World Congress of Cypriots Diaspora

 On July 31, 2024, UoL Center for DEI participated in the World Congress of Cypriots Diaspora, in Nicosia. The conference was opened by the President of the Republic Nikos Christodoulides, while the Minister of Foreign Affairs Konstantinos Kombos, the heads of POMAK, PSEKA and NEPOMAK, Andreas Papaevripides, Philip Christopher and Christos Tuton, respectively, the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Greece George Kotsiras, the Parliament President Annita Demetriou, and Archbishop George.

On July 31, 2024, as part of the actions of the youth of expatriates, NEPOMAK, the documentary “Queens of Cyprus” was screened. The University of Limassol, as a collaborating institution, supports the documentary in every screening, promoting through the arts and culture the concerns of Cypriot women living inside and outside the island, thus contributing to their dissemination. The University of Limassol was represented by Dr Andri Hadjiandreou, Director of the Centre for Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, as part of the documentary promotion team. Her opening speech follows.

«It is an honour to be here among you today, participating in this panel alongside Evie Theorcharous and Costantinos Hadjiandreou – production coordinators, and Panikos Panayiotou producer/director of the documentary “Queens of Cyprus”. I am here on behalf of the University of Limassol, as the acting director of the Center for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. The University of Limassol is a partner institution, supporting the production of this documentary.

My dear friend Panikos has asked me to say a few words to introduce the documentary. He kindly even advised me to refer, if I wanted, to a brief history of strong women from Aphrodite to the current day. Can you imagine? That would be impossible! It would be impossible, because that’s how huge the number of great women is, of extraordinary women, of everyday women, known but mostly unknown to the public, who have left their imprint in the course of history, despite all the obstacles and injustices they came across.

I can tell you, however, how I feel about this documentary. It is a documentary that shares the global power of the pan-Cypriot woman regardless of religion or ethnicity. This is a documentary that serves as a benchmark for the achievements of women in all areas of life and every corner of the globe. It is, at the same time, a call to action, involving men alongside women who are demanding fundamental human rights at personal cost, fighting for a better tomorrow and a more just and inclusive society. After all, the cause of human rights is a matter for all of us.

Gender discrimination, gender-based violence, sexual exploitation and abuse, structural injustices, and marginalization, since they harm the whole of society, are also a matter for the society as a whole. Unfortunately, the case for gender equality is moving shockingly slowly around the globe. In fact, in too many areas, women’s rights are steadily going backward. And this is when the Queens of Cyprus come into play. For the next 50+ minutes, we are going to take you on a journey in time that looks at the resilience, and courage of the women of Cyprus, and the ways they express their love for the home country. I bet that each and every one of you in the audience, has somewhere in your family tree a Queen of Cyprus that has made you what you are today. This is the start of a bigger worldwide journey for our production team so sit back, relax, and let our Queens do the rest».