The Greek Australian community of Sydney held for a third consecutive year a joint celebration of Greek Independence Day, organised by the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia and the Greek Orthodox Community of NSW.
In the presence of NSW Premier Barry O’Farrell, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Social Services Senator Concetta Fierravanti-Wells, Archbishop Stylianos, Consul General of Greece Dr Stavros Kyrimis, the president of the Greek Orthodox Community of NSW, Harry Danalis and other officials, hundreds of students and members of the community paid tribute to the heroes of 1821.
The celebratory program started in the morning with a Doxology at the Cathedral of the Annunciation of our Lady Theotokos in Redfern, continued with a wreath laying ceremony at Martin Place and a parade through the streets of Sydney which ended at Domain Park, where all the official speeches were delivered and an artistic program concluded the day.
Archbishop Stylianos thanked the Australian authorities for the moral and financial assistance offered to the various institutions and events of the Greek community (colleges, Greek Festival, etc.), but he noted, “with all these we do not wish to create a ghetto for our community – instead we wish to give back to the wider society the very best of ourselves.”
Harry Danalis, President of the Greek Orthodox Community of NSW, stressed the importance of retaining our cultural heritage, our language and our religion, while the Consul General of Greece Dr Stavros Kyrimis highlighted the importance of unity as a prerequisite that will enable us to go ahead as a community in Australia or as a country in Greece.