Michael’s Reviews > Bitter Lemons > Status Update

‘[…] “Yes,” he continued in the slow assured tones of the village wiseacre, “yes, even Dighenis, though he fights the British, really loves them. But he will have to go on killing them—with regret, even with affection.”’

‘“Even Dighenis,” he said thoughtfully, “they say he himself is very pro-British.” It was one of those great conversations which carry with them hallucinating surrealist flavour—in the last two years I had enjoyed several hundred of them. […]

Despair, relief and disillusionment on quitting his duties: ‘I was, I realized, very tired after this two years’ spell as a servant of the Crown; and I had achieved nothing. It was good to be leaving.’

Athens Radio reiterated time and again, to enflame the population, that freedom is won by blood, that chains don't fall from limp hands. Is Cypriot society still plagued by the historic violence? Durrell observes that all the trust in society was thoroughly undermined (pp. 215–7).

Karaolis was the head of a terrorist organisation that murdered administrators and civilians to antagonise the British government into harsher measures and thereby provoke the Cypriots into unrest. Countenanced by a refractory local government bound by central policy, they could not make the government act by force (p. 224). It had a Cypriot youth willing to murder out of pride (p. 200).

After the announcement that Karaolis is to be hanged, there is a sadness. Panos and Janis are both sad. Panos was bitter about England's lie (p. 241) and appears to be disillusioned by the tactlessness of English colonialism; EOKA has a political nous the English do not possess (p. 224). Is Karaolis a freedom-fighter?

‘[…] I could not help reflecting what a sad waste of money and reputations the whole problem had been; and if the peace could only be kept with the help of twelve thousand armed men what security could the island enjoy as a base? …’

‘[…] (For example the deportation of the Archbishop which was operationally just was politically nonsensical—as he was not only the one true representative of the Greek community who could not be replaced, but is absent left the fuel open to the extremists. Though his complicity in EOKA was obvious, nevertheless he was the only break to terrorism and the only person who could curb it.) […]

‘[…] To try to marry military and political considerations at this stage was like trying to play a drum from a piano score. We had all of us been made the clowns of short-sightedness at home, for now military solutions precluded the political. […]

‘[…] “I shall come back for a holiday myself one day,” he smiled, “And by the way, do keep your eye open, and if you feel we're going wrong for goodness’ sake don’t hesitate to tell us so.”
‘But what could I tell him? The very decisions which were operationally necessary to the present situation were political lunacy for whatever must follow upon the present. […]