Prime Minister Lucas Papademos will hold a joint meeting on Thursday with the leaders of the three parties (New Democracy, PASOK, LAOS) supporting his government, soon after the conclusion of his one-on-one meeting with ND leader Antonis Samaras.
On Wednesday, the premier held separate meetings with the other two party heads, PASOK leader George Papandreou and LAOS leader George Karatzaferis, at the Maximos Mansion (government headquarters). Moreover, Papademos will meet again on Thursday with Institute for International Finance (IIF) managing director Charles Dallara to resume the negotiation on the Greek bond swaps.
The two officials, with Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos also in attendance, resumed their discussions late Wednesday following a suspension of the negotiations last Friday. No statements or comments were made after the meeting.
(source: ANSA)
Papademos to Meet With Party Leaders Today
Greek Pottery to Be Exhibited in Taiwan
A rare collection of fresco wall paintings and Greek pottery from the Louvre will be among 100 works from seven French museums that will go on display in Taipei starting Saturday, the National Palace Museum (NPM) said on Thursday.
The exhibition, titled “Western Mythology and Legends: Selected Works from the Louvre Collection,” will feature ancient Greek pottery, frescoes from the ancient city of Pompeii, and 16th to 19th century paintings and sculptures, NMP officials said at a press conference.
The frescoes, dating back to the first century, were unearthed in Pompeii in 1755 and were given as a diplomatic gift by Ferdinand IV of Naples to Napoleon I of France, who later gave them to his wife, Empress Josephine.
Also on display will be a painting of Mount Olympus around the 1720s by Francois Lemoyne; another portraying Apollo revealing his true identity to a shepherdess, by Francois Boucher in 1750; and a red-figured cup by Greek potter Brygos, showing the capture of Troy.
The exhibition will be organized into five themes-Mythic Origins: From a Chaotic Universe to Mount Olympus; Who’s Who of Mythology: the Gods of Olympus; Love Among the Gods: Uncontrollable Passions; Heroic Epics: From Homer to Virgil; and Immortal Myths and Legends: From Antiquity to Modernity.
It will be open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m, Monday through Sunday, Jan.20 to May 14 at the NPM.
Thanasis Polykandriotis To Set Childrens’ Lyrics To Music
The Greek Arts and Culture Centre in Munich, ARISTOPHANIS e.V, will be holding a series of cultural events for the 1st Festival of Young Musicians in Germany.
The events aim at collecting lyrics written by children and presenting them after they are set to music by bouzouki soloist and music professor Thanasis Polykandiotis.
After the collection bid is over, the chosen lyrics will be presented in a concert given by the children chosen to take part in the final phase of the Festival.
Everyone interested can send their lyrics to the following address including their personal information:
Panagiotis Michailidis
Ganghoferstr. 122
81373 München
Those interested can also write an email to info@aristofanis.com or visit the website at http://www.aristofanis.com.
Turkish University Drama Club Brings “Medea” To Europe
Turkish Sabancı University’s Drama Club SuOyuncuları will present their English-language “Medea” performance in different universities around Europe
The tour of the ancient Greek tragedy will start on January 23 in Stuttgart, Germany, where the Turkish Consul General, Mustafa Türker Ari, will hold a reception for the performers.
On January 24, the play will be staged at Viadrina University in Frankfurt an der Oder, while on January 25 it will travel to the Karlsruhe Technical University and on January 27 to the Mensa of Ulm University.
The Turkish drama club will also perform its play at different Dutch universities after the German tour is over. SuOyuncuları has already performed the tragedy in Austria.
“Medea” is a contemporary drama based on the ancient Greek tragedy, which is located in present-day Greece and Anatolia and revolves around marital issues, greed and ambition between the sexes.
Greek Clothing Stores Triumph in Global Markets
Despite the economic turmoil in Greece, Greek clothing stores have managed to enter global markets successfully. Many Greek companies have already established branches around the world.
In particular, the Attrattivo Group leads the Greek market in young women’s apparel and carves a prominent place in the international fashion industry. Attrattivo Group maintains stores in cities of Europe such as Cyprus, Czech Republic, Serbia, Slovakia, Poland, Holland and Albania.
Moreover, Raxevsky is one of the leading companies in the production and sale of female clothing in Greece. Since 1995 Raxevsky, has opened 69 stores showing dynamic development and progress in Greece and abroad.
With their quality, perfect tailoring, inspiration and good taste, Raxevsky clothes always follow and adopt world wide trends, and win new and demanding markets outside Greece.
The Raxevsky brand and Colori by Raxevsky have utilized strategic partners, company products, organizational structures and strategy to successfully market their clothing line in Egypt, Cyprus, Bulgaria and Romania. In addition, Raxevsky company has expanded its activities in international markets by supplying associate retail stores in Italy, Cyprus, Romania and Russia, with the goal of eventually becoming an internationally renowned brand and leader in fine clothes.
Furthermore, Bluepoint, S.N., Argyrosm S.A. (a.k.a, Bluepoint Swim, Inc.), was established in 1969, and under the direction of Founder and President Spiros N. Argyros, became a company that is internationally recognized for its design and production of high-quality swimwear. Headquartered in Athens, Greece, Bluepoint was the first European swimwear manufacturer to perfect swimwear separates.
Bluepoint’s reputation eventually got the attention of international companies throughout Europe and helped it land the first major private label contract based in Italy. Within a few years, Bluepoint had major clients such as La Perla, Dolce & Gabbana, Addidas, Nike, Speedo, H&M, Arena and many more throughout Europe. Bluepoint was exporting to such countries as Italy, Germany, France, England, Spain and Sweden.
Bluepoint Swim, Inc., as it is known in the U.S., was established in 1999 to accommodate sales and distribution for all of North America.
Mock Greek Funeral at Vevcani Carnival in Skopje Angers Greece
The foreign ministry in Athens has issued a strong protest to the FYROM government over a mock “funeral of Greece” staged at a carnival in the city of Vevčani.
The Ambassador of Greece to Skopje, Mrs. Papadopoulou, has also reacted strongly to this incident and asked the government of Skopje to publicly denounce the latest provocations against Greece. She also emphasized that such incidents do not help the future development of bilateral relations between FYROM and Greece.
Vevcani is one of Europe’s oldest carnivals, spanning 1,400 years. It’s a carnival of irony, mocking people, companies, organizations, countries.
One of this year’s victims was Greece; The people of Vevčani paraded a coffin wrapped with a Greek flag (slightly on fire), marking the 181 years of existence, from birth to death.
The ironic pamphlet informing citizens of Greece’s passing states:
Good News
Suddenly, after a prolonged agitation we are left without our dear neighbor, the former Turkish province of (Hell-ass) (Greece, Hellas, Ellada, Yunanistan or whatever they call themselves). They were 181 years old.
Born 1830 (London Protocol) – Died 2011 (Hague)
The information pamphlet mentioned the ‘family’ who mourns the passing of Greece: The list includes: “EU, USA, Russia, Serbia, Egypt, Chatzirmakakis, Borjan Jovanovski, Vladimir Milcin, Branko Gerovski, Biljana Sekulovska and the rest …” The list included names of Macedonian ‘journalists’ bribed by Athens. Finally, the Greek flag was burned.
NYT: Hedge Funds May Sue Greece
Hedge funds have been known to use hardball tactics to make money. Now they have come up with a new one: suing Greece in a human rights court to ensure it makes good on its bond payments.
According to the New York Times, the tactic has emerged in conversations with lawyers and hedge funds, as it has become clear that Greece was considering passing legislation to force all private bondholders to take losses, while exempting the European Central Bank, which is the largest institutional holder of Greek bonds with 50 billion euros or so in those holdings.
Legal experts suggest that the investors may have a case, because if Greece changes the terms of its bonds so that investors receive less than they are owed, that could be viewed as a property rights violation — and in Europe, property rights are human rights.
(source: New York Times, capital)
New Educational Program 'Click on History' Launched by Vodafone and Federation of Hellenic World
Vodafone Greece and the Federation of Hellenic World (FHW) launched the new education program ‘Click …. on History’.
The goal of the program is to highlight local history in the eyes of young pupils by using wireless communications in modern education. The program is addressed to junior high school pupils and is sponsored by the Ministry of Education.
In the program, teenage students will use the camera and voice recording functions on their mobile phones and become ‘reporters of history’. They will explore the city, neighbourhood and village, collect evidence from family albums, cultural events and public records and create their own audiovisual presentations.
The audiovisual product of their research will be sent over the Vodafone mobile network to the internet platform local.e-history.gr.
There, it will be made available to the school community and the public. The program has already been implemented in six junior high schools in Larissa, Drama, Thebes, Nafplion, Nea Ionia and Chios, and by the end of the school season it will be active in 12 more schools in the prefectures of Attika, Achaia, Evros, Evia, Lasithi, Lesvos, Xanthi, Pella, Rodopi and Samos.
(source:TELECOMPAPER)
Greece Offers Ancient Sites, Including Acropolis, for Rent
ATHENS – The Acropolis might not be for sale, but it is for rent. Desperate for cash and looking at every possible option, except going after tax evaders, Greece is now offering what was once a taboo site – the Acropolis – for rent to film crews and photographers, and throwing in the site of the ancient Oracle of Delphi and the famed Cape Sounion temple as well. Hollywood and other filmmakers have long tried to get access to the Acropolis, especially for movies, but it has mostly been off-limits until now.
Screenwriter Nia Vardalos, known for My Big Fat Greek Wedding, got permission to film at the site for My Life in Ruins, which turned out to be a perfect description for how the film was received. She said there were many restrictions in trying to get permission to film on the Acropolis, as Greek Reporter noted previously. “I hope that we set an example in that we went and we shot and didn’t break anything,” she said. Director Francis Ford Coppola was also allowed to use the site and musician Yianni had a concert filmed at the adjacent Herod Atticus theater.
The government has approved a cheaper pricing plan meant to lure film crews and photographers to its historic attractions — including the home of the Parthenon. The Greek Culture Ministry slashed the cost of a one-day film shoot at the Acropolis by more than half, from more than $5,000 a day to about $2,050. The rate for photographers was cut by roughly one-third, from $385 a day to $256. The reduced rates come with a plan to speed up approval of the permits.
The site would also be made available for demonstrators to rent, along with other commercial ventures, officials said. The first spot open under the new plan is the 2,500-year-old Acropolis overlooking Athens. Other spots covered by the plan include Delphi, home of the oracle, and the Temple of Poseidon at Sounion. Using state-produced photos of the world-renowned attractions will also come at a deep discount, with the price dropping from about $130 to around $40.
The ministry intends to use the anticipated flow of new cash for upkeep of the sites, adding that it would impose strict conditions on anyone taking advantage of the cheaper rates. The ministry’s budget has been cut by 20 percent since Greece asked for international rescue loans nearly two years ago to keep from defaulting, as it was being crushed by a staggering $460 billion debt created by generations of packing public payrolls with political hires in return for votes.
The previous prices were “excessive” and prevented groups from being able to use images of Greece, George Andreas Zannos, an adviser to the ministry, told Bloomberg news agency. Greece is trying to squeeze more money out of its monuments as the government battles to avert a debt default and collapse of the country’s economy. Greece had been pressured by Germany, which is putting up most of the bailout rescue money, to lease or even sell sites such as the Acropolis and various islands.
The cost to use pictures of state-owned sites and museums in publications, from art history books and encyclopedias to tourist guides and magazines, was cut to as low as $38 per shot from $127, based on statements dated October 2005 and January this year from the ministry in Athens. A list of monuments such as the Temple of Poseidon at Sounion will be included in a $76 per shot category, according to the new price-list. All categories will now carry discounts after the first 10 photographs. Before, said Zannas, “publishers refrained from publishing books with images of archaeological content and museums” and sites lacked guides and books with images. All revenues raised will be used by the ministry, he said.
While there have been frequent strikes shutting down archaeological sites, receipts from visits to museums and archaeological sites rose 5.3 percent to $52.4 million in the first nine months of last year, according to the Athens-based Hellenic Statistical Authority. The ministry is also working on speeding up the process of obtaining a permit, which hindered film production companies from using locations in Greece in the past, Zannas said. Greece is notorious for bureaucratic red tape and making it difficult for businesses to operate or films to be shot, leading some directors to find sites in other countries that they can substitute for Greece.
Greek Debt Deal Seen By End Of Week
Greece may reach an agreement with private sector creditors on a debt writedown plan by the end of the week, a Greek Finance Ministry official said Wednesday.
“All indications are that we might have an agreement by the end of this week,” said the official.
Talks between Greek government officials and private sector creditors on the bond swap plan continued in Athens late Wednesday after stalling last week amid differences about the future interest rate Greece would pay bond holders.
Taking part in the meeting are Greek Prime Minister Lucas Papademos, Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos and Institute for International Finance (IIF) managing director Charles Dallara.
(source: Dow Jones)