Feature: Greek, Turkish Cypriots pull off unique restoration project

Christian Greek Cypriots and Muslim Turkish Cypriots are about to complete a joint restoration project which could be considered as a unique one in more ways than one.

The project was aimed at restoring and preserving a historic Christian monastery which is respected by both Christians and Muslims of the eastern Mediterranean island.

The Apostolos Andreas (Saint Andrew) monastery, on the most north-eastern tip of the island, is to be reopened to the public in August at the latest after restoration work which will have last more than 18 months, a member of the team overseeing the project said on Friday.

"It can be said that the two communities are writing history right now," Takis Hadjidemetriou, the co-chairman of a bi-communal committee in charge of the project told Xinhua during an on-site visit.

"This is a unique venture. At a time of religious conflict and violence two religions are giving an example of cooperation that could become a model," Hadjidemetriou added.

The monastery is a Christian pilgrimage site but is also being revered and visited by many Muslim Turkish Cypriots who either offer their respects by lighting a candle or by making offerings.

Legend has it that the monastery was built on the site where Apostol Andreas, one of the founders of Christianity, while sailing to Rome, set foot in search of fresh water.

According to the legend, he caused fresh water to start flowing out of the fissure of a rock next to the sea. The legend has become part of the area's history and a small chapel dedicated to Saint Andrew was built next to the water spring.

The monastery is situated on the tip of the Karpass Peninsula, a pointing finger-shaped stretch of land jetting out about 80 km in the eastern Mediterranean.

It was closed down after Turkish troops occupied the Peninsula along with other parts of northern Cyprus in 1974, in reaction to a coup organized by the military rulers of Greece at the time.

The ravages of neglect and the effects of sea oxidization brought the building to a state of near collapse, until a joint bi-communal committee was set up a few years back, to take care of monuments of both communities as part of efforts to reunify Cyprus.

The Christian Orthodox Church of Cyprus and EFKAF, a Turkish Cypriot Muslim foundation in charge of all Muslim religious properties, are contributing 2.5 million euros (2.83 million U.S. dollars) each towards its restoration, with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) making a symbolic contribution.

The project was undertaken by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), which hired a Greek-Turkish Cypriot consortium of contractors to carry out the restoration.

"We are proud that in a few months we'll be handing the Monastery to the public in a far better shape than before," said Tatiana Zenaro, in charge of the UNDP in Cyprus.

Zenaro said work would be undertaken on the main monastery building, to restore and preserve the medieval chapel, and to preserve surrounding buildings.

Turkish Cypriot co-chairman of the restoration committee Ali Tunsai said the project is the result of common sense. "It had been a game of blaming each other for many years. When that stopped, the two sides proved that they can work together with good results," he added.

"This is not a monument for the Greek or Turkish Cypriots only. It is meant to be part of our civilization and of humanity," Tunsai said.

Activists in both communities campaigning for a solution to the more than four decades old Cyprus problem say they hope that the completion of the project will provide a further impetus to the reunification negotiations between the two communities. Endit