Greece
This month
In this issue:
• Deputy FM Amanatidis on visit to London (3-4 March 2016) • A Tale of Two Crises: Annual Forum of the SU Hellenic Society (LSE, 11-12 March 2016) • The ‘Unaccompanied Refugee Children Thematic Fund Program’: (The Bodossaki Foundation Iniative) • Greek researcher sheds light in Parkinson’s mechanism in the brain • From ‘Atlantis Books’ in Santorini to ‘Tselementes’ in Sifnos
Deputy FM Amanatidis on visit to London (3-4 March 2016)
The Greek Deputy Foreign Minister responsible for Diaspora, Mr Ioannis Amanatidis visited London on 3 and 4 March 2016 in order to address the inaugural event for the founding of the Association of Greek Academics of Great Britain, hosted at ESCP Europe Business School. This newly founded association is a non-profit professional organization connecting more than 2,200 Greek academics working at British academic institutions, in order to promote cooperation between the academic, state and private national and international institutions in Greece, Great Britain and worldwide, to provide a forum for a free exchange of ideas, as well as to organize academic and social events. 1
Greece This month - March 2016
ISSUE 169
During his visit, Mr. Amanatidis held a working meeting, at the Hellenic Centre, with the boards of the Greek Associations of Great Britain and other Greek community organizations. He also gave a press conference to the Greek correspondents and journalists based in London, pointing out the reasons of his visit, as well as answering questions about the current developments in Greece.
A Tale of Two Crises: Annual Forum of the SU Hellenic Society (LSE, 11-12 March 2016)
An interesting two-day forum about the financial and refugee crisis in Greece was organized and hosted by the SU Hellenic Society of the University of LSE in London, under the title ‘A tale of Two Crises: A step into the Future’. The Secretary General of Social Insurance, Prof Nikos Fragkos and Dr. Chrysanthos Lazaridis, Chief economic advisor of former Prime Minister A. Samaras, expressed their views on the policy making and what went wrong during the implementation of the past Greek bailout programmes. The second day was dedicated to the refugee crisis. The list of speakers included the Mayor of Chios, Mr Manolis Vournous, representing one of the islands mostly hit by the outstanding volume of refugee arrivals, as well as two representatives of Bodossakis Foundation, Mr. Sotiris Laganopoulos and Ms. Sofia Kouvelaki who have launched an initiative aiming to find a safe home in Europe for the unaccompanied refugee children arriving at the Greek shores of the Aegean Sea. During the forum, economic and social policy reforms that would lead Greece back on a path of stability and positive growth rates were discussed, as well as policies on the immigrant-refugee problem. The forum was attended by a panel of top speakers from the academic, political and business fields and attracted more than 230 guests. Following the conclusion of the Forum, ‘Greece this Month’ had the opportunity to meet the President of the SU Hellenic Society of LSE, PhD student Dimitris Papadimitriou,who discussed with us the motives of the creation of the Society, as well as the success of this year’s event. The SU Hellenic Society is a network of Greek students of LSE, with the aim to organize career and networking events and ‘for that reason, we have been organizing the Hellenic Forums for the last 4 years, inviting distinguished speakers from Greece. 2
Greece This month - March 2016
ISSUE 169
This year we wanted to hold an event on the two crises that hit our country, the financial and the refugee crisis’, Dimitris stated, who joined the Society three years ago, as he wanted to actively participate and to contribute in bringing Greek students together “partially satisfying my nostalgia and affection for Greece’’. As far as the organization of the annual events of the Society are concerned -such as the aforementioned fourth annual forum of SU- Dimitris underlined that there is undoubtedly a lot of planning involved by the students, many months in advance. However “the success of the ‘A Tale of Two Crises’ depended directly on our excellent speakers who shared their valuable insights with us, and our chairmen, like Prof. Sir Pissarides and Prof. Kevin Featherstone who supported us by moderating the Forum. Securing financial support by our sponsors has also been essential’’. ‘Greece this Month’ had also the chance to meet and discuss with Mr Manolis Vournous, the Mayor of Chios, where thousands of migrants and refugees arrive from Turkey every day. Mr Vournous discussed with us the chronicle of the crisis in the island, until the recent creation of the ‘hotspot’ registration centre, the difficulties that the local society faces, but also thesense of ‘filoxenia’ and humanism that characterize the Greek people. “There was a huge initial shock that mobilized the human sympathy in the local society of Chios. Our people in Chios iare driven not only by their kind emotions, but also by their sense of moderate behaviour, which I think is a good thing. It was very emotional to see the majority of our citizens and the local businesses to offer the best they could to the refugees. But, as the time passes and the situation does not improve I have noticed some kindof disappointment and frustration. They are slowly being worn out and I do not think it is fair to continue this way, when the issue could be resolved...” Given that the interview was taken before the EU-Turkey Summit on March 18-19, Mr Vournous commented that regarding the forthcoming deal “there should be a comprehensive mechanism immediately sending back to Turkey individuals who have crossed the sea borders illegally. There should be embassy or consular staff sent here to help, staff in European countries, staffin war-zones such as south-east Turkey, Jordan, Lebanon or other parts of Syria, in order to create safe shelter zones, 3
Greece This month - March 2016
ISSUE 169
where people can apply for asylum and international protection, so that once they are granted asylum, they can be transferred accordingly to an assigned destination. The only way to stop the illegal crossings from Turkey to Chios or Mytilene is to send them back. In this case noone will want to risk their lives and at the same time the illegal traffickers are rendered useless...” “There are many who reach Chios, who have the financial and physical ability to make this ‘brave’ journey. But, imagine how many people are in a bigger need to escape from dangerous situations in Syria and do not have the means to do so... For that reason, there should be an international institutional intervention, maybe not now but in the near future, as the situation needs re-evaluation. These are issues we need to think about seriously and maybe in the future the international protection standards should change’’. As far as the tourist season which is about to begin is concerned and how can Chios reverse the negative climate, Mr Vournous stated that “given the season, there is not much we can do. There is considerable damage to the tourist profile of Chios, although it is relatively smaller compared to other islands. However, the overall damage is remarkable and acute, because the companies operating on the island are very small companies, mainly family companies that will not be able to cope with this situation since most of them owe money to the banks. They cannot afford losing an entire season without any income. According to data, more than 60% of the bookings where cancelled mainly this month. The media have also contributed to the negative tourist profile of the islands which face the refugee crisis. If I was going on vacation for 10, 5 or 15 days I would not risk to go to a place which has the kind of problems that the media report. I have to admit, however, that I have not seen Chios in everyday news. Right now, there is a campaign which we are trying to launch in collaboration with the Ministry of Tourism. We have asked the Ministry of Tourism to contact specific tour operators and charters in order to convince them to intensify the internal social tourism in Chios and in Greece in general.
4
Greece This month - March 2016
ISSUE 169
Despite the positive predictions for this year’s tourist arrivals and the negative climate that the islands are facing, I think that the Greek government should make concrete public investments in tourism infrastructure in the islands in order to reverse all these negative effects. As far as Chios is concerned, such a public investment could be the expansion and upgrading of our airport facilities. We have been requesting that for decades.”
The ‘Unaccompanied Refugee Children Thematic Fund Program’ : (The Bodossaki Foundation Iniative) As far as the refugee crisis is concerned, another event took place two days after the LSE forum, organized by the Hellenic Centre under the title ‘Giving for Greece’. The list of speakers included the aforementioned representatives of the Bodossaki Foundation Initiative ‘Unaccompanied Refugee Children Thematic Fund Program’. The event focused on the issue of the ‘unaccompanied refugee minors’ arriving in Greece, with the aim to raise awareness over the protection of these children, another social aspect of the refugee crisis. Ms Sofia Kouvelaki shared some stories of children were in contact with her during their journey to Europe, sending her messages when crossing the borders, while some of them have already been reunited with their families. She also underlined the dangers of travelling alone, being exposed to any kind of threats, such as sexual abuse or organ trafficking. Authorities officially registered 2,248 unaccompanied minors in Greece in 2015, however, more that 18,100 children travelling alone were reported crossing the border with FYROM since June 2015. During the first two months of 2016, some 740 unaccompanied minors were reported to have reached Greece. This number is three times larger compared to the same period last year. According to Europol, some 10,000 unaccompanied children that entered Europe are now missing. Many are feared to have fallen in the hands of organized criminal groups. In order to protect these children, the Bodossaki Foundation sets this fund and accepts donations from all around the world. The Foundation is currently the ‘umbrella’ which shelters and supports the works of all reliable NGOs dealing with unaccompanied children at the refugee entry points of Lesvos, Samos, Chios, Kos, Leros and Orestiada and at the exit points of Idomeni. The money provide for covering food, shelter, medical provisions, psychological support, provision of guardianship, legal support and escorting children to be reunited with their families. The goal is to create a comprehensive system of protection and support, starting from the moment a child enters in Greece until he or she finds a permanent and safe home. However, Ms Kouvelaki also mentioned that the big challenge 5
Greece This month - March 2016
ISSUE 169
that they face today is the lack of official data, as these incidents were, until recently, largely unreported and hugely misunderstood. Not only the exact number of unaccompanied minors that entered Europe –or that are currently missing- is unknown, but the gravest issue is that no one even tries to find out about the fate of these children. According to Jo Andrews, Director of Ariadne (a private community that connects European donors and foundation staff working to support social change, human dignity, human rights and justice), the Bodossaki fund sends the message that everyone can contribute to this cause, no matter how big or small their donations are. A representative from ‘Citizens UK’ (Citizens UK organizes communities to act together for power, social justice and the common good), responsible for the safe passage of unaccompanied minors in Calais, France, reported during the event that there are currently some 350 unaccompanied minors with families in the UK strapped in Calais with no means to reach their families. ‘Citizens UK’ in these instances acted as the intermediate that helped children to reunite them with their families.
Greek researcher sheds light in Parkinson’s mechanism in the brain Parkinson’s disease is the second-most common neurodegenerative disease worldwide (after Alzheimer’s disease). Close to 130,000 people in the UK, and more than seven million worldwide, suffer from this disease. Symptoms include muscle tremors, stiffness and difficulty walking. Dementia is common in later stages of the disease. Researchers from Cambridge’s Department of Chemical Engineering & Biotechnology and Department of Chemistry, led by the Greek scientist, Mrs Dorothea Pinotsi and Dr Gabriele Kaminski Schierle, may be closer to unravelling the underlying causes of Parkinson’s disease, after identifying the point at which alpha-synuclein – a protein believed to play a key role in the condition – becomes toxic to the brain. They have been using optical ‘super-resolution’ techniques to look into live neurons without damaging the tissue. The research shows how important it is to fully understand the processes at work behind neurodegenerative diseases, so that the 6
Greece This month - March 2016
ISSUE 169
right step in the process can be targeted. “With these optical super-resolution techniques, we can really see details we couldn’t see before, so we may be able to counteract this toxic effect at an early stage,” Pinotsi told the Greek newspaper ‘Proto Thema’. Researchers have used a non-invasive method of observing how the process leading to Parkinson’s disease takes place at the nanoscale, and identified the point in the process at which proteins in the brain become toxic, eventually leading to the death of brain cells. “By observing how serious diseases are developing, we aim to find new methods for early detection of the diseases and their treatment. This is my passion and my goal. To contribute to the development of techniques that can shed light on diseases,” Pinotsi told.
A few words about Dorothea Pinotsi Born in Kaisariani, Athens, Greece, Dorothea Pinotsi holds a Diploma on Electrical and Computer Engineering from the National Technical University of Athens and a Ph.D. in Physics, from the Quantum Photonics Group, at ETH Zurich. She joined the group as a post-doctoral researcher with a fellowship from the Swiss National Science Foundation, to work on biophysical studies of amyloid self-assembly reactions. She is now developing techniques that permit the real time imaging of biological nanostructures, and performing single molecule optical super-resolution microscopy, fluorescence spectroscopy and AFM. She is an expert in both experimental and theoretical approaches, with a focus on the application of advanced nanofabrication, simulation, and optical techniques. She has planned and launched many research projects and has held scientific collaborations with many known physicists, chemists, biologists and engineers. She has lived and worked in Greece, in Switzerland, and also in Great Britain.
From ‘Atlantis Books’ in Santorini to ‘Tselementes’ in Sifnos According to the ‘National Geographic’ magazine, Atlantis Books in Santorini ranks top on the list of the most interesting bookstores all over world! This legendary bookstore has gained international attention and acclaim since 2005, when Guardian newspaper first placed this ‘dream of a bookstore’ among its top 10 bookstores worldwide. A decade ago, a group of friends from Cyprus, England, and the United States founded this bookshop, situated today in a white-colour cliff-top villa, overlooking the famous Oia, on the island of Santorini. Its terrace, overlooking at the Aegean, hosts today many cultural 7
Greece This month - March 2016
ISSUE 169
happenings, food and film festivals, bookbinding classes, while inside one can find not only cult novels, but also good quality books. Its cave-like setting offers a really breathtaking feeling. The bookshelves, which the staff built themselves, are filled with novels, poetry, short-story collections, biographies and philosophy tomes. As ‘Lonely Planet’ describes it, it is ‘a true heaven for English-speaking bookworms, offering a wide variety of literature, poetry and philosophy’. We found an empty building facing the sunset, drank some whiskey and signed a lease,’ explains www.atlantisbooks.org What about cookbooks? Paying tribute to another part of the Aegean, The British newspaper ‘Independent‘ has published a dithyrambic article about the life of the well-known chef Nikolaos Tselementes, whose name is in Greek synonymous with “cookbook”, born on the small island of Sifnos. His first cookbook was published in 1910 and his signature work in 1920. His famous ‘Cooking Guide’ is full of tips and advice as well as his signature recipes which combine traditional Greek cooking with elements from elsewhere in Europe, particularly France. It was Tselementes who brought béchamel to Greece, adding it to the famous Greek dish, moussaka, among his other famous Greek specialties. Follow us :
A Pint of Greece Greek Embassy in UK @GreeceinUK @greece_in_uk
8