The Victorian Council for Greek National Day has planned an extensive programme of events for the remainder of the year that will commemorate the Centenary of the Catastrophe of 1922.

Under its 2022 Program In Memory of Asia Minor Hellenism, the following commemorative events are planned for May, with many more events to be publicised through Neos Kosmos later in the year:

♦ 15 May. Commemorative Service for the Genocide of the Hellenes of Pontos – There will be a memorial service at St Eustathios Greek Orthodox Cathedral at 10am, followed by wreath-laying ceremony at the Australian Hellenic Memorial. The event will be held by the Pontian Coordinating Committee for the Commemoration of the Greek Genocide in Melbourne under the auspices of the Australian Federation of Pontian Associations. For more information, call Apostolis Alexiadis on 0412 145 100.

♦ 19 May. Lecture – Dean Kalymniou will deliver a lecture entitled The First Pontian Genocide: Mithridates and Rome. The lecture which will take place at 7pm at the Greek Centre’s Mezzanine Level at 168 Lonsdale Street in Melbourne. Contact Litsa Athanasiadis on 0421 804 968 for more information on the event which is presented by the Central Pontian Association of Melbourne (Pontiaki Estia), Merimna Pontion Kyrion Oceania and the Greek Orthodox Community of Melbourne in conjunction with Australian Federation of Pontian Associations.

♦ 19 May. Photographic Exhibition – The Cretan Federation of Australia and New Zealand in conjunction with the Historical Museum of Crete and the support of the Region of Crete will present a major photographic exhibition from Crete entitled Crete in 1821. It will be launched at 6pm at Queens Hall in Parliament House by Matthew Guy, the Leader of the State Opposition, Stavros Arnaoutakis, the Governor of Crete, and Agislaos Kaloutsakis. For more information contact Tony Tsourdalakis on 0419 856 736.

♦ 28 May. Concert Gala Night – Starting at 7pm, the Australian Institute of Macedonian Studies will present Dimitris Basis in a concert gala night to commemorate Asia Minor Hellenism. Mr Basis will perform songs from Macedonia and Asia Minor and will also include compositions by Markopoulos, Theodorakis and Metropanos. The event will be held at Stars International Receptions. 1C Bell Street Preston. Contact Dr Anastasios Tsamis on 0418 173 014.

♦ 29 May. Book Launch. The launch of the children’s book Soumela and the Magic Kemenche by Dean Kalimniou and illustrated by Stephanos Eleftheriadis, will be held at Panarcadian Association of Melbourne, 570 Victoria Street, North Melbourne. The books is the first of its kind to delve into the tragic events of the Pontian Genocide in an age-appropriate way and is written in English and Greek. The launch is hosted by The Greek-Australian Cultural League (GACL) of Melbourne and the Hellenic Writers Association of Australasia with the Australian Federation of Pontian Associations. Contact Cathy Alexopoulos on 0428 968 715.