In this podcast, recorded on 14 May 2025, Andrekos locates the roots of partition in the early twentieth century, when rival visions of enosis—union with Greece—collided with British rule and Turkish-Cypriot opposition. Beyza brings the story into the present through oral histories with Turkish Cypriot families, showing how each generation remembers conflict differently: for some a trauma, for others a “peace operation.” Across communities, remembering and forgetting work in tandem to sustain national narratives. The episode closes by asking what kinds of memory might support reconciliation, suggesting that peace begins with honest listening and attention to everyday coexistence that has never fully disappeared.

This is the first in a special series of podcasts that emerged from Partitioning for Peace, TLP’s 2024 conference at City, University of London. For an introduction to the series as a whole, click here. These podcasts were supported by the Modern Greek Studies Association Innovation Grant, and the UK Prevention Research Partnership (Violence, Health and Society; MR-VO49879/1). 

Episode 74 – History & Memory of Partition

Podcasts are published by TLP for the purpose of encouraging informed debate on the legacies of the events surrounding the Lausanne Conference. The views expressed by participants do not necessarily represent the views or opinions of TLP, its partners, convenors or members.

MUSIC CREDIT: Gregory Davis, Ocean View (Epidemic Sounds).