The significance of March 25th continues to remain constant in the minds of NSW’s Greek community as thousands poured into the heart of Sydney to honour the 202nd anniversary of the beginning of Greece’s Independence struggle.
The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia and the Greek Orthodox Community of NSW (GOC of NSW) organised this year’s commemorative events at the Cenotaph in Martin Place and Sydney Town Hall.
At the Cenotaph, a memorial service was conducted for the fallen and wreaths were laid by politicians, diplomats, and representatives of dozens of community organisations, including members of Greek associations at Sydney’s universities.
Among the attendees today at the Cenotaph were re-elected Labor MPs Steve Kamper and Sophie Cotsis.
Archbishop Mr Makarios heaped praise on the vast number of attendees who came for the services in Sydney as well as those that attended the services in Melbourne last weekend.
“I would like to express my joy and my gratitude to all the Greeks here in Sydney, and of course in Melbourne, that they had the will to participate in all the events that take place today on to commemorate Greek Independence Day,” Archbishop Makarios told Neos Kosmos.
The Archbishop lamented that the parade could not be held in the Opera House as had been done in the years before COVID-19 due to it currently undergoing renovations, though looked ahead with optimism.
“Hopefully next year will be more organised and we will be able to get ready in order to give a vital testimony to the Australian society of what we are, what we believe, and what is our target for the future of the new generations,” Mr Makarios told Neos Kosmos.
Whilst in years past the epicentre of the festivities was at the forecourt of the now under-refurbishment Opera House, this year’s speeches and artistic programme were presented at Sydney’s “People’s” Hall.
The Consul General of Greece in Sydney, Yannis Mallikourtis, recognised the heroics of our ancestors in his speech for what he described as a typical “David and Goliath” battle.
“After four centuries of foreign yolk and despite the unfavourable international conditions, the Greek people ignored the warnings and decided to take up arms and become independent. It was a difficult struggle, a descent to savagery, a bloodbath. And yet the Greeks prevailed,” Mr Mallikourtis said in his speech.
GOC of NSW President Harry Danalis stressed the necessity to pay tribute to all who fought to protect our identity in the Greek War of Independence.
“It is important for us as a Greek community, who have achieved so much, to honour those struggles and to remind our children of their history, their culture and their (our ancestors) struggles,” Mr Danalis said.
Courtney Houssos, Labor member in NSW’s Upper House, acknowledged the incredible efforts of our ancestors in maintaining their Hellenic roots and traditions despite the enormous period of occupation, something which really came through to her when explaining this event to her children.
“The Greeks managed to maintain and hold on to their traditions for 400 years which is an extraordinarily long period of time and really is a testament to the strength and resilience of the Greek community,” Ms Houssos said in her speech.
Kosmas Dimitriou, President of the Inter-Communities Council of NSW of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese, concluded the proceedings with a final vote of thanks to the crowd.
“Thank you for your attendance, for remaining true to the values espoused by Greek Independence and for continuing to add to Sydney’s rich multicultural fabric and history,” Mr Dimitriou said.
Intermittently between all the speeches were dances performed by youth from six different groups which were: the Greek Orthodox Community of NSW, the Sophia Haskas Greek Dance Group, the Hellenic Lyceum of Sydney, the Cretan Brotherhood of NSW, the Cyprus Community of NSW and the Pontoxeniteas Pontian Group.
Two poems were read out by Greek language school High School students of GOC NSW: «Το θούριο του Ρήγα Φεραίου» by Nicholas Miralis and «Χαίρε Ελλάδα Δοξασμένη» by Elena Gatsis.