Sydney’s new Greek spot is open now with an exclusive feature Friday the 28th of October.
Greece’s currently hottest group Stavento is coming to Sydney for a one night only live performance after international DJ, music producer and event promoter Krazy Kon.
Krazy Kon will be launching his new club Mykonos Bar Sydney, which has recently opened at 16 Wentworth Avenue, City.
International DJ Vasilis Koutonias (Athens), DJ Frisbee (NY) and DJ Krazy Kon (Australia) will be also playing on the same night. Tickets are on sale now through the following email address info@krazypromotions.com.au
An apparent dispute over a tomato patch has resulted in 65-year-old Pericles Papadopoulos being charged with the murder of Andonios Mirtsopoulos in the Melbourne Magistrates Court last Friday.
Papadopoulos surrendered himself to police after he had murdered Mirtsopoulos in the backyard of his Thompson Street house in Clayton.
According to his lawyer, Grace Morgan, this was her client’s first time in custody and he had been unable to sleep overnight, which resulted in his poor state. The 65-year-old man is suffering from long-term health issues including blood pressure and rheumatoid arthritis, which made it necessary for him to be transferred to the Melbourne Assessment Prison to be helped with his illnesses.
Prosecutor Ella Piper asked that Papadopoulos remain in custody until February next year and ordered a psychiatric assessment for him.
Jesse Eisenberg, known for his role in 2010 Oscar-winning film “The Social Network”, will be reading parts of two Ancient Greek tragedies showing the depth of physical and psychological wounds soldiers suffer from.
Eisenberg along with other actors will be performing on Monday afternoon at the New York State Museum in Albany and Monday night at the New York State Military Museum in Saratoga Springs.
The two Ancient Greek tragedies belong to Sophocles (“Ajax” and “Philoctetes”), and have been chosen by the US military to address post-traumatic stress disorder and other combat-related issues.
The readings will be followed by discussions with members of the civilian and military communities.
This week, the Greek Jewish community asked for aid from Jewish communities around the world so that synagogues and other services may continue to function.
According to Benjamin Albelas and David Saltiel, the presidents of the Jewish communities in Athens and Thessaloniki, the communities have suffered over the last few years during the recession. They said the two largest communities in Greece have been using collected money to support those who have lost jobs as well as public institutions. However, they point to a dramatic change in property tax to being per square meter that has devastated the community since many members of the community rely on real estate for income.
The property tax measure that was adopted this month consists of a 16 euros per square meter charge that applies to all buildings. The tax is supposed to help the Greek government pay off its debt to the European Union, IMF and other sources of monetary support.
Since the recession hit in 2008, the Greek communities have been forced to take austerity measures such as community figures not being allowed to work beyond the age of pension and ten percent salary cuts for all community figures. In addition, summer camps have been closed and there has been discussion in Thessaloniki about having only one community rabbi rather than the two that are currently paid by the community.
The request that has come to light this week was initiated a few weeks ago and involves a formal request for support from the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC) in New York. The JDC has aided other communities in the past, such as Argentina during the last century when the Argentinean Dollar collapsed. The two community leaders differ over how much assistance is required – Saltiel estimates one million dollars while Albelas estimates about 400,000 euros.
Since the request was submitted, the Greek communities have submitted their paperwork regarding their finances in the past and present. A JDC representative will visit this year to finalize support once the the Athenian community has finished submitting its financial information and the JDC has time to to examine it and compile a loan package.
Figures show that one in four commercial businesses in Greece has closed down since the start of the crisis, while it is doubtful that many of those that are still operating today will be open after this coming January.
The recession has dealt an enormous blow to all sectors, though it has hit commerce and manufacturing hardest, where the majority of businesses are small or medium-size, as daily Kathimerini reports. Large commercial firms have not been immune to the knock-on effects of the crisis, with a number of major clothing importers and retailers declaring bankruptcy, and wealthy shopping districts in the capital, such as Kolonaki, Kifissia and Glyfada, also feeling the heat, with a succession of store closures.
According to the latest data released by the National Confederation of Hellenic Commerce (ESEE), the percentage of the total number of businesses listed that has closed has risen from 15% in the summer of 2010 to 25% in August 2011. In fact, on a number of central commercial streets in the Greek capital, the percentage of closed shops exceeds 30%. The streets that have been hit the hardest are Solonos (42%) in central Athens, Tsakalof in Kolonaki, Plastira in Maroussi (35%), Kolokotroni (33%) in Kifissia and central Stadiou (32%).
More and more shops are shutting in Thessaloniki, where the percentage has risen from 10.1% in August 2010 to almost double that at 19.1% a year later. Things do not look bright for the future either, as an index compiled by the ESEE suggests that if the rate of closures continues at the current pace, in February 2012 there will be 228,000 commercial business in operation, compared to 255,000 today and 324,000 at the beginning of 2009.
This means that 122,000 businesses will be wiped off the country’s map, with everything that this entails in terms of entrepreneurship and unemployment.
Greek students entered an auditorium in Humbold University in Berlin holding banners during the last speech by ECB president Jean-Claude Trichet.
The young protesters yelled slogans against him while waving banners reading “Troika out of Greece”, “No more money for the banks” and “Say no to debt tyranny”. In addition to the boos, a young woman asked him if he could live on 470 euros per month.
After the protest was over, the outgoing ECB president continued his speech underlining the need of establishing a single euro-area finance ministry. Moreover, he supported the idea of euro-area authorities gaining a much deeper and more authoritative role upon countries repeatedly failing to formulate economic policies.
On Monday, Serbia’s Patriarch Irinej paid a visit to the Theological School of Halki, the former Orthodox seminary on the island of Heybeliada in Turkey, accompanied by Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew.
The Patriarchs were cordially welcomed by the Metropolitan of Proussis Elpidoforos, the new abbot of the Halki Monastery that maintains the premises of the former seminary since it was closed by the Turkish government in 1971.
The Serbian Patriarch attended an official dinner at the monastery and then departed for the Ecumenical Patriarchate in Phanar to continue his visit.
Prime Minister George Papandreou called for unity across Greece’s political spectrum Tuesday, as European finance ministers and leaders struggled to come up with a definitive solution to Greece’s debt woes that won’t drag down other EU nations as well.
A nonstop barrage of EU meetings is culminating in a Wednesday summit where EU leaders are expected to shore up the eurozone bailout fund to contain the continental debt turmoil and prevent the nation from a catastrophic default.
Eurozone governments hope the enhanced European Financial Stability Fund, or EFSF, will be able to protect larger EU countries such as Italy and Spain from being engulfed in the debt crisis.
“This is a critical time and I hope that we reach decisions tomorrow — that is the will of our partners, and it is our will,” Papandreou said as he briefed Greece’s president, Karolos Papoulias, on the latest developments. “We must remain clear-headed and calm with a sense of unity on all side and all political parties.” (source: AP)
Azerbaijan`s Minister of Industry and Energy Natig Aliyev met on Monday Greek Minister for Environment, Energy and Climate Change George Papaconstantinou.
The discussions focused on cooperation between the two countries in the energy sphere.
The Greek Minister said his country was interested in import of Azerbaijan`s gas. He also expressed hope that gas transit between Azerbaijan and Turkey would soon be realized.
Papaconstantinou called on the Azerbaijani side to participate in the privatization process of the Greek DEPA Company.
Fitch Ratings sees no quick fix to the euro zone crisis ahead of a crucial meeting of European leaders in Brussels on Wednesday and amid worrying signs that a European recession will set in this winter.
“There is no quick fix, no matter what comes from the summit on Wednesday,” said Tony Stringer, Fitch΄s global head of sovereign ratings by teleconference.
European leaders are considering a plan to make the euro zone΄s 440 billion euro bailout fund effectively larger by employing leverage to effectively deal with the crisis. Options for the fund, the European Financial Stability Facility, have been narrowed to include an insurance plan that foresees the fund΄s setting aside a pool of money that could be used to offset part of any losses suffered by purchasers of the debt of weak countries, such as Italy.
Fitch΄s Stringer said he regarded Greece as insolvent and that a default for that country is inevitable, with the outlook for Spain and Italy a concern.
In terms of Asia, the ratings agency expects strong growth for the region in 2012, but is worried about the current state of the banking system in China. It puts the chance of a Chinese banking crisis in the coming years at a 50% chance. (source: Dow Jones)
Sydney’s new Greek spot is open now with an exclusive feature Friday the 28th of October.
An apparent dispute over a tomato patch has resulted in 65-year-old Pericles Papadopoulos being charged with the murder of Andonios Mirtsopoulos in the Melbourne Magistrates Court last Friday.
