Greek Prime Minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, received US Congressman, Gus Bilirakis, in his office at the Maximos Mansion in Athens on Monday for talks that centered on regional developments.
According to reports, the pair also discussed legislation that is currently in the pipeline in the United States that has a bearing on Greek interests, while stressing the excellent relationship between the two countries.
Greece’s role as an ally and a pillar of security and stability in the region was also discussed, as was its role in several regional partnerships.
Greek Prime Minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, received US Congressman, Gus Bilirakis, in his office at the Maximos Mansion in Athens on Monday.
Bilirakis, a Republican and representative of Florida’s 12th district, is the grandson of Greek migrants and was last week awarded for his contribution to Greece and the Greek diaspora in the United States.
Most recently, he was among 19 members of US Congress who signed a letter addressed to UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres urging action against Turkish and Turkish Cypriot attempts to reopen Varosha.
ABC Everyday reporter Yasmin Jeffrey asked five people from different cultural backgrounds, who all grew up in Australia, to entertain the idea of an anti-racist Australia.
Koko, 29, says she has experienced racism as a Greek-Bajan woman in Australia.
She hopes that Australia will one day accept people of all cultures and backgrounds.
“We’re already so multicultural here, but we won’t be anti-racist until we embrace all cultures and backgrounds and end assimilation,” Koko tells ABC Everyday.
”An anti-racist future would mean not feeling like you have to choose, like you can be everything.”
She wonders what life would be like in an anti-racist world.
“If I lived in an anti-racist world, I think I’d know myself more. I wouldn’t feel like I have to strive to live along the lines of the society that’s been embedded since we started school. I’d be able to embrace everything that makes me, me,” Koko says.
“And what would grow in the absence of [racism]? Would there be less homophobia and sexism and ableism too? What impact would it have on the environment if we listened to the people whose land we’re living on?”
Cretan lyra player and musician, Michael Platyrrahos, never fails to disappoint when he gets on a stage and proudly performs his Cretan music. In fact, he was a fan favourite when he went live on The Greek Herald’s Facebook page on September 25 to provide our readers with a little bit of joy in lockdown.
In light of this performance, The Greek Herald sat down with Mr Platyrrahos and found out all about his career and future plans.
1. Tell us a little bit about yourself.
I was born in 1977 in Sydney, Australia. My parents are both of Cretan background. I was raised in a family environment where Cretan traditions, music, dance and the Greek language all played a major role in my upbringing and development of my character and as a person.
Michael playing the lyra as a child with his brother and cousins.
2. When did you first start playing the lyra and singing? What inspired you?
I started playing the Cretan lyra and singing at 10 years of age. Meeting and being mentored and tutored on a personal level about the secrets and techniques of the Cretan lyra by masters of Cretan music such as Kostas Mountakis and Spiros Sifogiorgakis, was not only a childhood dream but an everlasting inspiration that continues to motivate me even to this day through my line of thought, planning, performance and expressionism.
Michael with the great Cretan musician, Kostas Mountakis.
3. Do you have any musical highlights or performances which made an impact on you?
Each performance is unique and leaves its own impressions and memories. Whether it’s playing at an open outdoor Greek festival, a local tavern or at a concert hall, they are all different in approach and performance yet all very fulfilling from the moment you engage and continue to inspire with your music and legacy.
Having staged numerous concerts with different themes my most sentimental performances, for many emotional reasons that I will treasure for the rest of my life, are performing at the outdoor “panygyri” at my father’s village and inside the Sydney Opera House last year in the fulfilment of a childhood dream.
Michael in front of the Sydney Opera House this year.
4. What do you love the most about playing the lyra and singing?
The music I love and specialise in from a child is traditional music from all over Greece, whether that is from Crete, the Greek islands, Asia Minor or mainland Greece. Discovering and bringing to light the music of these local traditions through contemporary musical expression is what I love the most and find rewarding in the search of these hidden gems of our musical heritage. In turn, by giving them another dimension not only for the preservation of traditional music but it’s succession and longevity into the future.
5. What would you say to someone else who wants to start playing the lyra?
Patience is a virtue. Do not give up. Everything is at your feet. All resources are a fingertip away, YouTube, iTunes, Spotify, Facebook etc even online lessons can be managed through Zoom with overseas artists.
Michael performing.
I had none of the above when I was learning in the 80’s other than LP records and cassette tapes, very minimal resources and delayed VHS tapes coming from overseas as well as no access to teachers or musicians for advice. Yet here I am. If I could do it in the most difficult of circumstances, surely you can.
6. Is there anything else you’d like to say?
I would like to thank The Greek Herald for this interview and for the opportunity to feature my music on their Live In Lockdown series on their Facebook page. I would also like to take this opportunity to congratulate The Greek Herald on their 95th anniversary of publication and wish them many more returns providing the Greek community with news and media content directly linking all of us with mother Greece.
“But I only have three kitchen staff and two waitstaff fully vaccinated, and unless I get more workers I will have to cancel bookings.”
Owners of The Boatshed Cafe and Bar and Limani, Jim Kritsotakis and his son Peter (Photo: Sydney Morning Herald/JAMES BRICKWOOD)
Mr. Kritsotakis has taken extraordinary measures to fill his restaurant with fully-vaccinated bar, kitchen, and waitstaff.
“We have advertised twice and on Gumtree, it has cost us over $600,” he said, “and I only had one email back”.
The shortage could make or break Mr. Kritsotakis’ business.
“We do lunch, dinner, and we have a cafe underneath… I already have 100 bookings for Christmas day, but it depends on how many staff I have at the time.”
The public health advice from the NSW Government says that “businesses will be responsible…to stop unvaccinated people entering premises”, which includes unvaccinated or half-vaccinated staff.
Australian Bureau of Statistics data shows that 80.3 percent of hospitality workers are aged 15-44, the same age bracket that was the second-last eligible for COVID-19 vaccines.
“I know the government has to do the right thing,” said Mr. Kritsotakis, “but for me, one vaccination should be enough as long as they have their second one booked”.
Arthur ‘Archie’ Kazas, a former First Grade Strength and Conditioning Coach at Sydney Olympic FC, has passed away today.
Mr Kazas, who was also a long-time supporter and member of Sydney Olympic, was “battling some major health concerns” prior to his death, the Club said in a statement.
“On behalf of everyone at Sydney Olympic, we are thinking of his family and friends at this time. We thank him for his contribution and we will miss seeing his friendly face around the grounds,” Sydney Olympic CEO, John Boulous, tells The Greek Herald.
The state government remains under fire to act on promises to remove flammable cladding from some 239 high-risk apartment towers.
Courtney Houssos, Shadow Minister for Better Regulation and Innovation, says NSW is lagging behind Victoria to remove the cladding.
“At this rate, Victoria will have removed cladding from half of its buildings before NSW even begins,” she says.
NSW Labor says the Victorian government has helped 40 apartment buildings remove flammable cladding.
The NSW government’s two-year project to remove the cladding, originally scheduled to commence this year, has been put on hold until next year.
NSW Building Commissioner David Chandler, whose office is overseeing Project Remediate, says the project was expected to begin as soon as COVID-19 restrictions were lifted.
“We estimate the project is between four and six weeks behind schedule. But we are on track to begin assessment and triage works in the coming months, and remediation works will commence straight after the traditional summer break in the trades industries,” he’s quoted in Sydney Morning Herald.
“COVID-19 has impacted the construction industry and how we can operate through lockdown.”
Houssos says a “badly designed building is not going to be fixed by a badly designed Government program”.
She says concerned residents are consequently taking matters into their own hands.
“The NSW Government’s answer to dodgy developers is to allow defects to be repaired by unlicensed and unregulated contractors,” she says.
“The reputable tradies want to get the unlicensed cowboys out of the industry, which is in everyone’s interest.”
The project comes almost seven years after a fire in Melbourne’s Lacrosse apartment tower revealed the dangers of flammable cladding.
The Grenfell Tower blaze in London in 2017, which claimed the lives of 72 people, further weighted concerns worldwide.
George Kambosos Junior, 28, has convinced boxing governing body, the IBF, to declare that video social networking site Triller has defaulted the terms of their $8.3 million purse bid to host his unified lightweight clash with Teófimó López.
The IBF made a decision over the weekend to transfer the broadcast rights – and about US$10 million in lost expenses – from Triller to Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom Sports, the next highest bidder.
“It was a great decision by the IBF. Triller was in default of the contract so now Matchroom has picked up the event and they will be promoting the fight,” he says.
The fight is now slated for November 13, but Kambosos says he’d “be ready today if the fight was on.”
Teófimó Lopez and George Kambosos (right) started promoting their fight in April but still don’t know when they’ll fight.(Getty Images: Al Bello for Triller)
“I was never ripping anyone off. Triller said I tried to shake them down. What do they think I am, part of the mafia or something?” Kambosos says.
“It’s been pretty stressful. At the end of the day, I will walk away with about $2.2 million which is life-changing.”
“It is a great reward for all the hard work. This money sets up my wife and three kids for the future, but I’m really here for the legacy and these beautiful belts which I will be bringing home to Australia.”
Video social networking site Triller won the bid to host Teófimó Lopez’s clash against Kambosos in February but the match has been riddled with delays, in small part due to COVID-19 restrictions.
Kambosos, 28, continues to train in Sydney.
Battle Preparations Never Stopped ⚔️ I Been Ready Since Your No Show June 19. Still Ready, More Than Ever. I’ve Been Patiently Waiting ⌛️ #Oct4pic.twitter.com/PqjF22NSA9
“I train extremely hard. There is no other athlete in the country that puts his body through hell like I do. I have a very strict routine. I put my body through mass amounts of pain and sacrifice to make sure when I rock up to the fight, that I’m 100 percent ready for whatever my opponent brings.
“The Triller stuff is history, but the good thing is they have given me mainstream exposure around the world because of this drama.
“When my name is in the lights in the US, I’m the face of Australian boxing.”
Greece will deploy an additional 250 border officers at the Evros river and extend the fence at its border with Turkey.
Minister of Civil Protection Takis Theodorikakos revealed the plans on Sunday.
“On these borders of our country with Turkey, the borders of the European Union with Turkey, we have completed 37 kilometers of the fence that has enhanced the security of our border,” he said.
Καλημέρα από τον Έβρο, καλημέρα από τα σύνορα της Ελλάδας και της Ευρωπαϊκής Ένωσης με την Τουρκία! Στις Καστανιές έχει ολοκληρωθεί ο φράχτης μήκος 37 χιλιομέτρων, ο οποίος ενδυναμώνει την ασφάλεια των συνόρων μας, προϋπόθεση για την ασφάλεια των πολιτών σε όλη την χώρα. pic.twitter.com/Kk54gjAnc1
Dozens of residents in Evia have had to evacuate after floods and mudslides hit the northern part of the island on Sunday.
Roads became impassable and beaches were filled with mud sliding down from nearby mountains but there have been no casualties.
Deputy Prime Minister Christos Triantopoulos led an inspection of the villages of Vasilika and Agia Anna soon thereafter.
He announced that the government will accelerate a €20 million (AU $31.67 million) program to aid the devastated areas as local officials pleaded for action.
“The State, as in other cases, will help repair this damage,” said Triantopoulos, adding that funds will start flowing this coming week.
The storm had been buffeting northern and central Greece since Thursday.
A weather station on Mt. Pelio, a few hundred kilometres north of Evia, has recorded 700 mm of rain since Thursday.
Evia is still reeling from devastating forest fires which hit the island last summer as part of Greece’s worst heatwave in over 30 years.
Evia made up more than a third of the scorched 300,000 acres of forest, bush, and farmland.
Scientists say there’s little doubt climate change from the burning of coal, oil, and natural gas is driving extreme events, such as heatwaves, droughts, wildfires, floods, and storms.
How many visitors can I host in my home? Can I go on a regional holiday?
Here’s what you need to know about the new freedoms in NSW if you have had both jabs.
10 people allowed in your home, 30 outdoors
10 fully vaccinated visitors (not including kids under 12) will be allowed to gather inside a home and up to 30 people can gather outdoors.
For those not fully vaccinated, only two people will be allowed to gather outdoors.
All non-critical shops – including restaurants and hairdressers – are open
All non-critical shops — including hospitality venues — are allowed to reopen with the spacing rule of one person per 4 square metres inside and one person per 2 square metres outside.
Businesses will be responsible for making sure patrons check in to their premises and have proof of their vaccination status, with penalties applying to those who do not follow the rules.
Restaurant bookings will be capped at 20 people and, while diners will have to be seated while drinking inside, patrons will now be allowed to stand and drink when outdoors.
Singing and dancing are still off the cards when inside a venue, however, dancing will be allowed outside.
Personal services — including hairdressers, barbers, tattoo parlors, and beauty salons — can open their doors with one person per 4 square metres, capped at a maximum of five clients per premises.
All adults, vaccinated or not, must wear a mask when inside public venues, at airports, and on public transport.
Kids under 12 are exempt from the indoor mask rule.
Masks are no longer required outside unless you work front-of-house in hospitality.
Gyms and indoor sporting facilities are open
Gyms and indoor sporting facilities can open their doors.
Like all indoor venues they, too, must operate under the 4-square-metre rule, with classes capped at 20 people. Masks are not required when exercising.
Indoor swimming pools will reopen for swimming lessons, training and rehabilitation.
Up to 100 people allowed at weddings and funerals
Up to 100 fully vaccinated guests can attend both wedding ceremonies and receptions as long as density caps are followed.
If there are unvaccinated guests, ceremonies must be capped at five people and receptions will not be allowed at all.
Eating and drinking must be done while seated but dancing is permitted.
Premier Dominic Perrottet also confirmed that, while indoor singing is banned, vaccinated performers are exempt from the rule, with a 10-person cap on choirs at places of worship.
Up to 100 fully vaccinated people can attend funerals, with a 10-person limit for those who are not fully vaccinated.
Churches and places of worship can open, subject to density limits.
Two adult visitors allowed per day in aged care homes
Under the rules, two visitors per day aged 12 years and over will be permitted to visit an aged-care home if the visitors are fully vaccinated.
For those wanting younger children to visit these facilities, NSW Health says a plan will be developed “in due course”.
Up to 5000 people are allowed at theme parks, stadiums
Up to 5,000 people can attend stadiums, racecourses, and themes parks under density requirements, unless an exemption is provided by the state government.
Art galleries, museums, and libraries will reopen, subject to the 4-square-meter rule.
Theatres and cinemas can return if they follow that rule or have 75 percent capacity, whichever is greater.
Amusement centres and nightclubs remain closed.
Regional travel within Greater Sydney is allowed
From today, people in regional areas will be able to holiday in other regional areas.
People who live in Greater Sydney — including the Central Coast, Wollongong, Shellharbour, and the Blue Mountains — who are fully vaccinated will be allowed to travel into the regions for any reason, except for a holiday.
Some of those reasons might include work, inspecting property, or caring for people.
Travel between Greater Sydney and regional areas will be allowed once the state reaches the 80 percent double-vaccination mark.
Campgrounds and caravan parks are reopening, including for people who are not fully vaccinated.
Fully vaccinated citizens can carpool, but others are still only able to share a ride with members of their household.
What’s next?
The Monday after New South Wales passes the 80 percent double-vaccination hurdle, even more restrictions will lift.
At this stage, that’s expected to happen on Monday, October 25.
