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Monday, 30 December 2024
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Athens News Agency: News in English, 07-04-08Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: The Athens News Agency at <http://www.ana.gr/>CONTENTS
[01] Easter celebrated in great splendour, devoutness in GreeceEaster is the biggest celebration of the Orthodox Christians and the one richest in folklore. All over Greece, Easter is celebrated in great splendour and devoutness. The word "Pascha", Easter in Greek, stems from the Jewish "Pasah" which means "Passover". The corresponding Greek word for "Pascha" is "Lambri" (Brightness) because the day of the resurrection of Christ is a day full of joy and exhilaration. On Easter Saturday morning, preparations started for the festive dinner of the night of the Resurrection and housewives cooked "maghiritsa" (a tripe and herbs soup). Shortly before midnight, people gathered in churches holding white candles which they lit with the "Holy Light" distributed by the priest.When the latter chanted "Christ is risen" (Christos Anesti), people exchanged wishes and the so-called "Kiss of Love". With the "Holy Light" of the candles they thrice made the sign of the cross on the door post over the front door of their houses for good luck. Then they all gathered around the festively laid table, they cracked red eggs and feasted on the traditional "maghiritsa". On Easter Sunday morning, in many parts of the country lamb was prepared on the spit. In other regions, the meat for the Easter table - lamb or kid - was roasted in the oven. There was a festive atmosphere everywhere and people ate and danced, usually until late into the night. [02] Politicians' Easter holidaysPresident of the Republic Karolos Papoulias and Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis, along with their families, celebrated Easter in Ioannina, northwestern Greece. Papoulias is in Ioannina since Palm Sunday and will remain there until Monday. The president attended the Resurrection Service at the Church in Frangades and Karamanlis at the Church in Dolos, where he arrived with his family on Thursday for the Easter holiday.Earlier on Saturday, President Papoulias and Prime Minister Karamanlis held an informal meeting at Frangades. Also on Saturday, Prime Minister Karamanlis, accompanied by his wife Natasha, greeted inhabitants and visitors in Ioannina, on his way to a downtown hotel where he held an informal meeting with authorities of the prefecture, Parliamentary deputies, mayors and other agencies. The meeting focused on issues concerning the region which, as the prefect and mayor of Ioannina later said, the prime minister was already aware of. On the same day, the prime minister met with the prefect, the mayor and the regional governor of Ipiros at the prefectural office, where major projects taking place in Ipiros were examined, as well as those that will begin soon, such as the Ionia Motorway. At noon on Sunday, President Papoulias and Prime Minister Karamanlis jointly celebrated Easter with servicemen at "Alexandros Diakos" army camp in the city of Konitsa. Main opposition Panhellenic Socialist Movement (PASOK) party leader George Papandreou was in Patras, western Greece, on Holy Saturday and attended the Resurrection Service at the Evangelistria Cathedral in the city. On Easter Sunday, Papandreou visited the Engineers Academy in the city of Loutraki, in the Gulf of Corinth, to exchange best wishes with servicemen. Communist Party of Greece (KKE) Secretary-General Aleka Papariga and Coalition of the Left, Movements and Ecology (Synaspismos) leader Alekos Alavanos attended the Resurrection Service in Athens. On Easter Sunday, Papariga, National Defence Minister Evangelos Meimarakis and Popular Orthodox Rally (LAOS) leader George Karatzaferis visited the Naval Cadets School in Piraeus and Alavanos spent Easter on the island of Tinos. Meimarakis was accompanied by Deputy National Defence Minister Vassilis Michaloliakos and by the Armed Forces leadership. Caption: ANA-MPA file photo of President of the Republic Karolos Papoulias. [03] Proceedings against Sea Diamond captainA prosecutor on the Aegean island of Naxos on Saturday launched legal proceedings against the captain of the ill-fated Greek cruise ship Sea Diamond, that sank off the island of Santorini at dawn on Friday after striking a reef on the previous afternoon. Prosecution concerns causing a shipwreck through negligence, causing pollution to the sea through negligence and failing to apply international regulations on avoiding collisions.The prosecutor will also refer the captain to an investigator as a result of the two French nationals who have been reported missing, a 45-year-old man and his 16-year-old daughter. All the remaining senior officers of the ship who had been brought before the prosecutor have been released. The 20-year old cruise ship, run by Louis Hellenic Cruise Lines, sank at the sea area of "Old Mines" of Athenios, Santorini's harbour, after water flooded its engine room and decks 2 and 3 during the night. The rest of the passengers (1,170), mostly Americans and Germans, and 390 crew of the ship were successfully evacuated within a few hours after the ship run aground. The "Aegean 2" ship arrived in the port of Piraeus on Friday morning transporting 296 passengers and 38 member of the crew. Louis Hellenic Cruises sent sent another cruise ship "Perla" to Santorini to transport the remaining passengers. The sinking of the vessel caused an oil spill of a radius of 100 metres. Sea Diamond was launched in April 2006, operating on a seven-day sea cruise from Piraeus to the Aegean islands. KKE calls for in-depth investigation The Communist Party of Greece (KKE) on Saturday called for an in-depth investigation of the sinking of the cruise ship. "The investigation into the causes of the shipwreck of the Sea Diamond must proceed in depth and this is the responsibility of the government," KKE said in an announcement. It further said that "the government has been exposed with its jubilating in the case of the Sea Diamond," adding that "responsibilities cannot be concealed because more people were not lost." [04] Holy Light ceremony in JerusalemThe Holy Light arrived in Athens from Jerusalem at about 7:30 p.m on Saturday. The exarch of the Holy Sepulchre in Athens received it in the Greek capital on a special Olympic Airlines flight. Honours provided for heads of state were given at the airport and from there it was distributed all over the country with special flights. In Jerusalem, Patriarch of Jerusalem Theofilos emerged from the Holy Sepulchre shortly after 2 p.m. on Saturday, holding the Holy Light.The Cathedral of the Resurrection in Jerusalem was full of people from all over the world who had arrived to take the light from the Patriarch's hands before leaving. Immediately after the ceremony, at which the government was represented by Deputy Foreign Minister Theodoros Kassimis, the Patriarch of Jerusalem wished the Greek people "Christos Anesti" (Christ has risen) on the occasion. Kassimis stressed that only the Greek Orthodox primate is called the Patriarch of Jerusalem, while the rest of the religious leaders are Patriarchs in Jerusalem. Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article |
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