Late media professional and founding member of SBS, Marena Manzoufas has been posthumously inducted into the NSW Government’s Multicultural Honour Roll as part of the 2020 Premier’s Multicultural Community Medals.
Acting Minister for Multiculturalism Geoff Lee passed on his condolences to the
Manzoufas family and her friends.
“Marena’s legacy will never be forgotten in NSW and we owe her a profound debt of
gratitude to her contribution to multicultural public broadcasting,” Mr Lee said.
“We are delighted to honour Marena’s legacy in the Multicultural Honour Roll.”
Ms Manzoufas was a executive for SBS and ABC. Until her retirement in 2010, Ms
Manzoufas was a television director at ABC.
Her close friend and former colleague Jennifer Bott said “Marena was a courageous
and insightful pioneer of multiculturalism in Australia, particularly expressed through
our media and creative cultural life”.
“She played a significant role in not only multicultural policy but most importantly in the
establishment of SBS, its programming, and in her senior roles at Beyond International
and the ABC,” Ms Bott said.
“She was much loved by her colleagues and friends for her fierce value system and
passion for the arts.”
The Multicultural Honour Roll is a permanent tribute honouring people who have made
an exemplary contribution to NSW.
The New South Wales Government has announced coronavirus restrictions at religious services, weddings and funerals will be relaxed from June 1.
Fifty people will be able to attend religious services and funerals at places of worship, along with as a maximum of 20 attendees for weddings.
Premier Gladys Berejiklian says that people are still subject to obey the four-square-metre rule, stressing that it is still important for people to follow health advice.
National Cabinet has outlined its three-step plan to ease coronavirus restrictions over the next few months. Photo: Luke Stephenson/ABC News:
“We know how important these services are to individuals and families but as we ease restrictions further, we must remember to keep one another safe,” Ms Berejiklian said.
Health Minister Brad Hazzard said extensive COVID-19 outbreaks in places of worship and amongst choirs overseas highlighted why the NSW Government had been cautious in easing restrictions.
“Sadly, we have seen many congregations of different faiths and denominations affected by COVID-19 overseas,” Mr Hazzard said.
“NSW Health has developed a checklist to help places of worship create a tailored COVID-19 safety plan to ensure they can keep participants as safe as possible.
“These safety plans cover topics such as physical-distancing measures, hand hygiene and cleaning measures. It is also vital that people who are unwell stay at home.”
Greek Orthodox Churches have already been accepting bookings of up to 10 people to enter the church at one time, with that number now increasing to 50 from June 1.
St Catherine Greek Orthodox Church in Mascot announced that as part of weekday liturgies, the church doors will remain open until the maximum count of 50 is reached. Attendees will be required to have their temperature measured and their details taken.
Wonderful news! We are hearing reports from various news outlets that from the 1st of June, churches will be allowed to…
NSW Chief Health Officer Kerry Chant said places of worship would need to adapt despite the easing of restrictions.
“Places of worship will be asked to find alternatives to practices that might spread the virus like group singing, sharing books and even passing around the collection plate to reduce infection risks,” Dr Chant said.
“Communal singing and chanting should not occur because of the high risk of transmission of the virus. Instead, measures such as one singer standing at least 3 metres away from others would be safer.”
The Hellenic Initiative Australia (THI Australia) has announced a new collaboration with Doctors of the World Greece (MdM Greece), which will provide access to public health services for more than 2,800 disadvantaged and vulnerable individuals in Athens.
The €54,000 (approx. AU$90,000) grant to MdM Greece will support a 12-month program which begins next week at the Athens Polyclinic, run by MdM Greece.
“With the world dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic, THI Australia’s collaboration with MdM Greece comes at a critical time to ensure the most vulnerable in society have access to medical assessments and treatments,” said THI Australia President, Nicholas Pappas AM.
Source: MdM Greece.
This is the first health program to be funded by Perth-based benefactor Dr Constantine Berbatis and his family, who pledged $500,000 to THI Australia in 2019, over five years, in support of public health initiatives in Greece.
Mr Pappas applauded Dr Berbatis for the leadership he had shown through his generous gift, which will support improved health services for people in need.
The grant will provide more than 2,800 people with access to primary health care at the Athens Open Polyclinic. It is anticipated that more than 5,500 consultations, 1,700 medical assessments and 1,700 medical follow-ups will be conducted during the project, which commences on 1 June 2020.
“The recent economic crisis in Greece has left a large number of people facing poverty and unable to access basic health care, which is one of the reasons why my family and I wanted to contribute to the improvement of the general health status and disease prevention for vulnerable communities in Greece,” said Dr Berbatis.
Source: MdM Greece, Hien Lam Duc.
“We look forward to sharing stories about the people who have benefited from the access to health care offered as a result of this project.”
Doctors of the World Greece offers a range of successful health services, including the operation of three Open Polyclinics in Athens, Piraeus and Thessaloniki, two accommodation centres for the homeless and women at risk, a centre of empowerment for children and adolescents at risk, and social and medical services on remote islands.
“We welcome MdM Greece, with more than 30 years of continuous action in Greece, as the latest organisation to join THI Australia’s outstanding partner NGOs in Greece,” Mr Pappas said.
MdM Greece President, Dr Charikleia Tziouvara, thanked Dr Berbatis and THI Australia for providing them with this opportunity to provide more people with health services.
“We are very enthusiastic to be working alongside THI Australia in the effort to reduce the health care inequalities in Greece,” Ms Tziouvara said.
THI Australia now supports eight established NGOs in Greece. MdM Greece joins Axion Hellas, Pediatric Trauma Care, Boroume, Desmos, Emfasis, SOS Children’s Villages Greece and Tipping Point.
Greece’s national
rugby league team, which consists of many expatriates from Australia, achieved
an incredible feat when it qualified for the Rugby League World Cup to be held
in England from October 27 to November 27, 2021.
When talking to Greek-Australian international athlete, Terry Constantinou, about the difficult conditions faced by the entire Greek national team during the World Cup qualifiers, I unequivocally state that the team’s qualification in the final phase of the World Cup is a miracle for a sport which continues to divide people in Greece.
The Greek Herald would now like to introduce you to one of the members of the national team for the last seven years, Terry Constantinou.
1. Tell us about yourself.
I was born and raised in the provincial town of Gordon, Victoria. As far as I know, my grandmother and grandfather come from a village in Pelopi, Lesvos, but they immigrated to Australia, where they settled in Melbourne for the first few years. Later, they settled in the provincial town of Gordon, where my brother and I were born to a second-generation Greek father and a Greek mother.
2. You grew up in Victoria where the sport of Australian Football dominates and young people of Greek origin also prefer football. But you became an athlete in Rugby League.
Until I was 15, I didn’t play rugby, I just watched it. Until then, I played hockey in a club. Everything changed when my high school started a rugby championship program when I was in my 10th year and that was it. I bonded with rugby. It suited me much better than any other sport. As a member of the Parade College school team in Bundoora, I was selected in the same year for the Victoria Under-18 Mixed Team. Since then, I have stopped playing hockey and have instead been playing in teams of the Victoria Championship, where the level of the championship is not comparable to that of the NNO and Queensland, but it is still quite strong.
Greece’s national squad made the 2021 Rugby League World Cup.
3. How did your call to the National team of Greece come about?
My younger brother Matt, who also played rugby, was also very good but left the sport early. In 2012, Matt played rugby in a tournament in Vanuatu, where he met a Greek manager of the National team of Greece who mentioned me. So Matt gave him my details, he gave me a contract with him and that’s how my international career started.
In 2013, I went
international by playing against Hungary which we won 90-0 and I had 3 tries,
while Braith Anasta had 4 tries. Our coach Steve Tziortzalis had built a very
good team with many Greek-Australian players. But the continuation was not as
we expected as, in Greece, political and economic interests came in and our
National team paid for it because the Hellenic Federation dissolved it and
formed a National team with local players, which lost in 2015 from Spain with
76-4.
Fortunately for Greek rugby, the World Federation expelled the Greek Rugby Federation, recognising as its member a new Greek Federation consisting of strong Greek clubs that had created an independent league. The agents of these teams, in collaboration with Greek Australians and coach Steve Tziortzalis, re-established the National team but here the paradox began. The then Greek government did not recognise the new Greek Federation, which was recognised by the World Federation as a member of the Olympic Committee. And so our adventure began.
In September 2018, during the World Cup qualifier between Greece and Malta, we were warned that we did not have the right to train or play. From there, we began secretly working with the police and had secret training. Only two of our agents and Malta knew where the qualifier against Malta would take place. We went to a stadium outside Athens with our phones closed and without posting photos. The game took place and we beat Malta by a score of 60-4. A week earlier, we had beaten Ukraine 28-26 away from home and from there, our appetite for the miracle of qualifying grew. That’s why we chose to give the remaining home games to England.
In May 2019, we beat Norway 56-26, and in November of the same year we lost to Scotland 42-24. Qualifying for the World Cup would be judged with the home game against Serbia. As exiles, we gave the game to our opponent’s home, which we won 82-6, and for the first time in its history, the Greek National team of Rugby will participate in the World Cup with another 15 superpowers.
4. What was the biggest moment of your career with the National team of Greece?
I have many pleasant memories, but the best moments of my seven-year international career were when I first wore the jersey of Greece’s national team and sang with my teammates the National Anthem of Greece. The second moment was when we beat Serbia and qualified for the World Cup.
Greece’s national team beat Serbia, 82-6, to qualify for the Rugby League World Cup 2021.
5. How do you imagine yourself doing in the World Cup?
We do not dream of winning the World Cup but we will go there, we will play for Greece and see wherever it goes. We will face in our group three big national teams, England, France and Samoa. We will try for the best but what matters is that the Greek national team entered the world map of rugby, along with the 16 best national teams in the world.
6. Finally, we asked him about the place of his origin, Lesvos.
I have only been
to Mytilene once and stayed only a few hours. I want to get to know the island
better. I have heard many good words about the place of my origin. After the
end of the World Cup in 2021, I have planned to visit Mytilene with my
relatives and friends.
In closing the discussion with Terry Constantinou, he revealed to us that he also fell victim to the coronavirus as he had planned to get married in April 2020 to his sweetheart, but the wedding has been cancelled for now.
New South Wales school closures will be the “new normal” under coronavirus easing, according to Premier Gladys Berejiklian, after two private schools in Sydney’s eastern suburbs were closed on Tuesday for cleaning, following positive cases among students.
“This
is the new normal during the pandemic,” Ms Berejiklian told the Nine
Network.
“We have to be prepared for this to happen again … because this happens in two schools with one student each doesn’t mean you shut down the entire system,” she added.
Meanwhile, Greek schools across Australia have lifted their hygiene standards and encourage students to follow good hygiene practices, in order to reduce the potential risk of COVID-19 transmission.
“All staff and students temperatures are taken
on arrival, we perform additional environmental cleaning throughout the day, we
have placed antibacterial wipes in each learning space around the school and we
make sure students are reminded to wash their hands frequently,” said the principal
of All Saints Grammar Greek Orthodox School in NSW, Elfa Lillis.
“This has been a most challenging time for all but our community has really come together and offered unwavering support and shown gratitude to the staff of All Saints for how they have risen to the occasion.”
Infectious disease
experts say it is “extremely rare” to see COVID-19 cases among
children, an age group not considered highly infectious amid the pandemic,
compared to the flu.
Darwin-born businessman Andrew Liveris, previously hand-picked by US President Donald Trump to head the American Manufacturing Council, will co-chair the NT’s new Economic Reconstruction Commission.
Mr Liveris and former NT Chief Minister, Paul Henderson, will head the eight-person Economic Reconstruction Commission, which aims to attract investment to the Territory and create local jobs post-coronavirus pandemic.
Michael Gunner, the current NT Chief Minister, made the announcement of the appointments on Wednesday and thanked Mr Liveris for agreeing to add the commission to his busy schedule.
Darwin-born businessman, Andrew Liveris, will co-chair the NT’s new Economic Reconstruction Commission.
“We all know Andrew’s story. He’s long been a global power player but he’s always been a Territory boy,” Mr Gunner said.
“Andrew believes the Territory can be an energy and manufacturing powerhouse and I agree with him.
“He’s helped the President make things in America, he’s helped the Prime Minister make things here in Australia and we want him to help us make things here.”
Mr Liveris, a 66-year-old oil and gas executive, provided advice on manufacturing to Mr Trump and his predecessor, Barack Obama.
He is also currently a special adviser to the National COVID-19 Coordination Commission.
“The Commission is not about putting subsidies and tariffs in place. It’s about creating a policy framework to double down and create local capabilities in Australia,” Mr Liveris said when was announced as an advisor.
The European Commission proposed on Wednesday to allocate to member states a massive 750 billion euro aid program to fight the economic repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe.
Greece is slated to receive 32 billion euros from the new recovery fund, of which 22.5 billion would be in the form of grants and 9.4 billion would be loans.
Italy and Spain, who are the EU member states worst hit by the coronavirus pandemic, would get the lion’s share of benefits. Italy is set to receive 173 billion euros and Spain will see a total of 140 billion euros.
“The recovery plan turns the immense challenge we face into an opportunity, not only by supporting the recovery but also by investing in our future. This is Europe’s moment,” European Commission President, Ursulavon der Leyen, said in a press release following the announcement of the ‘Next Generation EU’ aid package.
Greek Prime Minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, has also welcomed the EU’s economic proposal.
We welcome the @EU_Commission's bold proposal for a package of €750 billion, mainly in the form of grants funded via joint debt issuance.
— Prime Minister GR (@PrimeministerGR) May 27, 2020
In a tweet on Wednesday, he wrote: “We welcome the bold proposal of the European Commission for a package of 750 billion euros, mainly in the form of grants through a common debt issuance. The bar has been set high. It is now the European Council’s turn to rise to the occasion.”
According to media reports, the funds are expected to go to “real economy and tourism” in Greece. There’s been no word yet on when Greece will be expected to pay back the loans.
Greek authorities have confirmed the defence of its border with Turkey will be boosted, amid expectations migrants may renew their attempts to reach Europe.
An additional 400 police will be sent to the northeastern Evros river border region “as a precautionary measure,” police spokesman, Thodoros Chronopoulos, told AFP.
The move follows statements by the Turkish Foreign Minister, Mevlut Cavusoglu, who said that when countries begin lifting their coronavirus lockdowns, migrants will again attempt to cross to Europe.
The border area was the scene of violent push-backs of migrants in March after Turkey said it would no longer prevent migrants from attempting to reach the European Union.
For days, Greek riot police fired tear gas and rubber bullets at migrants trying to cross the border.
But more recently, Athens has said it would extend a razor-wire fence at the border, a move that has created a new dispute with Ankara.
Turkey says it should be consulted about the fence expansion, noting that the Evros riverbed “has significantly changed due to natural and artificial reasons” since the border was established in 1926.
Greece responded by saying it is not obliged to consult Turkey about infrastructure on its own side of the border.
“We will proceed with the fence expansion. It is our constitutional obligation to protect Greek soil,” said Greek Foreign Minister, Nikos Dendias.
The bells of Greece’s holy temples and monasteries rang joyfully last night as the faithful celebrated the Resurrection of Jesus Christ forty days late.
People were unable to celebrate the Resurrection on April 18 this year, as churches were shut down due to the coronavirus pandemic. Instead, the service was streamed live on television or the internet.
The Resurrection of Jesus Christ was celebrated 40 days later in Greek Orthodox Churches across Greece. Source: tvstar.gr.
But last night, Archbishop Ieronymos officiated over a service at Athens Cathedral from 9 pm until 1 am, while thousands of Orthodox faithful gathered at churches around the country to chant “Christ is Risen” and celebrate the Resurrection of Christ.
Many people received the Holy Fire, while some also used the occasion to receive Holy Communion, as is tradition during Easter.
The Easter Resurrection Service held in a Greek Orthodox Church in Lamia, Greece.
Social distancing was maintained and in some churches, the ceremony was held outdoors.
The Holy Synod said the services would “give the faithful the opportunity to experience the joy of Easter of which they were deprived due to the coronavirus pandemic.”
Do you want
to have your own work published in one of Australia’s biggest national
newspapers? Do you want the chance to win an INSANE money prize bonus?
The Greek Herald is launching a competition commemorating the 2500 year anniversary of the Battle of Thermopylae in 480 BC.
The
competition will require people to submit any piece of writing or artwork,
which will then be selected by the team at The Greek Herald and then passed on
to a special panel of judges.
SURPRISE US!!!
For this competition you have the freedom to submit anything! This can include a short history summary of the battle, an artwork of the battle itself, or even a poem! Whatever you write, make sure it is below 300 words!
Submissions written in Greek and English will be accepted for the competition.
The
finalists will be separated into different age group categories, with a special
prize awarded to each age group.
Below is a
list of the prizes for each age group:
Prizes
for each age group:
Grade 7 to 9
Winner: $500,
Published work in The Greek Herald newspaper
Finalist:
Work published on our digital platform
Grade 10 to 12
Winner: $500,
Published work in The Greek Herald newspaper
Finalist:
Work published on our digital platform
University Students
Winner:
$500, Published work in The Greek Herald newspaper
Finalist: Work published on our digital platform
How to enter:
Send through your submissions by Wednesday, 24th June 2020, 19:00 AEST, with the title “Submission – The Battle of Thermopylae Competition” to the Greek Herald email address at: greek@foreignlanguage.com.au
In the body of the email please include your name, age and
preferred contact number.
Winners will be announced on Friday July 10th, 2020 by 19:00 AEST.
Help us commemorate this significant piece of Greek history!
![Greeks chant “Christ is Risen” again forty days after Easter [VIDEO]](/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/church-service.jpg "Greeks chant “Christ is Risen” again forty days after Easter [VIDEO]")
