Daily Archives: April 23, 2014

Έπειτα από περίπου οχτώ εβδομάδες ασταμάτητων ερευνών για να βρεθεί έστω κι ένα σημάδι από το εξαφανισμένο Boeing των Μαλαισιανών αερογραμμών, οι αυστραλιανές γραμμές φαίνεται ότι βρήκαν κάτι που μπορεί να αποδειχθεί ότι ανήκε στο μοιραίο αεροσκάφος.

Σύμφωνα με πληροφορίες η θάλασσα ξέβρασε σε ακτή της δυτικής Αυστραλίας ένα κομμάτι λαμαρίνας με καρφιά, το οποίο όμως δεν το έχει παραλάβει ακόμα η ομάδα ερευνών.

Το κομμάτι αυτό το έχει στα χέρια της η αστυνομία, όμως έστειλε στο επιχειρησιακό κέντρο κάποιες φωτογραφίες για να εκτιμήσει αν όντως πρόκειται για συντρίμμια του Boeing.

Τα νέα ευρήματα εντοπίστηκαν κοντά στην Αουγκούστα, 300 χλμ. νότια του Περθ και σύμφωνα με τις πρώτες πληροφορίες έχει καρφιά στην μία πλευρά που είναι καλυμμένη με fiberglass.

Πάντως οι αρχές παραμένουν επιφυλακτικές, αφού και άλλες φορές οι δορυφόροι είχαν εντοπίσει ύποπτα αντικείμενα που τελικά δεν αποδείχθηκε ότι ανήκαν στο Boeing των Μαλαισιανών Αερογραμμών.

Πηγή: madata.gr

Νοτιοκορεάτες δύτες κολυμπούν σε σκοτεινά, κρύα νερά στο εσωτερικό του βυθισμένου πορθμείου, προσπαθώντας να αντιληφθούν την παρουσία πτωμάτων παιδιών αγγίζοντάς τα με τα χέρια τους μέσα σ’ ένα λαβύρινθο από καμπίνες, διαδρόμους και αναποδογυρισμένες γέφυρες, όπου αναζητούν εκατοντάδες αγνοούμενους.

Οι δύτες, οι οποίοι κουβαλάνε μαζί τους σωλήνες οξυγόνου και καλώδια τηλεπικοινωνίας, βλέπουν μόλις λίγα εκατοστά μπροστά τους μέσα στο ναυάγιο του πλοίου, το οποίο άρχισε να βυθίζεται πριν από μια εβδομάδα αφού έκανε μια απότομη στροφή. Τα περισσότερα από τα θύματα ήταν μαθητές του γυμνασίου, από τους οποίους είχε ζητηθεί να παραμείνουν εκεί που βρίσκονταν για την ασφάλειά τους, με αποτέλεσμα να παγιδευτούν.

Οπως αναφέρει το ΑΠΕ-ΜΠΕ, τα περισσότερα από τα πτώματα που έχουν βρεθεί τις δύο τελευταίες ημέρες έχουν σπασμένα δάχτυλα, πιθανόν επειδή τα παιδιά προσπαθούσαν απεγνωσμένα τις τελευταίες στιγμές της ζωής τους να σκαρφαλώσουν στα κάθετα πατώματα ή τις οροφές του ναυαγισμένου πλοίου για να διαφύγουν, γράφει η εφημερίδα Ντόνγκα Ίλμπο.

“Είμαστε εκπαιδευμένοι για εχθρικά περιβάλλοντα, αλλά είναι δύσκολο να είσαι θαρραλέος όταν συναντάς πτώματα σε σκοτεινά νερά”, είπε στο Ρόιτερς ο δύτης Χουάνγκ Ντάε-σικ, ενώ οι κηδείες 25 μαθητών τελούνταν κοντά στην πρωτεύουσα Σεούλ.

Εισαγγελείς που ερευνούν την καταστροφή πραγματοποίησαν επιδρομές στην κατοικία του Γιου Μπιούνγκ-ουν, του επικεφαλής της οικογένειας στην οποία ανήκει η Chonghaejin Marine Co. Ltd, η εταιρεία που λειτουργούσε το πορθμείο Sewol. Πραγματοποίησαν επίσης επιδρομή στην κατοικία του γιου του και στο γραφείο μιας εκκλησίας με την οποία συνδεόταν ο Γιου, δήλωσε ένας εισαγγελέας που ζήτησε να μην κατονομαστεί.

Τα οικονομικά της Chonghaejin και η πολύπλοκη δομή των μετοχών της ήρθαν τις τελευταίες ημέρες στο φως της δημοσιότητας. Ο Γιου είχε φυλακισθεί για απάτη για τέσσερα χρόνια στις αρχές της δεκαετίας του 1990.

Ωστόσο δεν έχει καταστεί μέχρι στιγμής σαφές πόσο σημαντική είναι αυτή η εξέλιξη. Η κορεατική αστυνομία και οι εισαγγελείς πραγματοποιούν συχνά θεαματικές επιδρομές όταν ασχολούνται με προβεβλημένες υποθέσεις για να δείξουν ότι γίνεται πρόοδος.

Κάτω από τη θάλασσα, στο ναυάγιο του Sewol, οι δύτες μπορούν να εργάζονται για σχεδόν μία ώρα κάθε φορά εφόσον οι σωλήνες του οξυγόνου δεν σφηνώνονται σε αιχμηρές γωνίες στην εσωτερική δομή του πλοίου. Όταν αντί γι’ αυτούς χρησιμοποιούν ογκώδεις φιάλες οξυγόνου στην πλάτη τους, μπορούν να εργάζονται για περίπου 20 λεπτά της ώρας πριν ηχήσει το κουδούνι του συναγερμού για το οξυγόνο.

Το Sewol βυθίσθηκε την περασμένη Τετάρτη ενώ εκτελούσε δρομολόγιο ρουτίνας από το λιμάνι Ιντσεον, κοντά στη Σεούλ, προς το νότιο νησί Ζέζου.

Από τους 476 επιβάτες και μέλη του πληρώματος, 339 ήταν παιδιά και δάσκαλοι που βρίσκονταν σε σχολική εκδρομή. Μόνο 174 άνθρωποι διασώθηκαν και οι υπόλοιποι πιστεύεται ότι έχουν πνιγεί.

Ο επιβεβαιωμένος αριθμός των νεκρών είχε φθάσει σήμερα τους 146. Πολλοί βρέθηκαν στο πίσω μέρος του πλοίου, στο τέταρτο κατάστρωμα.

Ο Χουάνγκ δήλωσε πως η ομάδα του έχει ανασύρει ως τώρα 14 πτώματα. “Πρέπει να αγγίζουμε τα πάντα με τα χέρια μας. Είναι η πιο μακάβρια και σπαραξικάρδια δουλειά που έχω κάνει ποτέ στην καριέρα μου”, δήλωσε.

Πηγή: madata.gr

The search for missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 may be forced to re-investigate the possibility that the passenger jet with 239 on board landed, according to new reports.

The New Strait Times has quoted sources close to the probe that the investigation teams are considering revisiting the possibility that the plane did not crash into the ocean and had landed safely at an unknown location.

“The thought of it landing somewhere else is not impossible, as we have not found a single debris that could be linked to MH370. However, the possibility of a specific country hiding the plane when more than 20 nations are searching for it, seems absurd,” the sources told the NST.

Prime Minister Tony Abbott says he has received “no advice whatsoever” to indicate the plane has landed.

“Our expert advice is that the aircraft went down somewhere in the Indian Ocean, we have identified a probable impact zone, which is about 700km long, about 80km wide,” Mr Abbott told reporters in Canberra.

The latest development comes as the multinational team searching for MH370 and its 239 passengers and crew widens the hunt using more capable underwater vehicles.

Yesterday, the Bluefin-21 completed its ninth mission scouring the seabed with three more dives expected to wind up the survey of the most likely location of MH370.

However, no contacts of interest have been found so far.

Relatives of flight MH370 passengers have denounced the Malaysian government’s suggestion that it would soon look into issuing death certificates for those on board despite no proof yet of what happened to the plane.

The statement, issued in response to a weekend briefing that Malaysian officials gave to families in Kuala Lumpur, also called for a review of satellite data that Malaysia says indicates the plane likely crashed somewhere in the Indian Ocean.

“We, the families of MH370, believe that until they have conclusive proof that the plane crashed with no survivors, they have no right to attempt to settle this case with the issuance of death certificates and final payoffs,” said the statement by the “United Families of MH370”.

In Sunday’s briefing, a Malaysian official said the government would look into a timetable for issuing death certificates for passengers on the Malaysia Airlines flight, which are required for families to seek insurance payments, settle debts and address a range of other issues.

Deputy Foreign Minister Hamzah Zainudin also asked relatives in the meeting to submit a proposal for government financial assistance for families as the MH370 search wears on.

But relatives, who have repeatedly accused the government and national airline of botching a response to the plane’s disappearance and withholding information, said Malaysian authorities were playing an agonising “cat and mouse game” over the fate of their loved ones.

“WE ARE IN UTTER OUTRAGE, DESPAIR AND SHOCK!” the statement said, using bold caps.

Malaysian officials could not immediately be reached to comment. The government and airline deny they are hiding anything.

The Boeing 777 went missing March 8 en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing with 239 people aboard.

Malaysia says satellite data indicates the plane crashed in the remote Indian Ocean but no proof has been found despite an intensive multi-nation sea search.

Demanding hard evidence, some vocal relatives have repeatedly said they were unconvinced by Malaysia’s conclusions on the data analysis, performed by British satellite communications firm Inmarsat.

“They have failed to share why they would accept a single source (Inmarsat) for analysis utilising a never before attempted method, as their sole grounds for determining that the plane is under the water and all lives lost,” the families said.

The statement said they requested an independent peer review, but the suggestion was rejected on grounds Inmarsat’s data was under privacy protections.

In the Sunday meeting, “not a single one of our questions was answered,” it added.

A public opinion poll published last week found that more than half of Malaysians believe their scandal-prone government — which has controlled the country for 57 years — is hiding the full truth on MH370.

source:au.news.yahoo.com

AUTHORITIES in Western Australia are investigating whether apparent aircraft wreckage washed up at a beach in the south of the state may be from missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370.

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau is investigating a piece of debris picked up in Augusta, about 320km south of Perth, this afternoon.

An ATSB spokesman has confirmed that the photographs of the debris were being passed on to Malaysian authorities and Boeing for analysis.

The debris was picked up and handed in at Busselton police station.

Submarines join search for MH370

Police officers photographed it and sent the images to the Australian Maritime Safety Authority, who forwarded them to ATSB.

ATSB chief commissioner Martin Dolan also played down the find.

“It’s sufficiently interesting for us to take a look at the photographs,” Mr Dolan told CNN.

“The more we look at it, the less excited we get.”

He said the debris appeared to be sheet metal with rivets.

The debris is still at Busselton police station, but will be handed over to AMSA tonight.

Police said items of interest had been previously reported after washing up on a WA beach and had turned out to be unrelated to MH370, so it was important not to jump to conclusions.

A statement issued from the federal government’s Joint Agency Coordination Centre confirmed the finding.

The agency, led by Air Chief Marshal Angus Houston, is co-ordinating the Australian government’s support for the search for MH370.

“Western Australia Police have attended a report of material washed ashore 10 kilometres east of Augusta and have secured the material,” the JACC’s statement said.

“The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) is examining the photographs of the material to determine whether further physical analysis is required and if there is any relevance to the search of missing flight MH370.

“The ATSB has also provided the photographs to the Malaysian investigation team.

“No further information is available at this time.”

source: theaustralian.com.au

Sydney bound?: Former Central Coast coach Frank Farina is favoured to take the Sydney FC job. Photo: Getty Images

Graham Arnold is the even-money favourite to take charge of Sydney FC next season after the club sacked Frank Farina on Wednesday afternoon.

Arnold, who has also been subject to fierce interest from the Newcastle Jets this week, recently parted company with J-League club Vegalta Sendai this month and is now the league’s hottest available coaching property.

Also lingering is the omnipresent figure of marquee player Alessandro Del Piero, and with the Italian’s desire to enter management growing each year, many believe he could make a seamless transition to the dugout.

Farina was served notice of the board’s decision barely 24 hours after he was spoken about in glowing terms by chairman Scott Barlow at the club’s end of season awards night.

The news is hardly unexpected, however. Whilst Farina was contracted for next season, his failure to guide the Sky Blues to a top four position enabled the club to activate a clause that in his deal that allowed for the termination of his deal.

The board met on Wednesday and decided to fire Farina, who will leave the club without a payout .

“Frank joined us as coach in a difficult period last season and has always given his absolute dedication and commitment to the club,” Barlow said.

“Frank has shown great integrity and resolve in what has been often challenging circumstances this year. I would like to pay tribute to Frank for his professionalism and wish him well for the future.”

Whilst considered popular among the players, Farina was roundly disliked by the club’s fan base, who never warmed to the ex-Socceroos’ coach, and repeatedly requested his removal.

In particular, Farina’s failure to mould an attractive and successful playing style with the league’s most expensively assembled side blighted his reputation.

Under his tenure, the Sky Blues were noted for their counter-attacking and direct style, which proved increasingly unpopular with spectators when it failed to deliver consistent results.

The board contemplated sacking Farina at several junctures during the season but ultimately allowed him to see out the campaign, which ended last Friday when the Sky Blues were beaten 2-1 against Melbourne Victory in their elimination final.

Now the search will commence to find Sydney’s eighth permanent manager since they entered the A-League in 2005.

Arnold, who was born in Sydney and played most of his career in the city, is the obvious candidate to succeed Farina having guided the Central Coast Mariners to A-League glory last season.

But after making the switch to Japan, he left Vegalta Sendai after failing to win over a stubborn squad of aging players and finding the club’s resources, both financial and otherwise, unable to support his ambition. He is also yet to be paid out in full.

Arnold has already knocked back the Perth Glory job, which was taken on a full-time basis by interim coach Kenny Lowe on Tuesday.

The Newcastle job would offer real appeal, given Arnold’s finely-tuned blueprint for building powerful sides on shoestring budgets.

However, the 50-year old’s desire to test himself at the highest level is no secret, and led him to discussions with the Sky Blues when the position was last vacant in mid-2012.

On that occasion, the club’s reluctance to guarantee Arnold total control on football department matters, including the hiring of all staff, became a stumbling block of negotiations.

Despite being out of work, Arnold’s hand is even stronger this time given Sydney’s predicament and the failed Farina experiment.

Complicating matters is the future of Del Piero. While the 39-year old has already stated his desire to play on, the opportunity to coach Sydney – most likely with the aid of a trusted assistant from Italy – may prove an alluring prospect for him and the board.

Other candidates who sure be canvassed include ex-captain Mark Rudan, now coach of Sydney United, and former Newcastle manager Gary van Egmond, who has been linked with the role in the past.

One-time interim coach Steve Corica may have guided the club’s youth league to the league title this season but would appear an unlikely applicant. Current assistant Rado Vidosic may also be reluctant to apply after his failed stint in charge of Brisbane Roar.

With the club’s desire to build a centre of excellence in the coming years, the board is likely to prefer a candidate who is capable of implementing a long-term strategy, more reliant on player and tactical development, over short-term results.

source: theage.com.au

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/sport/soccer/graham-arnold-tipped-to-take-charge-at-sydney-fc-following-frank-farinas-sacking-20140423-zqyaw.html#ixzz2zhRc20My

LET’S cut to the chase and acknowledge the single most conspicuous truth that emerges from a torrid season at Manchester United. It is something we had always known but has been confirmed in the most powerful way. Sir Alex Ferguson is a genius.

Don’t blame David Moyes. Do not blame his support staff. Vince Lombardi, Abraham Lincoln and Nelson Mandela combined could not have managed a successful transition from the most formidable club manager in history.

Context is everything. For almost nine years the Glazer family have been leeching money from the club. They purchased United with pounds 525 million of debt mostly secured on what they like to call “the franchise” and then set about constructing a network of “payments in kind” and bonds to satisfy their creditors. Over time, the cost of this leverage began to bite. From 2005 to 2013, more than 500 million pounds was drained from the United income stream.

That is a lot of cash. Many in the City of London and in New York, where millions of shares in the business were floated in 2012, might argue that high levels of leverage are part of many corporate plans. They will say that football clubs are, like other sporting institutions (such as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the Glazers’ NFL club), ultimately, businesses. They will argue that the equity holder of a company is perfectly entitled to extract money, whether in interest or dividends.

United fans will disagree. They do not regard the club as a business, but as a part of their identity. They do not want profits, but results and glory. And they could see, early on, that a model constructed to deliver profits to the owners was never going to dovetail with United’s thirst for titles. Not with Roman Abramovich on the scene, a man who has poured money into Chelsea like a latter-day Croesus. Not with Abu Dhabi lavishing cash on Manchester City in quantities that would have bankrupted a small nation state.

The miracle is that United continued to deliver on the pitch for so long. By far the most significant factor driving results is the size of the wage bill. If you spend more on top talent, you will win more matches. According to the book Soccernomics, as much as 90 per cent of the variation in results is explained by differences in wages.

Yet since 2007, United have been overtaken in their spending on players. Rival clubs have been sinking hard cash in quantities that the Glazers, with their business model, could not match. Results ought to have deteriorated. Success should have declined.

It did not. From 2007 to 2013, United won five domestic titles and reached the final of the Champions League three times, winning once. They were defying the gravity of the prevailing debt, while keeping a lid on the overall cost base. They were delivering the kind of balance sheet that the owners demanded, while adding to the tapestry of a club the equal of any in football. It was arguably the most stunning period in United’s history. Business analysts were astounded.

Where was the magic coming from? The answer has always been clear, but the past few months have provided ample confirmation. Ferguson. The old Scot. The Govan maestro. The man many of us wrote off, but who just kept delivering in the only arena that mattered: the pitch. United have pretty much imploded since the most compelling character in British football left his office at Carrington. The entire United set-up, from the players to the receptionist, has appeared bereft.

How did he do it? The great mystery of the Ferguson tenure is that nobody has managed to provide anything like a convincing explanation for his success. It was not just that he was the manager of a big club with lots of money. It was not just that he had success in the transfer market (many purchases were excellent, but many were not).

His principal quality, his defining genius, was his ability to extract the maximum – every last damn drop – from the players who lived under his extraordinary spell. He weaved some sort of magic into their minds, added iron to their collective will.

The shock is not how far United have fallen under Moyes, it is the heights at which Ferguson had kept them. It was the worst possible of inheritances for the former Everton manager; a global brand, an unsullied record of success, owners with an iron fist on spending and the most exacting of spotlights. He had a squad that was ordinary at best by United’s standards, but which had just won the Barclays Premier League by a staggering 11 points.

Ferguson had finished his 27-year spell by delivering two things: a parting gift to supporters and a precision-guided missile into any hopes of a successful transition. It is simple, really; Moyes was faced with expectations he could not hope to meet.

United’s fall was, perhaps, rather more vertiginous than many expected, but it would be wrong to dismiss Moyes as some hapless fool, as many have been quick to do. He performed creditably at Everton over a long period (according to the statistics he delivered results above financial expectation) and brought steely dignity to a difficult job at Old Trafford.

It must have been close to traumatic for this proud man to watch his tenure veer from hope to despair and finally to ridicule. One suspects that Moyes had simply not recognised the sheer size of the boots he was stepping into.

Instead of blaming Moyes, it would be more edifying to renew our wonder at the man he replaced. Whatever you might say about Ferguson’s erratic temper, his serial criticism of referees and his juvenile boycott of the BBC, it is impossible to deny his track record. He anointed Moyes as his successor and doubtless believed that his fellow Scot, whom he had long admired, would keep the titles rolling in.

It is possible, then, that even Ferguson had not realised the scale of the miracle he had been performing, and how difficult the transition would prove for his “chosen one”.

United’s search for a replacement will occupy a lot of football’s bandwidth in the coming days, but the underlying analysis will not alter one jot. If United are to return to the glory days, they will either have to spend significantly more on players, or hire a manager with talents comparable to those of Ferguson.

The fear for United fans is that both possibilities seem remote.

There are few, if any, managers who compare to the Scot. And the Glazers have little inclination to depart from a business model predicated not on winning trophies, but on securing them a huge windfall.

source: theaustralian.com.au

Πλαστογράφος ο διάδοχός του Προκοπίου, καταγγέλλει το Πατριαρχείο Ιεροσολύμων.

Νέο εκκλησιαστικό Γολγοθά ανεβαίνει η Ελληνική Ορθόδοξη Κοινότητα Αδελαΐδας. Ο νέος εμφύλιος που ξέσπασε την πριν από 10 μέρες μεταξύ του μέχρι προ τινος Επισκόπου της Αυτοκέφαλης Εκκλησίας, Προκοπίου, και του Διοικητικού Συμβουλίου, έχει διχάσει εκ νέου τον Ελληνισμό της Νότιας Αυστραλίας.
Κοινοτικοί καταγγέλλουν τον κ. Προκόπιο για «αυθαιρεσίες» και «υπέρβαση καθήκοντος» με τη στήριξη κάποιων μελών του Διοικητικού Συμβουλίου. Σύμφωνα με κοινοτικές πηγές, ο κ. Προκόπιος και τα μέλη που τον στηρίζουν έχουν κληθεί επανειλημμένα σε απολογία, αλλά αρνήθηκαν «να προσέλθουν και να λογοδοτήσουν για τις πράξεις τους».

Ο κ. Προκόπιος διαμαρτύρεται για «πρωτοφανείς παρεμβάσεις» του προέδρου της Κοινότητας στο εκκλησιαστικό έργο του, που «υπονόμευσαν» βαθμιαία τη θέση του.
«Η κατάσταση που δημιουργήθηκε στην Κοινότητα είναι τραγική» δηλώνει στο «Νέο Κόσμο». «Ο πρόεδρος της Κοινότητας, κ. Ιωάννης Λεσσές, αντιμετώπιζε εμένα, ως Επίσκοπο, και τους κληρικούς της κοινότητας ως λαϊκούς υπαλλήλους, όχι ως κληρικούς, και μας διέτασσε να ασκούμε τα καθήκοντά μας κατά τρόπον που ήθελε ο κ. πρόεδρος και όχι ως επιβάλλουν οι εκκλησιαστικοί κανόνες και η κοινή λογική» προσθέτει. «Αντιλαμβάνεστε, ότι η αδυναμία συνεννόησης με τον κ. πρόεδρο και μέλη του Διοικητικού Συμβουλίου του κατέστησε αδύνατη την περαιτέρω συνεργασία μας».

Ζητάμε από τον κ. Προκόπιο να επιβεβαιώσει ή να διαψεύσει την πληροφορία μας, ότι οι σχέσεις του με τον κ. Λεσσέ και την ομάδα του επιδεινώθηκαν από κάποια e-mails του διαδόχου του, Χρυσόστομου Χατζηγεωργίου, προς το Διοικητικό Συμβούλιο με καταγγελίες περί δήθεν «ρήξης του Προκοπίου με κληρικούς της Κοινότητας» και περί δήθεν απειλών του Προκοπίου «να ακυρώσει βίζες» κληρικών που υπηρετούν στην Αυτοκέφαλη Εκκλησία.

«Πρόκειται για τρελά πράγματα» απαντά ο κ. Προκόπιος. «Εγώ έφερα το Χρυσόστομο στην Αυστραλία, τον αγκάλιασα, τον στήριξα, αλλά κίνησε, δυστυχώς, την πτέρνα κατά του ευεργέτη με τη διασπορά ψευδών πληροφοριών και φαντασιώσεων. Ο Χρυσόστομος επέστρεψε στην Ελλάδα και από εκεί έστελνε e-mails εναντίον μου, προϊόντα της γόνιμης φαντασίας του, που δεν είχαν καμία σχέση με την πραγματικότητα».

Ο Χρυσόστομος Χατζηγεωργίου, που, σύμφωνα με πληροφορίες του «Νέου Κόσμου», το Διοικητικό Συμβούλιο της Κοινότητας θα αναβαθμίσει σε Μητροπολίτη Βοστώνης, Μασαχουσέτης, Υπέρτιμο και Έξαρχο Ειρηνικού και Ατλαντικού, καταγγέλλεται από το Πατριαρχείο Αλεξανδρείας για πλαστογραφία.
Με επιστολή του προς το Διοικητικό Συμβούλιο της Ελληνικής Κοινότητας Αδελαΐδας, η οποία κοινοποιείται στην Ιερά Αρχιεπισκοπή Αυστραλίας, το Υπουργείο Εξωτερικών – Διεύθυνση Εκκλησιών και το Γενικό Προξενείο της Ελλάδος στην Νότια Αυστραλία, το Πατριαρχείο Αλεξανδρείας γνωστοποιεί, ότι ο φερόμενος ως διάδοχος του Προκοπίου, Χρυσόστομος Χατζηγεωργίου, υπέβαλε πλαστά έγγραφα στην Κοινότητα Αδελαΐδας προκειμένου να «νομιμοποιήσει την κανονικότητά του ως κληρικού».

Παραθέτουμε το πλήρες κείμενο της πατριαρχικής επιστολής προς την Κοινότητα Αδελαΐδας:
«Προς
Τον Πρόεδρο και τα Μέλη του Δ. Συμβουλίου
της Ελληνικής Κοινότητας
Εις Αδελαΐδα
Αξιότιμοι Κύριοι,
Περιήλθε στη γνώση του εν Αθήναις Γραφείου Εκπροσωπήσεως του Πατριαρχείου Αλεξανδρείας και πάσης Αφρικής, ότι ο φερόμενος ως κληρικός και απασχολούμενος στην Κοινότητά σας, Χρυσόστομος Χατζηγεωργίου, προκειμένου να νομιμοποιήσει την κανονικότητά του ως κληρικού, επικαλείται βεβαίωση που δήθεν εκδόθηκε από το εν Αθήναις γραφείο του Πατριαρχείου Αλεξανδρείας και πάσης Αφρικής.
Το περιεχόμενο της βεβαιώσεως είναι πλαστό και ουδέποτε τέτοια βεβαίωση εξεδόθη. Καταγγέλλουμε την ανίερη και παράνομη και ανήθικη αυτή πράξη εμπλοκής του Πατριαρχείου Αλεξανδρείας και πάσης Αφρικής, προκειμένου ο δήθεν κληρικός Χρυσόστομος Χατζηγεωργίου να εξαπατήσει την Κοινότητά σας, εμφανιζόμενος ως πρώην κληρικός του Πατριαρχείου και επιφυλασσόμεθα κάθε νομίμου ενεργείας ενώπιον των αρμοδίων δικαστηρίων όπου δει.
Αναμένοντας απάντησή σας και ευχόμενοι καλό Πάσχα διατελούμε
+ Αρχιμ. Βασίλειος Βαρβέλης».

Πηγή: Νέος Κόσμος

Με τη νέα αγορά η Αυστραλία θα έχει στην διάθεσή της συνολικά 72 αεροσκάφη F-35.

Η αυστραλιανή κυβέρνηση ανακοίνωσε ότι θα αγοράσει   άλλα 58 αμερικανικά  πολεμικά αεροσκάφη F-35 Joint Strike Fighters  αξίας 12 δισεκατομμυρίων δολαρίων.
Με τη νέα αγορά η Αυστραλία θα έχει στην διάθεσή της συνολικά 72 αεροσκάφη F-35.

Το πρώτο από τα νέα αεροσκάφη θα είναι έτοιμο για να συμμετέχει σε επιχειρήσεις το 2020.

Το F-35 είναι το πιο δαπανηρό πρόγραμμα εξοπλισμού του της Αυστραλίας.

Πηγή:Νέος Κόσμος

Prokopios Kanavas.

After four attempts, Bishop Prokopios’ resignation was finally accepted by the Greek Community of South Australia.

Prokopios Kanavas, former Bishop of St Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church in Adelaide, and Bishop of the Greek Orthodox Community of South Australia (GOCSA), has resigned. The resignation follows three attempts to quit this position that weren’t accepted by the GOCSA. Yet Friday nights resignation was final and now, Mr Kanavas is no longer serving the parishioners of St Nicholas.

Since being ordained as bishop in August 13, 2013, he says that there has been a distinct lack of communication between himself and the executive committee of GOCSA.

“I’ve tried hard to solve many issues since my ordination,” Bishop Prokopios tells Neos Kosmos.

“I was trying to build good relationships between myself and the executive committee and to have a better understanding of the ecclesiastical issues and how we can work together.”

He says he felt as though he was treated as “an employee” and not as a Christian leader of the Orthodox church.

“[GOCSA] think the priests, the bishops are employees which is against the Orthodox church standards, a bishop or a priest can not be an employee,” he says, adding that a priest comes to this role as a divine calling and not the work of man.

“All the time they tried to push me aside and make their own decisions.”

Mr Kanavas says that when he’d try to mentor a priest, and instruct them on how to serve, he would notice they would do the opposite to what he told them, and that the priests would in fact follow the instructions and advice given to them by the president of GOCSA, Mr John Lessos, or someone else from the board.

“[GOCSA] don’t understand how a church works,” he says, “they think the employee should obey the employer.”

Mr Kanavas says in his 14 years of serving the church he had never felt like “an employee” until being employed by GOCSA.

“I serve the office of church and I think I have made the right decision because as a bishop, cleric, as a Christian Orthodox we have to protect our faith and what our church says and our church says to serve the people and Jesus Christ and to follow his commandments – not an employer.”

When asked about his parishioners and how they’ve taken the news to his resignation, he says that they are all “very sad”. But he is standing by his decision so as to not bring any further scandal to the church during Holy Week.

Mr Kanavas says he may pursue another role with the church in a year, but whether that will be in Adelaide or whether it will be with the Greek Orthodox Community of SA or the Archdiocese, he says he isn’t sure.

“‘I haven’t had an offer at the moment,” he says.

Mr Kanavas was previously sacked as an SA Police chaplain. Allegations have also been raised about discrepancies over his tertiary qualifications.

Neos Kosmos contacted the Greek Community of South Australia’s president Mr John Lesses but by the time this article went was published, Mr Lesses or any members of GOCSA had not responded to the interview requests.

source: Neos Kosmos

SYDNEY FC has parted company with coach Frank Farina.

The A-League club said in a statement it will not be renewing Farina’s contract after the Sky Blues were eliminated from the finals series with a 2-1 loss to Melbourne Victory last Friday.

Farina had been in the job since the middle of last season, taking over from Ian Crook after the Englishman resigned following a string of poor results.

While Farina got the club back on track, Sydney narrowly missed out on the finals in the last round of the season.

Farina is now the seventh coach in nine seasons to leave the club.

Given he had a full season to restructure the squad, and with Alessandro Del Piero among a solid playing group, he was expected to get the club into the playoffs this year.

While he achieved that aim, it is understood he also had a clause in his contract that allowed the club to not renew his deal if it did not get into the top four. Sydney finished fifth.

In announcing the decision, Sydney FC said it acknowledged the former Socceroo’s contribution.

“Frank joined us as coach in a difficult period last season and has always given his absolute dedication and commitment to the club,” said Sydney chairman Scott Barlow.

“Frank has shown great integrity and resolve in what has been often challenging circumstances.”

Former Central Coast Mariners boss Graham Arnold, who is also being chased by the Newcastle Jets, could be in line to be the next man in charge of the Sky Blues, although the club is understood to be keen on seeking a coach from overseas.

source:theaustralian.com.au