Daily Archives: February 18, 2015

The double-storey property AIMS holds currently is used to teach Greek language classes. Photo: Google Street View.

Of the 700 or so Greek community organisations in Victoria, the Australian Institute of Macedonian Studies (AIMS) has become the first to make plans for its potential demise, bequeathing its assets to the Greek Orthodox Community of Melbourne and Victoria (GOCMV) if it is dissolved.

The institute made the decision this week after its members unanimously voted to donate its double-storey property in Brunswick, its library books, archives and any funds remaining if the institute ever becomes dissolved.

President of the institute, Professor Anastasios Tamis, says the decision was necessary considering what has happened to other institutions without a dissolvement plan.

“It wasn’t just symbolic, it was an essential move on behalf of the institute,” he tells Neos Kosmos.

“Some Greek Australian organisations have vanished and the properties (they held) are currently being disputed by the Australian government because there are no institutions to accept these properties.”

The institute has chosen to bequeath its property to the GOCMV as a way to ensure its assets contribute to the Greek community and its future needs.

“We believe this organisation, being democratic and cosmic (not ecclesiastic), totally neutral and secular, deserves our trust,” Professor Tamis says.

He says of the 700 or so organisations that still exist in Victoria, at least 350 of them would have property or considerable funds. He believes it’s time for them to accept that the organisation might not live forever and decide where its assets should be divided.

“They’re in denial,” Professor Tamis says.

“They don’t realise that they are in the process of decay.

“We have to invest our trust in the second, third and fourth generation of young Greeks in order to give them the flag that we have carried the last 50 or so years.”

Leading by example, the institute hopes that other organisations will be inspired to ask their members for input on where they would like to see the assets directed.

As an academic, he hopes to see Greek schools and cultural programs benefit.

“It should be given to Greek cultural entities and educational institutions to promote the history and the legacy of the Hellenic culture of Australia,” Professor Tamis believes.

“We owe this to the younger generation and the incoming fourth generation.”

source: neos kosmos

Προσπάθειες προς πάσα κατεύθυνση για να ανατραπεί η απόφαση εκτέλεσηής τους καταβάλει τις τελευταίες εβδομάδες και η ομοσπονδιακή κυβέρνηση της Αυστραλίας.

Πάνω από 150.000 Αυστραλοί πολίτες υπέγραψαν το υπόμνημα κατά της εκτέλεσης των δύο νεαρών Αυστραλών, οι οποίοι αναμένεται να εκτελεσθούν στην Ινδονησία μέχρι το τέλος του μήνα.

Πρόκειται για τους Andrew Chan και Myuran Sukumaran, οι οποίοι το 2006 είχαν καταδικαστεί σε θάνατο από δικαστήριο της Ινδονησίας για διακίνηση μεγάλης ποσότητας ηρωίνης.

Προσπάθειες προς πάσα κατεύθυνση καταβάλει τις τελευταίες εβδομάδες και η ομοσπονδιακή κυβέρνηση της Αυστραλίας, διπλωμάτες της οποίας αναμένεται να συναντηθούν σήμερα (Δευτέρα) στην πρωτεύουσα στην Τζακάρτα με εκπροσώπους του υπουργείου Εξωτερικών της Ινδονησίας και να τους μεταφέρουν τις αντιδράσεις της αυστραλιανής κοινή γνώμης κατά της εκτέλεσης.

Σύμφωνα με την κυβέρνηση της Ινδονησίας στόχος της σημερινής συνάντησης είναι να ειδοποιηθούν οι ξένες πρεσβείες τουλάχιστον 72 ώρες πριν την εκτέλεση για τη διαδικασία που πρόκειται να ακολουθηθεί.

ΝΑ σημειώσουμε εδώ ότι υπάρχουν θανατοποινίτες και άλλων χωρών που βρίσκονται εν αναμονή μέχρι να οριστεί επίσημα η ημερομηνία της εκτέλεσής τους.

Την εβδομάδα που μας πέρασε τόσο ο πρωθυπουργός, Τόνι Άμποτ, όσο και η υπουργός Εξωτερικών, Τζούλια Μπίσοπ, έκαναν επανειλημμένες εκκλήσεις προς την κυβέρνηση της Ινδονησίας να δοθεί χάρη στους δύο θανατοποινίτες οι οποίοι κατά την διάρκεια της παραμονής του στην φυλακή έγιναν άλλοι άνθρωποι.

Κατά τη διάρκεια της πρόσφατης ομιλίας τους στη Βουλή, τόσο ο Τόνι Άμποτ όσο και η Τζούλια Μπίσοπ, δήλωσαν ότι η κυβέρνηση έκανε ότι μπορούσε για να σταματήσει την εκτέλεση των πολιτών της, ενώ παράλληλα υπογράμμισαν ότι η Αυστραλία είναι εναντίον της θανατικής ποινής.

Πηγή:Νέος Κόσμος

Members of the Hellenic RSL at the annual Australian Prisoners of War ceremony.

In order to commemorate those who suffered as prisoners in captivity during Australia’s involvement in wars over the 20th century, the Australian Ex-Prisoners of War Memorial was established in 2004. Each year, an annual wreath-laying ceremony is held in order to remember these prisoners.

This year’s ceremony took place on the 8 February at the memorial site. More than 2,000 people attended the event, including 50 attendees from the Hellenic RSL.

Amongst the 36,000 names etched into the 130-metre long granite memorial wall are the names of 29 Greek Australians who were captured during the Second World War. These prisoners were deprived of personal privileges and liberty at the hands of either a common enemy and/or a neutral or non-combatant country during war, in patriotic defence of their country. Furthermore, 10 Greek Australians died as prisoners during the Second World War.

The memorial site, where the ceremony takes place, is located at the Ballarat Botanical Gardens and is used to commemorate the pain and suffering that all prisoners of these wars endured. The site also remembers the thousands of mates left behind during war and the sacrifice of families back home in Australia.

The site’s structure holds a particular sense of symbolism, signifying that all prisoners embarked upon a journey of patriotism, and the etching of names onto the granite wall with no rank, number or enlistment detail stands as an understanding that all prisoners of war are equal. Furthermore, the structure of the site incorporates a stone garden journey to symbolise the great lengths to which participants had to travel to take part in the war.

The annual ceremony is yet another significant way in which the importance of the Greek Australian alliance in the face of war is and will be honoured and commemorated for years to come.

Featured below are the names of the 29 Greek Australian prisoners of war in the Second World War:

ALEXANDRATOS DIOMEDES, from Victoria, age 20. (RAF) Germany.
BLACK (MAVROKEFALOS), John, from Victoria, age 26. (RAF) Germany.
BYLOS, VINCENT, from NSW (+) age 22. (ARMY) Singapore
CAIMANOS, JOHN, from NSW age 38. (ARMY) Thailand
COLIVAS, GEORGE, from NSW age 19. (ARMY) Thailand-Singapore-Japan
COMINO, JACK, (+) from NSW age 23. (ARMY) Thailand
DALAS, FREDERICK, (+) from NSW age 30. (ARMY) Singapore
DEMUS, HENRY, (+) from NSW age 21. (ARMY) Sandakan-Borneo
DIMOPOULOS, PETER, from NSW age 21. (ARMY) Singapore
DOULIS, MICHAEL, from W.A age 32. (ARMY) Singapore
FREELEAGUS, CHARLES, from QLD age 22 (ARMY) Burma-Thailand
GEORGE (PAPAGEORGIOU) CONSTANTINOS, from Victoria age 21. (RAF) France
GLYTSOS, EMANUEL, from NSW age 20. (ARMY) Singapore
HARRIS (VAMVAKARIS) GEORGE (+) from Victoria age 33. (ARMY) Singapore
KARIKIOS, DIMITRIOS, from NSW age 27. (ARMY) Changi-Thailand
KARCOES, NORMAN, from NSW age 21. (ARMY) Singapore
KYRIAKOS (KYROS) JACK GEORGE, from NT age 20. (ARMY) Malaya-Singapore
LIKIARD (LIKIARDOPOULOS) SOCRATES, (+) from QLD age 20 (HMAS Perth) China Sea
MANUSU, IVAN, NSW (+) from NSW age 30. (ARMY) Thailand
MAVROTHALASITIS, GEORGE, (+) from W.A age24. (ARMY) Singapore-China Sea
MESOLOGETES (MOLLOY) JOHN, from NSW age 21. (ARMY) Singapore
NICHOLAOU, ANTONIS, (+) from QLD age 38. (ARMY) Singapore-Japan
NICHOLAOU (NICHOLSON) COSTAS, from NSW age 22. (ARMY) Singapore-Malaya
OMIRIDES PETER VASILIOS, from W.A age 20. (ARMY) Malaya-Thailand
PANAOTIE, JOHN, from Victoria age 29. (ARMY) Borneo
PANIOTI, NICHOLAS From Victoria age 21. (ARMY) Singapore
PAPANGELOPOULOS (ANGEL) LEONIDAS, from NSW age 39. (ARMY) Singapore
RAFT,(RAFTOPOULOS)STANLEY, (+) from NSW age 23. (ARMY) Malaya-Thailand-China Sea
VAFIOPULOUS, GEORGE, from NSW age 23. (ARMY) Malaya-Changi.

source: neos kosmos

Prime minister Tony Abbott (L) with senator Arthur Sinodinos.

After being seen as a pivotal critic of Tony Abbott and a public supporter for the leadership spill, Arthur Sinodinos is expected to offer help to his leader in the months ahead, according to a report in The Australian.

The Murdoch paper states that although many of the prime minister’s supporters, particularly in NSW, regard Senator Sinodinos as an enemy of Mr Abbott at war with his office, the senator is ­believed to be reaching out to Mr Abbott and offering to help.

Senator Sinodinos’ experience as a senior political adviser may help revive the government’s standing in politics and policy. He was John Howard’s chief of staff in 2001 when the then Coalition government was in dire trouble but managed to turn the situation around without changing leaders.

Despite claims he was supporting Malcolm Turnbull, Senator ­Sinodinos has denied to colleagues “doing the numbers” for the Communications Minister and said his criticisms were about process and management.

Before Christmas, as he resigned as assistant treasurer, an angry Senator Sinodinos made a number of public recommendations for Mr Abbott about shuffling his cabinet, creating a science minister and promoting more women. Mr Abbott took steps on all three.

But Senator Sinodinos caused a media storm last week when he said his support for Mr Abbott was “not unconditional”.

Although the media portrayed him as an “Abbott loyalist” ­because of his links with Mr Howard and Mr Abbott when he was a minister, the Prime Minister’s ­Office did not regard him as such and was not surprised by his comments. His remarks, on Sky News, fuelled expectation of a leadership spill motion to remove Mr Abbott, and added a higher profile to the group of dissidents complaining about Mr Abbott’s leadership.

Later he added to the calls for a spill, saying he would support it, and criticised Mr ­Abbott’s decision to bring forward the vote. “I am disappointed the partyroom meeting has been brought forward. MPs should be given adequate time to discuss the matter at hand,” he said.

Before Christmas there was speculation within the Liberal Party that Senator Sinodinos could be given some form of advisory role, such as a cabinet secretary, but that did not happen and is not considered likely to happen this year.

source:neos kosmos