Baha Çakmak

Baha Güneş Çakmak (August 4, 1923 - November 15, 2000) was the founding President of Varosha, serving from 1974-2000, and head of the Varoshan Peoples' Democracy Party. He was the founding president in 1974 and was re-elected in 1980, 1985, 1990 and 1995.

Early life and career
Baha was born in, to Kahraman Munir Çakmak and Akgül Işılay Yazar, both Turkish Cypriots. He graduated from in,. Following his graduation he worked as a translator in his hometown of Larnaca and as a grocery boy. He then went to and resided in the Varosha quarter.

Varoshan independence
After the July 15, 1974 Greek ultra-nationalist military coup in Cyprus, fearing for the safety of the Turkish Cypriot population, Turkey unilaterally invaded by landing troops on the north coast of Cyprus. During the military operation, the dictatorship led by Nikos Sampson fell and political wrangling began. After three weeks, Turkey continued to advance military operation. The Turkish Army took control of 37% of the island by the time it completed its second advance on August 14, 1974 and reached Famagusta. Baha led the Greek & Turkish Cypriots of Varosha into defending themselves against the warring armies. On August 15, 1974, the Republic of Varosha declared independence from Cyprus as a whole. Baha established himself as president and assigned fellow "warrior of peace" Sakis Stamatopoulos, a Greek Cypriot folk singer, to the prime minister position.

Illness, death and funeral
Baha's health gradually deteriorated throughout the late 1990s. On March 5, 2000, he announced he would not be standing for a sixth term as Varoshan president in the next election. His tenure ended on September 2, 2000 with the election of Paris Chatzimichalis as president. He died on November 15, 2000 from multiple heart failure at the Lucretes Health Centre Hospital in Lucretes. Varosha declared a weeklong mourning period, while Cyprus and Northern Cyprus both issued three days' mourning. His funeral, which hundreds attended, was held on January 17, 2001. His body was embalmed and put on display in the Baha Çakmak Mausoleum.