OPINION

February 15, 1957

AN HOUR’S SILENCE: An hour’s silent protest over the Cyprus issue that was held throughout the country was an unqualified success, both in the capital and in other towns and villages, everything came to a halt between noon and 1 p.m. as the country called for self-determination for Cyprus. From early in the day, shops and homes flew flags and at noon the signal was given for all movement to cease. Pedestrians went indoors and stores and offices closed, as did factories and workshops. Vehicles stopped where they were and their passengers remained inside. Students and schoolchildren sat in their classrooms and the courts called a recess. Trains stopped for 10 minutes at 12, wherever they were, while Greek-flagged ships at sea held fast for five minutes at noon in a symbolic act of participation in the demonstration. When movement resumed in the streets, spontaneous rallies were held in the Arsaki arcade, Santarosa Street and at the bottom of Ippocratous Street, where students shouted slogans in support of Cyprus. The rallies were broken up by police without incident.

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