Daily Archives: December 9, 2015

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has warned against blaming all Muslims for the crimes of extremists, after former PM Tony Abbott inflamed debate about a “massive problem within Islam”.

Mr Abbott has called for a “religious revolution” inside Islam and declared: “Cultures are not all equal. We should be ready to proclaim the clear superiority of our culture to one that justifies killing people in the name of God”.

He initially made the comments in a Sky News interview, and backed them up in an opinion column published by News Corp.

“We’ve got to work closely with live-and-let-live Muslims because there needs to be, as president [Abdel Fattah] Al-Sisi of Egypt has said, a religious revolution inside Islam,” Mr Abbott said.

“All of those things that Islam has never had — a Reformation, an Enlightenment, a well-developed concept of the separation of church and state — that needs to happen.”

He acknowledged most Muslims “utterly reject terrorism” but also argued that Australians should stop being “apologetic” about their nation’s values.

“It’s not culturally insensitive to demand loyalty to Australia and respect for Western civilisation,” he said.

Speaking on ABC local radio, the Prime Minister said Mr Abbott was entitled to his personal opinion.

“It’s a complex area,” Mr Turnbull said.

“Plainly the vast, vast majority of Muslims are as appalled by extremism, and particularly violent extremism, as we are,” Mr Turnbull said.

“The extremism of ISIL or Daesh, these terrorists, is utterly rejected by the leaders of the great majority Muslim nations.

“The one thing we need to be very careful not to do, and I’m sure Tony agrees with this by the way, what we must not do is play into the hands of our enemies and seek to tag all Muslims with responsibility for the crimes of a few.”

Comments ‘grossly disrespectful’ to Muslims

Islamic Council of Victoria spokesman Kuranda Seyit said the comments had caused offence, particularly the suggestion that Islam was culturally inferior.

“Islam is a religion of decency and has, equally to any other religion in the world, the highest moral standards which we uphold,” he said.

“For him [Mr Abbott] to suggest there is a problem in that area, I think, is grossly disrespectful to the people of Islam and the followers of Islam.”

Kuranda Seyit went on to acknowledge some members of the Islamic community needed to change.

“Unfortunately there are some people within the community who want to go back towards the original concept of Islam,” he said.

“That’s where I think, sometimes, you have that clash within the Muslim community between the old guard and the new guard.”

Sydney-based Islamic scholar Ahmed Abdo has also criticised Mr Abbott’s approach and questioned whether he was qualified to call for a “reformation”.

“I’ve spoken to many Muslims and in fact Christians, and Jews today and they’ve without doubt expressed their extreme disgust and upset with those comments,” he said.

“Those comments are inflammatory, those comments are divisive, those comments are in fact in line with what radical groups such as ISIS are actually calling for – and that is that the western world rejects Islam and Islam has not place in wider western society.”

Labor seizes on former PM’s comments

Opposition Leader Bill Shorten called on Mr Turnbull to “pull Tony Abbott into line” and said he was clearly seeking to divide the community.

“Making assertions about cultural and religious superiority is entirely counterproductive,” Mr Shorten said.

“Inflammatory language undermines efforts to build social cohesion, mutual respect and has the potential to harm the efforts of national security agencies to keep Australians safe.”

Labor frontbencher Andrew Leigh said the comments framed Mr Abbott as an “Australian Donald Trump”.

His colleague Ed Husic, Australia’s sole federal Muslim MP, echoed the comparison with conservative US-style campaigning and noted what he saw as a broader effort by some to “Trumpify” Australian politics.

Yesterday Mr Trump, the Republican presidential frontrunner, called for a “complete and total shutdown” of Muslims entering the US, claiming there was “great hatred towards Americans by large segments of the Muslim population”.

His comments drew fire from all sides of the US political spectrum, with everyone from Hillary Clinton to Dick Cheney saying banning a particular religious or ethnic group would go against everything America stood for.

source:abc.net.au

The company will now have to introduce new written contracts to avoid repeating the infringement, according to the ruling.

A Greek subsidiary of Dutch brewer Heineken has been fined €31.5 million for market abuse, in the largest such fine ever levied by Greece’s competition watchdog.

The Competition Commission announced that the subsidiary, Athenian Brewery, was fined for abusing its dominant position in the production and distribution of beer.

“This is the highest fine that the commission has ever imposed on a single company in Greece,” Competition Commission boss Dimitris Kyritsakis told Reuters.

The commission said Athenian had enforced policies which excluded its rivals from the on-trade consumption market over a 15-year period and has engaged in restrictive wholesale practices.

source:Neos Kosmos

Growing CBD population leading to innovative thinking for social activities.

Melbourne’s skyline is set to change, according to a recent report, as councils consider new approaches in dealing with the city’s booming population, which is set to tip 180,000 by 2031.

According to the Herald Sun, the increase will lead to a shortfall of 12 sports ovals, 12 soccer fields, 10 indoor sports fields and one bowling green.

Councils are now considering the viability of holding sporting events on inner-city rooftops to revitalise Melbourne’s skyline and help alleviate increasing pressures associated with overcrowding.

The suggestion is receiving positive feedback from business owners and workers within the CBD area who say the innovative idea will save space, regenerate the city and create more social settings for people in the area.

Managing Partner at Moray & Agnew Lawyers Bill Papastergiadis is one of those heralding the idea.

“It makes sense and I think it’s a way going forward for utilising space in an urban jungle to create a green aesthetic and a calming influence for workers and also residents and an opportunity for people to get fit.

“My firm, Moray Agnew Lawyers … made the decision to come to the building where we are at the moment for the sole reason that we would have access to the rooftop garden for all of our staff and all of our events and it’s a hit.”

Five inner-city councils, including Melbourne’s, will hire a consultant to consider all available options for utilising space.

source:Neos Kosmos

Στις 10 πιο έξυπνες χώρες του κόσμου σύμφωνα με έρευνα του ΟΟΣΑ.

Μπορεί η ελληνική κρίση να έχει γονατίσει τους Έλληνες, ωστόσο, σύμφωνα με έρευνα του ΟΟΣΑ η Ελλάδα συγκαταλέγεται στις πιο έξυπνες χώρες του κόσμου.

Για να λυθούν μερικά από τα μεγαλύτερα προβλήματα που μαστίζουν τον πλανήτη -από την κλιματική αλλαγή μέχρι την ασφάλεια τροφίμων- χρειάζονται περισσότεροι επιστήμονες. Σύμφωνα με τον ΟΟΣΑ, η Ελλάδα μπορεί να συνεισφέρει αρκετά σε αυτό, καθώς σε επίπεδο επιστημών συγκαταλέγεται στις 10 εξυπνότερες χώρες παγκοσμίως.

Στην πρόσφατη μελέτη του OECD «Science, Technology and Industry Scoreboard 2015: Innovation for growth and society», που βασίζεται σε στοιχεία που χρονικά φτάνουν μέχρι το 2012, ο ΟΟΣΑ εξέτασε τα πτυχία πανεπιστημίου σε 40 από τις πιο αναπτυγμένες χώρες του κόσμου.

Η κατάταξη γίνεται με βάση το ποσοστό των πτυχίων σε πεδία Επιστήμης, Τεχνολογίας, Μηχανολογίας και Μαθηματικών, που απονέμονται κατά κεφαλήν, έτσι ώστε να υπάρχει μια δίκαιη σύγκριση μεταξύ των χωρών με διαφορετικούς πληθυσμούς.

Η Ελλάδα δαπάνησε μόνο το 0,08% του ΑΕΠ της στην έρευνα το 2013, η οποία ήταν ένα από τα χαμηλότερα που αναφέρθηκαν μεταξύ των ανεπτυγμένων χωρών – και θα μπορούσε να εξηγήσει γιατί το ποσοστό της STEM βαθμό μειώθηκε από 28% το 2002 σε 26% το 2012.

Οι 10 πιο «έξυπνες» χώρες του κόσμου, όταν ο λόγος έρχεται σε αυτά τα πεδία Επιστημών:

1. Νότια Κορέα

2. Γερμανία

3. Σουηδία

4. Φινλανδία

5. Γαλλία

6. Ελλάδα

7. Εσθονία

8. Μεξικό

9. Αυστρία

10. Πορτογαλία

Μετά την Ελλάδα, στην έβδομη θέση βρίσκεται η Εσθονία, η οποία ανακηρύσσεται πρωταθλήτρια στην ισότητα των δύο φύλων, τουλάχιστον στις επιστήμες, αφού το 2012, ένα ποσοστό 41% των Εσθονών επιστημόνων ήταν γυναίκες.

Στην όγδοη θέση βρίσκεται το Μεξικό, με ποσοστό 25% από το 24% το 2002, μια χώρα που κρατά σταθερά ανοδική πορεία, παρά την απόφαση της κυβέρνησης να καταργήσει τις φοροαπαλλαγές για τις επιχειρηματικές επενδύσεις στην έρευνα και την ανάπτυξη.

Ακολουθεί η Αυστρία στην ένατη θέση με ποσοστό 25%, η οποία μάλιστα έχει τον δεύτερο μεγαλύτερο αριθμό διδακτορικών σπουδαστών, με περίπου 6,7 γυναίκες και 9,1 άνδρες ανά 1.000 κατοίκους.

Η Πορτογαλία είναι η χώρα που ολοκληρώνει τη δεκάδα, επίσης με ποσοστό 25%. Αξιοσημείωτο είναι το γεγονός ότι η χώρα έχει τον μεγαλύτερο αριθμό διδακτορικών σπουδαστών (72%) που εργάζεται στην εκπαίδευση.

Πηγή:Νέος Κόσμος

Taxpayers will be required to declare cash, jewels to create a national asset inventory.

A new tax form is about to be introduced in Greece from January 2016, for those required to declare their assets. The new system will call for the mandatory declaration of any cash more than €15,000 ($22,354) kept outside of bank accounts and safety deposit boxes, as well as jewellery, precious metals and stones valued for more than €30,000 ($44,715).
Co-signed by Minister of Finances Euclid Tsakalotos and the deputy minister of justice, in charge of anti-corruption policy, Dimitris Papaggelopoulos, this joint ministerial decision is believed to be the first step towards the creation of an electronic National Asset Inventory, which will apply to all taxpayers. For the time being, only members of parliament, civil servants and journalists are required to present an asset declaration, through the laws that demand their income transparency.
The Declaration of Assets electronic form will be introduced to the Taxisnet systems from 1 January 2016, and it will affect thousands of taxpayers. The announcement has already sparked controversy in Greece and abroad, among concerns about safety and regulation. The new rules on tax self-assessment could raise some much-needed cash, as their justification has been made on grounds of “support and development of the Greek economy”, but critics state that the plan could backfire.
Speaking to CNBC, Greek-born Philip Ammerman, co-founder of London-based investment advisory Navigator Consulting Group, expressed his belief that there is no way any Greeks “in their right minds” would declare any form of liquid asset, particularly assets that are already out of the banking system and at home.
Addressing concerns, the Deputy Minister of Finances Trifon Alexiadis told the Greek News Agency (AMPE) that a lot of the details of the plan have been exaggerated by the Greek media. Trying to end confusion, he assured taxpayers that the Declaration of Assets will apply to bonds, stocks and offshore bank accounts, “not the occasional gold sterling pound that a grandmother has passed on to her grandchildren”.

source:Neos Kosmos

In its inaugural meeting, the Hellenic parliament’s Committee for the Greek Diaspora set its list of priorities.

The importance of human capital as a factor in Greece’s plan to exit the ongoing crisis was stressed by Deputy Foreign Minister Yannis Amanatidis in the inaugural meeting of the Hellenic Parliament’s Committee for the Greek Diaspora.

In his address to the members of the Committee, Mr Amanatidis set out a framework of actions that the Committee and the General Secretariat for Greeks Abroad (GGAE) should take, in order to further enhance the strong relationship of the Greek diaspora with the motherland.

“We work on a legislative initiative for the Council of Hellenes Abroad (SAE), seeking the greatest possible consensus, with democratic self-organisation of the institution, and the strengthening of its status and effectiveness,” he said, while promising to introduce “reforms and structural changes to modernise the whole public administration in order to facilitate everyday life for Greeks abroad”.

Prominent among this set of reforms is the creation of an electronic system interconnecting all Greek embassies and consulates around the world with the Ministry of Interior – a change that would enable expatriates to issue any kind of certificate in their country of residence.

Equally important is the planned digitisation of the GGAE archives, which would thus become accessible online for researchers wishing to locate any official document related to the Greek diaspora.

But the most ambitious initiative is the establishment of May 20 as an international ‘Greek-speaking Day’, aimed at promoting the learning of Greek language and the diffusion of Greek culture. The date was picked to coincide with the alleged birthday of the ancient Greek philosopher Socrates. An official presidential decree, signed by Prokopis Pavlopoulos, will be the first step, before the issue is referred to the UN and UNESCO.

“It is therefore clear that we aim not only to strengthen the links of the metropolitan centre with the Greek diaspora, but primarily the interaction of the Greeks inside and outside the borders of motherland to a new foundation – functional, modern and effective,” he said.

THE NEED FOR A NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR GREEKS ABROAD

The committee’s priorities were set out by its chairman, Mr Alexandros Triantafyllidis, who stressed the need for a national strategy for the Greeks abroad “in a spirit of mutual understanding, consultation and consensus, based on the principles of democracy, humanism and culture”.

The aim to attract investments by expatriate Greek entrepreneurs has taken centre stage recently and features hight in the priorities set by Mr Triantafillidis, as a way to address the ongoing financial crisis.

Among the committee’s main goals is to create an extensive record of diaspora Hellenism, gathering information by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Hellenic Statistical Autority; the continuation of programs for the preservation of the Greek cultural identity within Greek communities abroad; to assist inter-cultural education institutions; to further cooperate with the World Hellenic Inter-Parliamentary Association; to promote the teaching of the Greek language, through the relevant departments of universities and institutes around in Greece and abroad; to put to use Citizen Service Centres for Greeks abroad, in order to tackle bureaucracy and mismanagement; to support the national broadcaster’s satellite channels (ERTSAT, ERT3, Voice of Greece) and develop synergies with the Greek media abroad.

As for the recent wave of emigration of educated young Greeks due to the economic crisis, it presents new challenges for the committee, which needs to develop policies to cater for their needs.

However, there’s still no sign of a resolution to other long-outstanding demands of the expatriate communities, such as the pension and insurance issue and the right to vote in the general elections; the latter should be discussed thoroughly by the permanent committee in a special session, according to Mr Triantafillidis.

source:Neos Kosmos

Madrid: Cristiano Ronaldo hit four goals and Karim Benzema netted a hat-trick as Real Madrid romped to a Champions League record-equalling 8-0 group-stage win at home to Malmo on Tuesday.

Real, who had already reached the last 16 as Group A winners, took the outclassed Swedish side apart at the Bernabeu with a ruthless display that matched the biggest margin of victory in the group stage of Europe’s elite club competition.

Real coach Rafa Benitez, accused of being too defensive since taking over in the close season, was in charge of Liverpool when they hammered Besiktas 8-0 in 2007, while Real’s ex-Liverpool defender Alvaro Arbeloa played in both matches.

Benzema struck twice early on to put Real 2-0 ahead, following up his La Liga double against Getafe at the weekend.

Ronaldo made it 3-0 in the 39th minute with a free kick and netted a quick fire treble at the start of the second half to extend his Champions League record to 88 goals in 121 games.

Portugal’s FIFA Ballon d’Or holder set a record for goals scored in the group stage of 11 and has reached double figures in the competition for a fifth consecutive campaign.

It was his first four-goal haul in the Champions League, with the overall record of five held by Lionel Messi of Barcelona and Luiz Adriano, who achieved the feat with Shakhtar Donetsk but now plays for AC Milan.

Mateo Kovacic put Real 7-0 ahead in the 70th minute and Benzema completed the rout 16 minutes from time.

“We knew it would be a strange match because they had to come out and play to win to finish third,” Benitez told a news conference.

“We scored eight but it could have been more,” he added. “I have always said that I am not defensive and this demonstrates it.”

Real, the record 10-times European champions, finished on 16 points, with Paris St Germain, who had already qualified for the knockout phase in second place, on 13 after winning 2-0 at home to Shakhtar Donetsk.

Shakhtar and Malmo each have three points, with the Ukrainian side securing third place and a Europa League berth thanks to a better head-to-head record.

Malmo, who lost to Nottingham Forest in the 1979 European Cup final, made their Champions League debut last season.

Source:smh.com.au

Louis van Gaal might not have realised when he took his seat in the third-floor suite at Wolfsburg’s stadium that it was 10 years to the day since Manchester United played Benfica in Estádio da Luz and suffered one of the more harrowing ordeals of Sir Alex Ferguson’s last decade in the job.

It might be difficult to believe it now but that 2-1 defeat by Benfica – the first time United had been eliminated from the competition before the knockout stages in 10 years – resulted in a question being asked in the post-match inquest about whether the most decorated manager in British football might pay the ultimate price. The headlines included “End of the Line?” and “Fergie on the Brink”, which clearly look faintly ridiculous given what followed. But that was the climate back then and nobody could be sure how the Glazer family would react in their first season in charge. Roy Keane had just been booted out of the club after one outburst too many and one of the United fan websites responded to the defeat with a piece entitled “Ten Reasons Why Fergie Must Go”, accompanied by a mocked-up picture of his P45, signed by Malcolm Glazer.

A decade on, a lot of United’s supporters who have made their way to Volkswagen territory, where even the stadium is named after the city’s most famous symbol, could probably be excused if they were missing the old warhorse and wondering, perhaps, what might have been but for his advancing years. United arrive in Wolfsburg after an anaemic run of five goalless draws in nine games, scoring seven times in the last 10 matches, and chastened by accusations of repetitive blandness. Ferguson managed another three Champions League finals after that dismal night in Lisbon, plus five Premier League titles and two League Cups. It is not a stretch to look at the current Premier League, led by Leicester City, and think he would have it wrapped up by February or March.

Instead Van Gaal has taken United on a different route, whereby he has moved out four strikers this season, bringing in only one, and now laments the team’s lack of finishers. “As a manager you cannot be pleased when it’s like that,” Van Gaal said. “You have to finish because it is the most important aspect of football.” In Germany they must find that blurred and strange. One of the players who was ushered to the door, Javier Hernández, has scored 11 times for Bayer Leverkusen since the start of October. In the same time frame United’s entire squad has managed 10.

The 0-0 against PSV Eindhoven a fortnight ago ago has certainly made them vulnerable as they prepare to face the team who currently lead their Champions League group. Two points separate the top three teams in Group B and PSV, in third, are at home to CSKA Moscow, who have already been eliminated. United, in other words, might have to beat the Bundesliga’s fifth-placed team to avoid dropping into the Europa League’s Thursday-night Sunday-afternoon churn.

On a more positive note a victory would mean winning the group and avoiding Real Madrid, Barcelona and Bayern Munich in the first knockout round. It will not be straightforward, however, given that Wolfsburg’s 1-0 defeat against Borussia Dortmund on Saturday was the first time they had lost at home in the Bundesliga in 30 games. At the very least United will need to improve in an attacking sense because leaving the competition at this stage would be a deeply unsatisfactory way to end the club’s first season back in the Champions League. They were given a relatively moderate group and, for Van Gaal, there would be another wave of scrutiny on his “philosophy” – a word, incidentally, he finally appears to have tired of himself – at a time when many supporters are already aggrieved about the prosaic playing style.

At the same time it is worth noting there has been a shift in approach at Old Trafford since Ferguson left. At that time the attitude was that the Premier League and winning in Europe should be seen as equally important and, on occasions, key players would often be rested before trips abroad. Behind the scenes they now say the mind-set is 80-20 in favour of the domestic league, on the basis there has been a marked improvement at several clubs, among them Everton, Southampton and West Ham, who would not usually be regarded as such a threat.

Tellingly the vast amount of television revenue means clubs do not have to sell their better players, as United found out with Sadio Mané at Southampton and Chelsea with Everton’s John Stones, and that has left the Old Trafford board suspecting that in the coming years it will become increasingly difficult for the established top four clubs to maintain their position.

At board level the directors also seem relatively relaxed about the financial hit of not going through, estimated at around £5m. Yet they also know how quickly one match can change a team’s fortunes. Ferguson, still with the old urges, was among the visiting entourage beside the River Aller. “There’s no point killing myself about the outcome,” he said. “You’ve got to trust the way they’re handling it.”

Source: irishtimes.com