The Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry have proposed a ‘Jobs@risk’ initiative, providing Government support to businesses to allow them to retain their employees during the downturn.
“Small businesses across the country are in dire need, bearing the brunt of restrictions on the movement of people and an economic downturn,” Paul Nicolaou, Director of the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, says to The Greek Herald.
“Without support for small business, thousands of Australians will lose their businesses, their jobs and their livelihoods and the economy would spiral downwards.
“Supporting businesses at this stage of the crisis requires measures that help them with their cashflow and enhance their capability and readiness for the recovery that lies ahead.”
The ACCI says that this measure should be made available to any business that can demonstrate a material reduction in revenue either directly or indirectly attributable to COVID-19.
“The support that eligible businesses receive for each employee would be equivalent to the Newstart payment. For small businesses and sole-traders the owner would also be eligible for the payment,” the ACCI states.
“Payment would be made through the tax system and monitored through the Australian Tax Office (ATO). Therefore, businesses would need to be single touch payroll compliant to be eligible. For sole-traders, who are not STP compliant, the payments can be made through BAS.”
The ACCI also affirms that this measure would not preclude eligible businesses receiving support through other measures and it provides assistance to employees at a level that would be paid by the Government if they became unemployed.
A high priority of the Jobs@risk initiative priority is to help maintain employment relationships to assist in the recovery, and thus create a more stable environment in the job seeker workplace.
Thessaloniki’s Aristotle University (AUTH) will reportedly start producing 50 respiratory valves every day to help cope with the shortages that could be created due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Athens-Macedonia News Agency reported on Saturday.
The valve is a key component of Venturi oxygen masks, which are connected to ventilators and used to help patients with respiratory diseases like coronavirus Covid-19 breathe.
The Engineering and Mechanical Design Laboratory of the Department of Mechanical Engineering university staff have been placed at the service of the National Public Health Organization (EODY).
Thessaloniki’s Aristotle University (AUTH). Photo: Supplied
“With a sense of responsibility to society, AUTH clearly supports in every possible way the national effort to deal with an unprecedented situation,” Professor Nikos Papaioannou says.
“Producing ventilator valves with this technique that will be used in intensive care for people at risk is not a research or experimental process. And that’s why we announced it after careful consideration and subject to the most stringent criteria,” he added.
“If the existing stocks are exhausted and no critical new part can be replenished with all the necessary certifications, then we can help,” Athanasios Michaelides, Professor at the Department of Mechanical Engineering added.
Italian additive manufacturing start-up Isinnova also initiated this on March 19, in which they reverse engineered and 3D printed the valves for an overrun hospital in Chiari, a small town in Lombardy which is among the areas worst affected by the coronavirus outbreak.
Greece confirmed 95 new coronavirus cases on Saturday, according to health authorities, bringing the total to 1,061 since the country’s first recorded infection on Feb. 26.
Health ministry representative Sotiris Tsiodras said 32 people have died due to COVID-19.
Greece has imposed a curfew until early April, restricting the movement of people with few exceptions. It has also shut its borders to non-EU nationals and Italy and Spain to contain the spread of the virus.
The rise in new infections in Greece has so far been gradual and steady.
Earlier Saturday, Development and Investment Minister Adonis Georgiadis said on TV the lockdown will last “way beyond” April 6, the original end-date envisaged when the lockdown was applied.
The government says that the vast majority of inhabitants adhere to the lockdown, but mulls further moves to decongest supermarkets and maintain social distance, such as making aisles one-way passages.
An unnamed Newcastle Jets player has become the first professional footballer in Australia to test positive to the COVID-19 virus.
The player, who underwent the test as a precaution before a pre-scheduled international flight, was a member of the Jets’ squad for last weekend’s A-League matches against Brisbane Roar and Melbourne City.
He was asymptomatic and Jets’ chief executive Lawrie McKinna said he remains in good health.
“He was fine, no symptoms whatsoever,” McKinna told AAP.
“He was tested positive … as we’ve found out the player and his family are in isolation and the rest of the squad don’t need to get into isolation.
“Obviously we’ll be monitoring the players’ health. It’s definitely real.” The test result came back on Friday, McKinna confirmed.
According to The World Game, the player featured in each of the club’s last two fixtures, with Brisbane and Melbourne City informed of the diagnosis.
Greek Australian player Dimitri Petratos currently plays for Newcastle United, featuring in the past few games for the club. Even if not diagnosed with the virus, Dimitri will need to undergo a 14-day isolation period.
Football Federation Australia suspended the A-League until April 22 amid increasing travel restrictions due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The decision was taken less than 24 hours after the Jets’ beat City 2-1 at McDonald Jones Stadium on Monday night.
In a statement the Jets said the player had begun quarantine in accordance with NSW Health protocols.
“Our playing squad are closely monitoring their health and will isolate themselves if they experience any symptoms,” the statement said.
Sadness, loneliness, discomfort; All feelings that people may be experiencing in this harrowing time. Yet, we remember that all these feelings pass as the sun rises, and a new day is born.
Kessler shared his thoughts with HBR on why it’s important to acknowledge the grief people may be feeling, how to manage it, and how he believes people will find meaning in it.
“We feel the world has changed, and it has. We know this is temporary, but it doesn’t feel that way, and we realise things will be different.
“Just as going to the airport is forever different from how it was before 9/11, things will change and this is the point at which they changed. The loss of normalcy; the fear of economic toll; the loss of connection. This is hitting us and we’re grieving.”
While it is not uncommon for people to experience grief, often it is a symptom of a personal action, rather not created by an external force. Kessler iterates that this specific emotion, felt by people across the globe in the crisis, is anticipatory grief.
“Anticipatory grief is that feeling we get about what the future holds when we’re uncertain,” Kessler says.
“Anticipatory grief is also more broadly imagined futures. There is a storm coming. There’s something bad out there. With a virus, this kind of grief is so confusing for people. Our primitive mind knows something bad is happening, but you can’t see it. This breaks our sense of safety.”
David Kessler revealed a few points on how best to deal with growing grief during this time:
Find balance in the things you’re thinking.
Calm yourself, you want to come into the present.
Think about how to let go of what you can’t control.
Stock up on compassion
“There is something powerful about naming this as grief,” Kessler says.
“It helps us feel what’s inside of us. So many have told me in the past week, ‘I’m telling my coworkers I’m having a hard time,’ or ‘I cried last night.’ When you name it, you feel it and it moves through you. Emotions need motion. It’s important we acknowledge what we go through.”
You can read the full interview on the Harvard Business Review HERE
With the large numbers of Greek migrants in Sydney during the late 1950’s and early 1960’s, there was an increasing demand for the community’s social alternatives. Whether it be the creation of Pan-Hellenic Soccer Club or the Greek cinema in Redfern, these freshly-arrived needed a social to accommodate both their homesickness for their homeland and to express their Greek culture in their adopted homeland.
With music such an integral part of the
Greek culture, it was inevitable for the creation of a local Greek music scene.
The opening of Vrahos Nightclub in
1963 by Apostolos Markou (from Paleohori, Lesvos), fondly remembered by
everyone as “Paul”- with his partner, Nikitas- was part of the genesis of
Sydney’s Greek music scene. Situated on
corner of King and Mary Sts, Newtown, it was conveniently positioned in the
heart of the Greek inner city communities of Enmore, Newtown and Erskinville.
Although Paul and Nikitas may have opened Vrahos, it was another Paleohoritan,
Poseidonas Karavas- a maestro played
with his own bands in Lesvos as well as playing in some of the successful bands
in Athens’ music scene- who encouraged Paul to open a nightclub. He could
clearly see there was a need for a Greek night spot in the local area. For four
nights a week- Thursday to Sunday- Greek families had a place to dine and eat
Greek meals, while listening and dancing to their beloved music.
How the Nightclub got its name Vrahos, a clue can found in the opening song of every night’s performance, “Vrahos, Vrahos, O Kaimos Mou”- a song made famous by legendary Greek singer, Stelios Kazantzidis.
Above: The Markou family at the Vrahos Nightclub- Paul and his wife, Eleni, and their daughters, Ourania and Mary. Photograph courtesy of Mary Markou.
Vrahos’ immediate success
was largely based on its appeal to Greek families as Paul’s daughter, Mary,
points out, “The Vrahos
was structured in a way as to encourage and promote a family atmosphere, as one
could bring their children along, even babies in bassinets. The patrons knew
that they would have a great night out without having to break the bank. They
would enjoy reasonably priced meals, from the tastiest souvlakia (special
spices) with chips and salads, the freshest sea food, from King Crabs and
lobsters which were both purchased live and cooked on site, to King Prawns and
fresh oysters shucked to order; drink to their hearts content, hear a live
Greek band and if in the mood get up and dance.”
One
of the most successful local Greek singers, Giorgos Lagoutaris, highlights the
significance of Vrahos as a social
outlet for Greek migrants to satisfy their yearning for relive Greek music and
culture.
“Greek migrants would work all week in the
factories- doing difficult and monotonous work- and they looked forward to come
to Vrahos where they could overcome
their frustrations and tiredness- accumulated throughout the week- in a social
environment that reminded them of Greece,” explains Giorgos Lagoutaris.
“Living so far away from their homeland,
they were thirsty for something Greek. All day they lived and worked in an
alien world; on a Saturday night at Vrahos,
they felt as though they were in their homeland.”
“Newly- arrived and settled Greek migrants
missed their homeland terribly. Ξενητειά was such an enormous challenge to
overcome. So, a welcoming place such as Vrahos temporarily soothed their
yearning for Greece and, everyone and everything they left behind there,”
remembers Nitsa Handakas (with the stage name as Almaz at the time), who sang
alongside Nikitas for a number of years.
“I have so many fond memories from Vrahos. One night, the Italian actor, Walter Chiari, and boxing champion, Rocky Gatellari, came into Vrahos and we all took photographs and danced together. Another highlight was definitely the night Greek icon, Marinella, came in and even had a dance with us. She was taken aback by my voice and performance that she actually invited me back to Greece- fate had my roots here in Australia and I could not go.”
Above: One of classic line ups at Vrahos. Standing are: Paul Markou (the owner), Poseidonas Markou and . Sitting are: Georgios Lagoutaris, Nikitas and Nitsa, and Dimitrios Karavas. Photograph courtesy of Georgios Lagoutaris.
The Opening of Vrahos was also a Mytilenian affair; with Paul as one of the owners
and Poseidonas as the maestro of the
band, most of the members were Mytilenian too. The band’s first bouzouki player was Georgios Gaziaras
(from Loutra), Georgios Lagoutaris (from Agiassos) was on guitar and vocals,
Dimitrios Karavas (from Paleohori) played accordion and there was also Stratis
on violin. As a result of this Mytilenian connection, a substantial part of the
crowds were initially Mytilenians too.
The Band catered for most Greek musical
tastes- from the laiko-rembetika to
the elafra and latin. The band initially more traditional music- based around laika, rembetika, tsamika and nisitika; the
arrival of Nikitas and Nitsa (from Egypt) brought the new wave of elafra (“light”) songs at the time. As
Lagoutaris explains, “We initially played a lot of older songs. Giazaras, as a
bouzouki player, was more along the style of Vasilis Tsitsanis. Nikitas’ style
of playing was influenced by Manolis Hiotis- with his quick-playing and solos. So
there was a balance of old new in the band.”
With its huge success, Vrahos, was extended to include much
more space; its entrance moved from Mary Street to King Street, and a number of
Greek Nightclubs had opened- giving the Greek community a variety of music
spots to choose from.
Paul and Nikitas had worked up Vrahos into a social institution. After
1971, however, the pair moved on, Giorgos Lagoutaris’ star as a Greek singer
continued to shine, and Vrahos was
transformed into Mykonos Nightclub by
the new owners.
Vrahos
nostalgically captures a bygone era in the
Greek community; the post-War migrant community was still relatively in its
infancy and Paula and Nikitas’ Nightclub satisfied the migrants’ appetite for
something Greek.
“I doubt that there is any other night club that can be thought of with fondness and such warm memories as the Vrahos and it was all because of my father, who was the one who by his warm and welcoming personality was able to make everyone feel at home. He was a good man, with a kind heart, too kind at times for his own good, but I can say that no matter what I am so very proud of him, as the Vrahos brought so much joy and a belonging to so many Greek migrants of the day. Even till this day when someone realises who I am they say “You’re the daughter of Paul who use to own the Vrahos,” concludes Mary Markou.
Above Left: L-R: Australian Boxing Champion, Rocky Gatellari, Nista Almaz (Handakas) and Walter Chiari. Above Right: Nitsa Almaz and Nikitas Naris. Behind them is Giorgos Lagoutaris on guitar.
Photographs courtesy of Nitsa Handakas. Vrahos, 1967. Greek superstar, Marinella (second in the dance), dancing in Vrahos. Nitsa Almaz (Handakas) is fifth in the dancing row. Photograph courtesy of Nitsa Handakas
Sports broadcaster Basil Zempilas opened up with SEN on Thursday, discussing his interview with Ben Cousins for a new documentary, airing on Sunday night for Channel 7.
In a groundbreaking sports interview, Basil talks with the former West Coast Eagles captain, who breaks his silence for the first time in 10 years.
Cousins is set to address a number of topics, including whether he is still using drugs. But Zempilas believes the premiership player has a number of battles on his hands, on top of his addiction with drugs.
“I think probably the biggest takeaway from this, Ben’s battle continues. His life is a battle, it’s a battle every day,” Zempilas told SEN.
“What he wants now is some normality, but it is a battle for him to find that normality as he is still fighting that battle with addiction. The biggest difference I think now with Ben Cousins 10 years later, he knows what he needs to do, he knows what he needs to leave behind and he puts his hand up and takes the blame for where he is now, I don’t think he always did that.
Ben Cousins at Richmond training. Photo: Trevor Collens. Photo: News Corp Australia
“I think there were other people he had to blame or fingers to point in other directions, there’s none of that anymore. He knows that he is where he is because of what he did to himself. Trying to climb out of that… that remains a battle.”
Zempilas hopes this insightful interview will open the eyes of the public to Ben Cousins confronting position, hoping it could help those with their own battles.
“I remind people that Ben wanted to tell the story. It’s not sugar coated, it hits you between the eyes,” he said.
“There are a lot of people who suffer with drug addiction, but Jane and John Smith might be drug addicts but we don’t tell their story as we don’t know who they are. We know who Ben Cousins is.
“If the stories of addiction and the perils behind the lows of it can be illustrated by Ben, then so be it. If nothing else, there’s some valuable takeaway for Aussie families who might be going through something like this.”
Basil Zempilas is a Greek Australian television and radio presenter and sports commentator based in Perth, Western Australia.
The Greek Foreign Ministry congratulated the Republic of North Macedonia for officially becoming a member of NATO on Friday.
“We congratulate the Republic of North Macedonia that joins NATO as the 30th member of our alliance. We welcome our neighbours to the NATO family & look forward to working together as allies #WeAreNATO,” the Foreign Ministry said in a tweet.
Skopje submitted formal accession papers on Friday, becoming the 30th member of the transatlantic military alliance. The move caps a week of EU diplomacy allowing North Macedonia to begin EU accession talks.
“The Republic of North Macedonia is officially the new, 30th NATO member,” the government in Skopje said in a statement. “We have fulfilled the dream of generations.”
From NATO headquarters, Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg declared: “North Macedonia is now part of the NATO family.”
It was a family of 30 nations and almost 1 billion people “based on the certainty that, no matter what challenges we face, we are all stronger and safer together,” Stoltenberg added.
Last year, North Macedonia changed its name from Macedonia to settle a long-running row with NATO and EU member Greece.
“We have waited for this day nearly 30 years,” tweeted North Macedonian Defence Minister Radmila Sekerinska. “Congratulations to all of us.” A formal flag-raising ceremony is set to take place in Brussels on Monday.
Struck by disaster, Italy has recorded 969 new coronavirus deaths in one day, its highest daily figure in the outbreak so far.
It means 9,134 people have now died from the virus in the country.
Earlier World Health Organization chief Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said a “chronic global shortage” of protective equipment was one of the “most urgent threats” to the ability to save lives.
The worst-affected area in Europe, Italy has been under strict lockdown for over 2 weeks, with authorities warning that restrictions are likely to be extended beyond 3 April.
There were 4,401 new confirmed cases recorded, slightly lower than Thursday’s figure but still well up on the numbers from earlier in the week. There has been a total of nearly 86,500 confirmed cases in the country.
On Thursday Vincenzo De Luca, president of the Campania region around Naples, said the central government had not provided promised ventilators and other life-saving equipment.
“At this point there is the real prospect that Lombardy’s tragedy is about to become the south’s tragedy,” he said.
The same day Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said all of Europe would be hit by a severe recession. He promised a second stimulus package for Italy worth at least €25bn (£23bn; $27bn).
What is happening in the rest of the world?
Spain has seen a sharp rise in the number of deaths, with 769 people dying in the past 24 hours, taking the total to 4,858.
Rate of infection in Spain are stabilising however, with confirmed cases rising to 64,059, a 14% increase compared with 18% a day earlier and 20% on Wednesday. The Spanish government has extended the state of emergency until at least 12 April.
Turkish authorities have evacuated thousands of migrants who had been waiting at the border with Greece hoping to make their way into Europe, as a precaution amid the coronavirus pandemic, Turkey’s interior minister said Friday.
Thousands of migrants had massed at a border crossing with European Union-member Greece after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced last month that his country would no longer prevent refugees and other migrants wanting to travel to EU countries.
Violent clashes erupted between the migrants and Greek border authorities trying to push them back.
Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu told private NTV television that some 5,800 migrants waiting at the border crossing in Edirne province were moved away from the border area overnight and taken to migration centers in nine provinces.
Soylu warned, however, that the move did not amount to a change in policy and that the migrants would be free to return once the pandemic is over.
“When this epidemic is over we would not prevent whoever wants to leave,” he said.
Greek police guard as migrants gather at a border fence on the Turkish side, during clashes at the Greek-Turkish border in Kastanies, Evros region, on Saturday, March 7, 2020. (AP Photo/Giannis Papanikos)
Earlier, the state-run Anadolu Agency said migrants staying in a makeshift camp near the border gate were moved in buses to state guest houses where they would be quarantined. They would be moved to other regions in Turkey at the end of the quarantine, the agency reported.
Greece hailed the development as an “important thing for our country and for Europe,” praising Greek authorities’ ability to guard its land and sea borders.
Mitsotakis: Chapter closing but the battle rages on
Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, speaking during a teleconference with ministers on the situation at the border, said Greek authorities had “ascertained that the makeshift camp which had been created …. appears to have been dismantled and those who were on the Evros border have been moved away.”
Greek authorities also shared a night-time video of a fire in a wooded area, which they said was Turkish authorities burning the tents left behind by the departing migrants.
A migrant gestures aas Greek anti-riot police officers use tears gas on the buffer zone Turkey-Greece border, at Pazarkule, in Edirne district. Photograph: by Ozan Kose/AFP
“A chapter might potentially be closing, but this battle, have no doubt, continues,” Mitsotakis told the ministers, according to a statement released by his office. “We managed to secure a very important thing for our country and for Europe. The ability and efficiency of guarding our land and sea borders.”
A Turkish journalist based in Edirne said several buses were seen leaving the border area and that authorities later disinfected an area where the migrants had been camping.
Anadolu said some of the migrants asked to be moved, while others had to be convinced .
Turkey declared its borders open for migrants to cross into Europe following months of threats by Erdogan that he would allow millions of refugees into Europe unless the EU provided more support for the more than 3.5 million Syrian refugees in Turkey
