Monthly Archives: September 2014

Antonis Samaras is off to Germany this week after returning from Azerbaijan. Photo: AAP.

Prime Minister Antonis Samaras was in talks with his aides over the weekend in a bid to finalise Greece’s arguments ahead of a crucial meeting in Berlin this week with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, from whom he hopes to secure a message of support ahead of the troika’s return to Athens later this month.

Greek government officials have been hammering out a “road map” foreseeing the country’s swift exit from the so-called memorandum with the emphasis on reaching an agreement with the troika without delay so that attention can be focused on resolving political problems on the domestic front.

According to sources, the ideal scenario is that a basic agreement with the troika is reached by early December. The government might then find itself in a favourable position to tackle its key political challenge – garnering the 180 seats in the 300-seat Parliament that it requires to endorse its candidate for president.

With its parliamentary presence at 154 seats, and leftist SYRIZA keen to force early general elections by blocking its candidate, the government is far from the enhanced majority it needs. But sources suggest that a deal with the troika, if reached in good time, could win round many of the independent MPs the coalition is counting on to build support. If the 180 votes appear to be within reach, there is a chance that procedures for presidential elections will be launched as early as January, before President Karolos Papoulias’s term ends in February.

The issue of potential debt relief will take longer to resolve and Athens and Berlin are said to have agreed to put the contentious issue on the back burner until the presidential election issue is resolved.

Nevertheless – even with the thorny matter of debt off the table of talks – reaching a deal with the troika will be no mean task. Athens is reluctant to push forward with the troika’s demands for a second phase of reform of the pension system and additional painful changes to the Greek labour market. Samaras is also keen to get the foreign envoys’ approval for a series of tax breaks that he heralded at the Thessaloniki International Fair earlier this month.

In addition, the two sides have a different view on the matter of fiscal and funding gaps. Government officials have reiterated recently that Greece will not require a third foreign loan program, with Finance Minister Gikas Hardouvelis stating that Greece is in a position to raise some 12 billion euros in outstanding loans from the International Monetary Fund on its own, by tapping international markets. The Fund, which wants to leave Greece, appears to support this position while the European position on the matter remains to be determined.

Samaras and Merkel are expected to discuss the progress of reforms, the role of the troika and the looming problem of political risk during their talks in Berlin on Tuesday. The Greek premier completed a visit to the Azeri capital of Baku on Saturday, declaring that Greece was “upgrading its positions on the global energy map.”

source: Neos Kosmos

South Melbourne captain Michael Eagar (L) at the NPL Finals launch this week. Photo: Helen Velissaris.

For Leo Athanasakis, it doesn’t hurt to go the extra mile to ensure a win.

Travelling to Hobart this weekend, the South Melbourne club president says he’ll be paying a visit to the local Greek Orthodox Church, hoping to inspire some divine intervention to get the team over the line.

“I’m meeting the Greek orthodox priest and he’s promised me he’ll give us a blessing,” he tells Neos Kosmos in all seriousness.
South Melbourne is the only Greek sponsored team to make it into the NPL finals series they don’t want to take any chances.

They’ve already garnered the help of fellow Greek Australian team Hobart Olympic, who have offered South their pitch for training and any insider knowledge on their opponents, South Hobart.

The going will be tough. South Hobart have won the last seven state championships and made it to the NPL national grand final last year. They narrowly missed the national title, losing out 2-0 to Sydney United.

The South Melbourne boys arrived in Hobart on Friday, a day early to get themselves settled and focused. They might be playing it cautious but it means they will have as much confidence in their game as possible.

Captain Michael Eagar says the used their last NPLV match to bond and work on the team dynamic.

“We’re very confident, we’ve come off the back of VPL success in the season and we played on the weekend up to Goulburn, it was a good bonding session, it was a long bus trip there and we came back with a result,” he tells Neos Kosmos.

They beat Goulburn Valley Suns 4-1, a great result to keep the team in good spirits. They also kept a few players off the pitch to ensure they’ll be available for Sunday’s match.

Coach Chris Taylor is quietly confident, and sees the national Cup as a way to get his players abilities noticed.

“It’s a big challenge to play at national level, most of the players have got aspirations of playing in the A-League so it’s their opportunity to show they can play,” he tells Neos Kosmos.

One of the main aims for the NPL was to create a stronger link between the A-League and the state leagues. Football Federation Australia introduced the league to make pathways more concrete, and give clubs incentives for training players that are good enough to be picked up by the top tier.

FFA CEO David Gallop says it’s already been working, with Central Coast Mariners’ Glen Trifiro being signed directly after his NPL finals results.

“It’s a way of connecting the big state competitions with the A-League, its an opportunity to make sure those pathways exist in those clubs and as such are a critical engine rooms for footballers,” he tells Neos Kosmos.

Speaking at the launch of the NPL finals series, Mr Gallop said grassroots football is the heart and soul of football in Australia and must be nurtured.

At least now, with three National Cups in the works, one for the top tier A-League, one for the second tier NPL and one for every single club in Australia, the FFA Cup, the hierarchy is becoming less noticeable.

South Hobart vs South Melbourne
Kick-off: 1:30pm, September 20
Wellesly Park, Hobart

source: Neos  Kosmos

Peter Economides speaking at Swinburne University.

Renown brand strategist Peter Economides was in Melbourne last week to give a select few young Greek Australian invaluable tips on starting their own businesses.

As part of the first events for the HACCI Young Professionals Network (HYPN), Mr Economides spoke at two events, one a private 30 person masterclass on branding and the other an open lecture at Swinburne University on start ups.

The masterclass had Mr Economides speaking praise for the bright young minds in the Greek Australian community.

“I’ve been very impressed with the talent I’ve seen among the Hellenic Australian youth here this weekend and look forward to hearing of their future endeavours,” he said.

He spoke about the importance of creating a strong brand to back up great product ideas, indicating how brands that he’s worked for, including Coca Cola and Apple create a culture around their products.

“People don’t buy what you do, they buy why you do it,” he said.

“You don’t sell a product, you sell your business’ culture. This is what the world’s most successful brands do so well.”

At the one hour lecture, Mr Economides was part of an interactive panel comprising of industry leading Swinburne academics.

HYPN convenor Ashley Nasiakos, who organised the two events in conjunction with Swinburne University says he hopes to follow up the success of the first events with more programs for the growing network.

“It’s been an incredibly successful series of events and we look forward to following it up with the launch of the HYPN mentoring program later in the year,” he said.

source: Neos Kosmos

Thousands of Greek Australians pack into Lonsdale Street to see the opening of the new Greek Centre for Contemporary Culture. Photo: Mike Sweet.

More than 2000 Greek Australians packed the Lonsdale Street Greek precinct on Sunday to see the new Greek Centre of Contemporary Culture launched with a bang.

President of the Greek Community of Melbourne and Victoria (GOCMV) Bill Papastergiadis fought back tears while addressing the crowd, speaking of a new period for the Greek Australian community.

“This is a new chapter in the renaissance of Greek Australian Victoria” he said.

“A building in which to engage and redefine our identity.”

He said the building is the largest undertaken by any Greek community of the diaspora and will act as an example of what can be achieved.

Bishop Ezekiel was on hand to bless the building, while both sides of politics showed their support, with Premier Denis Napthine and opposition leader Daniel Andrews in attendance.

Mr Andrews even tried his hand at speaking a bit of Greek to congratulate the community on this historic milestone, which was met with laughter and applause.

Greece’s Ambassador to Australia, Haris Dafaranos also relayed the Greek Government’s congratulations and said Prime Minster Antonis Samaras is very proud of the achievement of the GOCMV and of the Greek Australian community.

The 15 level building was open to all, but struggled under the crush of people. Lines heading to the lifts snaked up Lonsdale Street for hours, with people curious to see what the building has to offer.

Inside they were able to see new multi-purpose rooms, classrooms for the GOCMV language classes and rooms for future exhibitions. The pièce de résistance was the impressive rooftop space on the 13th floor.

For those not able to make it into the building, a music and dance program entertained the crowd, including dances from Melbourne’s Pontiaki Estia.

It was a fitting way to open the new building, harking back to the annual Londsale Street Greek Festival.

The old white three story building is now a thing of the past. It will now forever be replaced by an impressive glass building with a sneaky Discobolus on the façade, standing tall in the heart of the Greek precinct.

source: Neos Kosmos

Police were forced to close streets as Mosque protesters clashed on the Sunshine Coast. Photo: Mark Furler

Police had to keep anti mosque protesters and supporters apart at an emotion-charged rally on the Sunshine Coast on Saturday.

More than 500 people – about 80% of them against the Islamic mosque – converged on land near the Stella Maris Catholic Church to protest the mosque plan.

Supporters of the mosque sang iconic Australian tunes, prompting outrage from a few of the anti mosque movement.

Streets around the protest were blocked off by police while plain clothes and uniform police had to repeatedly warn anti-mosque protesters to tone their comments and anger down.

An equally vocal contingent of young people defended the right of Islamic people to set up their own church, saying Australia was a democratic country. But protesters accused the youth of being ‘bussed in’ from the Gold Coast with some even resorting to insults over their university fees.

The situation became repeatedly heated as supporters of the mosque tried to convince opponents that most Islamic people were peace loving and represented no threat to Australia’s way of life.

Opponents, however, warned of beheadings, the introduction of sharia law, the loss of rights for women and the undermining of the Australian way of life.

Those supporting the mosque were told to ‘go back where you come from’ repeatedly by the more vocal minority in the crowd.

At one point police were booed as they ordered a protester to get down from a stage as he spoke of beheadings and his fears over a mosque.

Protesters questioned what happened to freedom of speech in Australia.

The crowd cheered as supporters lifted the man onto their shoulders so he could continue speaking.

Among those protesting the mosque were One Nation, Christian bikie gangs, opponents of halal meat certification as well as representatives from some local churches.

Both sides, not doubt, saw it as a sign.

Some of those supporting the mosque accused Christians of showing more hate than love while opponents said it was their right to defend Australia’s Christian heritage.

One elderly man brought with him a Koran, challenging the young people to read it, asking whether they really knew what was in it, or what the Islamic faith stood for.

Supporters challenged the Christians to get to know more Islamic people,  saying they would realise they were peaceful people.

Many protesters though voiced fears those setting up an Islamic church would be ‘nice now’ but would ‘stab people in the back’ before long and try to take over the community.

source: sunshinecoastdaily.com.au