39 The Green Line Since 1974, Cyprus remains divided, with the UN-controlled buffer zone, also known as the Green Line, separating the areas controlled by the Government of the Republic of Cyprus and the Turkish-occupied areas of the island. This makes Cyprus the only European Union member state still divided due to foreign military occupation. The Green Line stretches for 186 kilometres across the island, but nowhere is its impact more striking than in Lefkosia. As one walks through the neighbourhoods of Lefkosia within the Walls, encounters barrels, sandbags, soldiers at guard posts, and, just beyond the barbed wire, a city in ruins, with bombed-out houses and shops. The Lady of the Green Line In the Agios Kassianos area, near Pyli Ammochostou (Famagusta Gate), on Axiotheas Street, lived a symbol of bravery: Katina Papadopoulou, known as “Kyra tis Prasinis Grammis” (The Lady of the Green Line), a name given to her by the renowned Greek writer Freddy Germanos. According to her daughter, Filitsa, Katina refused to abandon her home when the Turkish invasion of 1974 took place, even as her neighbourhood – and the entire island – was in the midst of chaos and destruction. She stood tall and proud, like a motherly figure, offering moral support to the soldiers defending the area, tending to the wounded, and providing them with food, despite having little to spare. Her house was used by the National Guard, as it had a telephone, and, being in an advantageous position, was of strategic importance. Katina Papadopoulou passed away peacefully on 29 December 1990, at the age of 74. A sight which serves as a constant reminder that our island remains under military occupation. A striking contrast is the warmth and hospitality of the people living just a few metres away from the Green Line. They share stories of the 1974 invasion, which unfolded a few metres away from their doorsteps.
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