriot people. During the early 1980’s despite his
illness he still continued to write articles in his newspaper. Dr.
Kucuk witnessed with great joy the proclamation of
the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. In his last speech
before his death he pointed out that it was as if he had
recovered from his illness and that on witnessing the
proclamation of the TRNC it was as if he was reborn. Dr. Fazil
Kucuk died at the age of 78 in London where
he underwent medical treatment on 11 January 1984. He
was buried at a place called Mumcu Hill in Hamitköy near
Lefkosa, which was later renamed Anit Tepe.
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