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Τετάρτη 16 Απριλίου 2014
"Unfolding" memories by Demetrios Papakostas. A must see exhibition!
Παρασκευή 4 Απριλίου 2014
How Parti Quebecois Fell Into Its Own Trap!
Quebec crucial elections
Pauline
Marois, the premier of Quebec and leader of the Parti Québécois, had a
carefully prepared recipe whose ingredients entailed calling early elections,
handily winning the race and creating her party’s first majority government in
over a decade. Buoyed by positive poll numbers showing her in a commanding position,
she confidently proclaimed April 7th election day, expecting to
garner full power in the National Assembly.
Justine
Frangouli - Argyris
At the
outset, Marois touted her highly controversial Quebec Charter of Values, which aimed to abolish the wearing of religious
symbols amongst select public officials in the line of duty, that was popular among the electorate as it
encouraged the French-Canadians’ historical march towards secularization. Already distant from the Catholic Church,
this new charter was to accelerate Quebec’s path toward secular status by
diminishing the symbols of other religions and cultures, thereby creating the
perfect scenario for a solid Parti Québécois victory.
However, a
nonchalant Madame Marois, in an attempt to appease the radical hardcore of her
party that continues to aspire for nationhood, began musing about another
referendum aimed at independence for the province. Not only
did she begin openly discussing the plebiscite as if the provincial election
had already been won, but her controversial stance regarding the fait accompli
of a majority government led her to announce to a disbelieving electorate that
an independent Quebec would retain the Canadian dollar and a seat at the Bank of
Canada as a sovereign nation in a political and economic union similar to that
of the European Union.
Pauline
Marois’ election campaign was suddenly out of control. Instead of putting forth
a plan for the future of the economy and a sound fiscal policy for the
province, her focus resulted in a frenzy for Quebec independence.
As if the
swirling rumours of an upcoming post-election referendum were not enough, the
premier unveiled what she believed to be her ace in the hole in the name of
star candidate and Quebecor media magnate Pierre Karl Peladeau who quickly
pump-fisted on air that Quebec was ready to claim its independence and that he
desired that his children live in an independent Quebec.
Pauline
Marois brought Monsieur Peladeau into the political game in a quest to inspire
confidence among the business world for Quebec independence. However,
this proved a fatal mistake as the Parti Québécois is a left-leaning political
entity and the entry of Pierre Peladeau into the fray alienated many supporters
who evidently did not take warmly to the inclusion of a tycoon among their
ranks, especially one feigning social interventionism on behalf of the weak.
In fact, Pierre Peladeau’s track record in his dealings with the unions at his
media empire never endeared him with the voters of Quebec and the Parti
Québécois’ traditional blue collar base as he presided over a bitter, two-year
lockout of his employees that ended with 75% of those locked out eventually
losing their jobs. The suspicion with which Peladeau was viewed peaked while at
the same time exposing the premier, who refused to make the details of her
personal wealth public by claiming that she had submitted copies of her tax
returns to the National Assembly’s ethics commissioner, as emanating from the
same elite circles of Quebec’s plutocracy.
Today, mere
days before the election, Pauline Marois’ campaign is in freefall and badly
trailing her rival, Liberal Philippe Couillard, in the polls. By choosing to
openly flaunt the card of an unwanted referendum and sovereign Quebec, she is
caught in her own trap. And by
inadvertently bringing to light the aspect of her privileged profile, she has
fallen out among the province’s populace.
Regardless,
whoever is elected premier on Monday has a daunting task ahead. For, Canada’s French-speaking province is
saddled with lower economic growth and higher unemployment than the rest of the
country and is struggling with a huge debt load that continues to spiral out of control,
swelling from 37.6 billion dollars in 1990 to 175.5 billion today and leaving
no illusions about impending cutbacks to the bloated public sector and
government spending.
Τρίτη 11 Μαρτίου 2014
Violence Against Women Lurks Everywhere!
Justine Frangouli-Argyris
Huffington Post
I had known my girl friend for many years. We had formed a close bond since my arrival in Montreal, our families socialized on a regular basis and our children grew up playing together. She seemed to lead a perfectly normal life in a middle-class home complete with big car and big smiles in the annual Christmas photos.
Until, one day, she knocked on my door and I could barely recognize her. Pale and weak, she was a mere shadow of herself. Stunned, I asked what was wrong and, amidst streaming tears, she revealed that she had been subjected to a life of perpetual martyrdom during her 15 years of marriage and that her husband had raped her emotionally and physically, even to the point of threatening her life.
I was shocked. How could my friend from across the street, a successful corporate lawyer, who, along with her husband, a CEO in a big international company, formed an enviable power couple that looked to fit so well together, be hiding so much violence and so much pain? Immediately, I offered her a place to stay and, a few days later, when she had composed herself, took her to a skilled family lawyer to begin divorce proceedings.
This story awakened me from the deep slumber of my orderly life. Soon, I began to come across other similar tales of human excess and it was then that I realized that behind every locked door of every house hid a potentially unknown story.
I became aware, that, according to Statistics Canada, half of all women in Canada have experienced at least one incident of physical or sexual violence since the age of 16, an alarming number for a society that claims to be progressive and vocal about the equality of the sexes and human rights.
My experience was greatly enriched by a recent visit to the "Shield of Athena," an organization created to offer support, guidance and shelter to women who suffer physical and mental violence within their family environment. Founded in 1991, "The Shield of Athena" has provided the women of the Greek and other ethnic communities of Montreal with information and assistance through a public awareness campaign in their language of origin.
Its director, Melpa Kamateros, explained that the organization was formed by a group of Greek women in order to offer services to the women and their children who are victims of domestic violence.
"Eventually, we were able to develop extended support services and counselling for the victims. We hired skilled professional social workers to listen to the women's problems and provide them with psychosocial support. Also, with our access to a team of professional lawyers and knowledgeable bureaucrats, the organization supports those who seek legal action and state resources in their quest to escape from an environment that is very violent," she concludes.
In extreme cases of violence, "The Shield of Athena" provides shelter for the battered women and their children for a limited period of time. There, they can stay during a transitional period until they recover mentally and find their way back to a normal life. The shelter can accommodate a few mothers and children at the time and it's often the police, the community or a friend who will bring the victims to us. Today, 40 percent of the women are of Greek origin while 60 percent come from other communities as the new ethnic communities are experiencing serious problems of domestic violence. "The Shield of Athena" has broken the language barrier with our social workers and liaisons able to provide guidance in 17 languages.
On the occasion of International Women's Day, which was celebrated March 8th, it is sad that violence against women and children still lurks in the developed countries. However, I would like to say that violence is not a shame for those who suffer it but that it is shameful for those who practice it.
Follow Justine Frangouli-Argyris on Twitter: www.twitter.com/Justinakion
Huffington Post
I had known my girl friend for many years. We had formed a close bond since my arrival in Montreal, our families socialized on a regular basis and our children grew up playing together. She seemed to lead a perfectly normal life in a middle-class home complete with big car and big smiles in the annual Christmas photos.
Until, one day, she knocked on my door and I could barely recognize her. Pale and weak, she was a mere shadow of herself. Stunned, I asked what was wrong and, amidst streaming tears, she revealed that she had been subjected to a life of perpetual martyrdom during her 15 years of marriage and that her husband had raped her emotionally and physically, even to the point of threatening her life.
I was shocked. How could my friend from across the street, a successful corporate lawyer, who, along with her husband, a CEO in a big international company, formed an enviable power couple that looked to fit so well together, be hiding so much violence and so much pain? Immediately, I offered her a place to stay and, a few days later, when she had composed herself, took her to a skilled family lawyer to begin divorce proceedings.
This story awakened me from the deep slumber of my orderly life. Soon, I began to come across other similar tales of human excess and it was then that I realized that behind every locked door of every house hid a potentially unknown story.
I became aware, that, according to Statistics Canada, half of all women in Canada have experienced at least one incident of physical or sexual violence since the age of 16, an alarming number for a society that claims to be progressive and vocal about the equality of the sexes and human rights.
My experience was greatly enriched by a recent visit to the "Shield of Athena," an organization created to offer support, guidance and shelter to women who suffer physical and mental violence within their family environment. Founded in 1991, "The Shield of Athena" has provided the women of the Greek and other ethnic communities of Montreal with information and assistance through a public awareness campaign in their language of origin.
Its director, Melpa Kamateros, explained that the organization was formed by a group of Greek women in order to offer services to the women and their children who are victims of domestic violence.
"At first, we began with the Greek community but now we serve women from 17 different ethnic communities as our social workers and personnel speak 17 languages.We are a non-profit organization for victims of family violence that provides emergency shelter and professional services to battered women and their offspring. Our support, intervention and prevention services are culturally and linguistically adapted to meet the needs of most of Montreal's major ethnocultural communities."Melpa Kamateros goes on: "At first, we had to confront the dilemma of Greek battered women who were reluctant to discuss the violent situations at home, partly because they did not speak the language but also because it was a social stigma to divorce their husbands. However, the extreme violence of men who are alcoholics or addicted to violence often ends up forcing these helpless ladies to seek out "The Shield of Athena."
"Eventually, we were able to develop extended support services and counselling for the victims. We hired skilled professional social workers to listen to the women's problems and provide them with psychosocial support. Also, with our access to a team of professional lawyers and knowledgeable bureaucrats, the organization supports those who seek legal action and state resources in their quest to escape from an environment that is very violent," she concludes.
In extreme cases of violence, "The Shield of Athena" provides shelter for the battered women and their children for a limited period of time. There, they can stay during a transitional period until they recover mentally and find their way back to a normal life. The shelter can accommodate a few mothers and children at the time and it's often the police, the community or a friend who will bring the victims to us. Today, 40 percent of the women are of Greek origin while 60 percent come from other communities as the new ethnic communities are experiencing serious problems of domestic violence. "The Shield of Athena" has broken the language barrier with our social workers and liaisons able to provide guidance in 17 languages.
On the occasion of International Women's Day, which was celebrated March 8th, it is sad that violence against women and children still lurks in the developed countries. However, I would like to say that violence is not a shame for those who suffer it but that it is shameful for those who practice it.
Follow Justine Frangouli-Argyris on Twitter: www.twitter.com/Justinakion
Κυριακή 16 Φεβρουαρίου 2014
Dr. Kimon Valaskakis: There is always a danger of Grexit as there is of Brixit
By Justine Frangouli-Argyris
The stark contrast between the stance of the International Monetary Fund and the European Union on the Greek debt crisis is all too evident with the IMF insisting that Greek debt will have to undergo a new haircut while Germany stands pat on a policy that considers any such discussion to be taboo.
Ambassador of Canada, RET
Professeur Honoraire, Université de Montréal
Δευτέρα 10 Φεβρουαρίου 2014
An Ultra Marathon of Hope
Justine Frangouli-Argyris
The
debt crisis has hit the young population of Greece the hardest. Today, some
465,000 children in the country live below the poverty line,
22% subsist on a diet that lacks animal protein,
37% are without adequate heating, 28% are housed in
unhygienic homes, 23% live in poor environmental conditions
and 10% of elementary and middle school
students suffer from “food insecurity.”
Mothers
continue to abandon their children in orphanages and nurseries at an alarming rate
because they can not provide for them and the situation is worsening rapidly. The "Smile of the Child"
organization assisted 10,927 children last
year compared to 4,465 in 2012 and the "Children's Village SOS" is currently
providing for 900 families compared with a mere 47 five years ago.
Recently, two athletes, Apostolos Baranowski and Rannelle McCoy,
decided they wanted to make a
difference and improve the lives of the destitute Greek children. “We need to
take immediate action to help those most affected by the crisis. The time has
come for a line to be drawn in the sand. A time to say enough is enough and
take a stand against poverty in our community,” says Apostolos.
“We will be running under the banner of “Hellenic Hope,” a charity
committed to raising funds in support of non-profit organizations in Greece
working with children who are suffering the consequences of the current
socio-economic crisis,” Apostolos states.www.hellenic-hope.org
Apostolos and Rannelle have two main goals:
1) to raise $100,000US to help ease the suffering of the Greek children;
2) to inspire members of the Greek community at large to make a difference
and rise above the misery that engulfs their daily lives.
“For most, the idea of running 100km non-stop seems impossible. Many
people in Greece share the same opinion when it comes to the current economic
crisis. They believe it to be an impossible situation. We want to show our
fellow citizens that nothing is impossible when we work systematically and
relentlessly towards a goal. It’s time to start helping each other, to start
caring, to change old attitudes that have held us back for so long. To stand up
and be counted,“ says Apostolos.
Apostolos and Rannelle are two seasoned endurance runners who compete in
national and international “ultramarathons”. Rannelle is the current women’s
record holder for the Rodopi Mountains “Adendurun” 164km (100 mile) trail
adventure race with a time of 29h 50m---smashing the previous record by a
whopping 2.5 hours! Apostolos recently returned from the Chicago Marathon where
he flew the Greek colours as a member of “Team Greek America” and, in the process,
raised funds for a worthy cause. They both live in Athens and are very
passionate about helping their community.
Apostolos and Rannelle believe that every last penny should go to those
who need it most and, as such, have decided to cover their own expenses and
travel costs. They encourage the Greek communities around the world to make
their fund raising goal a reality. “$100,000US works out to $1,000US per
kilometer,” they claim.
The
two Greek runners will take the harsh route in the name of the Greek chidren
who are suffering the crisis to their bones, a moving initiative for the most
delicate cause of all!
For donations to this important cause check here:
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