Süheyla Küçük dies at 95

CONDOLENCES have been expressed after Süheyla Küçük – the widow of the late Turkish Cypriot leader Dr Fazıl Küçük – died on Monday.

Mrs Küçük, 95, was seen as the ‘mother’ of the Turkish Cypriot people. Her husband led the Turkish Cypriot people against ENOSIS in the 1950s and signed the 1959-1960 London-Zurich agreements that founded the Republic of Cyprus.

Known for her patriotism and love of all things Turkish, the

TRNC and Mustafa Kemal Atatürk – the founder of modern Turkey, she also served for many years as the head of the Cyprus Turkish Womens’ Association, which she formed in 1953.

The mother of four was born in Lefkoşa on July 30, 1925, the second of four siblings. She married Dr Küçük in 1946. President Mustafa Akıncı, said: “Süheyla Küçük was the valued wife of the great Turkish Cypriot leader Dr Fazıl Küçük – who led the struggle of the Turkish Cypriot community for their survival.”

Prime Minister Ersin Tatar said that “everyone loved Süheyla Hanım because she was the first ever First Lady of the Turkish Cypriot people.”

Speaking to Cyprus Today, close friend of the family, and former negotiator Ergün Olgun said: “She was an iconic figure in Turkish Cypriot history, and a symbol of our struggle for existence. It is with great sadness that we have lost such an important person. May she rest in peace.” And former finance minister and diplomat, Tansel Fikri, said: “Mrs Küçük was the biggest supporter of her husband during the dark years of the Turkish Cypriots in their resistance against ENOSIS in the 1950s onwarders until 1974 – and she was a role model for every Turkish Cypriot woman in putting forward beliefs, a well educated woman, who adopted a modern way of living.”