G. HATZIVASILIS: Dear listeners, we’re back and we welcome you to our show, with the Deputy Foreign Minister competent for issues concerning Greeks abroad, Mr. Kostas Tsiaras. Good morning, Mr. Minister.
K. TSIARAS: Good morning to us here, good evening to you and your listeners.
G. HATZIVASILIS: Mr. Minister, my only question, and this may not be in your area of responsibility, but it has given rise to great concern, and it has to do with taxation of Greeks abroad. Are you aware of Law 3943/2011?
K. TSIARAS: Of course.
G. HATZIVASILIS: Our compatriots here think it is unfair for the Greeks of Australia to be taxed.
K. TSIARAS: Look, obviously this doesn’t apply to just Greek Australians. I will note that the concerns and objections to the changes we are trying to make to the tax law are understandable. I am making a major personal effort, in consultation with the Finance Ministry team, to see if we might be able to make some of these regulations more favourable. I think there is room for us to deal with some things, so that we can allay these major concerns. Mainly on the part of Greeks abroad, global Hellenism, not just in Australia – where they are listening to us now – but wherever they may be.
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P. THEODORAKOPOULOS: I would like to ask you about the SAE draft law, which was put on the Internet for public discussion. I read through it quickly. Of course, there is just one complaint: the Greeks here, the diaspora Greeks, aren’t aware of it. It is happening during the holidays and you are giving them a very short time to respond and say what they think.
K. TSIARAS: First of all, Mr. Theodorakopoulos, I will respond to many of your objections with very specific arguments. Everyone is familiar with the history of the SAE. That is, the SAE, as an agency that, theoretically – note that word – represents global Hellenism, has existed since 1995. So its nothing new. The reality of the situation makes very specific changes imperative, given that we see the SAE has tired people, hasn’t inspired interest among Greeks abroad as a whole, and obviously serves virtually none of the purposes set out in its founding charter. Simply put, it neither represented Greeks abroad as we would like to have seen it do, nor did it exhibit dynamism, nor was it ever an institutional collocutor with the Greek state, as it was designed to be at its founding. So we had to create a new state of affairs that, on the one hand, will spark the interest of all Greeks abroad, and, on the other, will enable it to function as it should. This state of affairs is being remedied on three axes, as set out in the new draft law: self-organization, self-funding, and vertical representation of Greeks abroad.
In other words – and I am referring mainly to the third axis – whereas, to date, first- and second-degree organizations participated in the SAE, from now on all citizens of Greek decent, wherever they are in the world, will have the right to vote as individuals and members of the SAE. So the SAE will operate in another dimension, giving the right to every Greek abroad to feel represented, and I think this will create a completely different dynamic.
But it is very important that I take the opportunity of being on your radio show to call on all our compatriots in Australia, those who are listening right now, to take a look at the new proposed legislation.
I say this because its very easy just to reject something out of hand, but one has to realise that each of us is responsible, individually, for participating. If we get into a mindset of not discussing or simply not deigning to look at the proposed law, the endeavor may very well fail.
If we want it to succeed – if we really want a global organization that represents Greek abroad and will be able to function as a collocutor with the Greek state – there has to be participation and support. And of course we need to create the conditions in which the SAE can really exist.
Now, regarding the timeframe, which you said is too short for the public consultation that has been announced, I respond that we have until at least 31 January. This may be a shorter amount of time that we would have wanted, but you should be aware that the current term of the SAE President expires on 31 December of this year.
As a result, we have to get things rolling so that within a reasonable amount of time – hopefully by the end of June – we can have a new SAE – a new SAE Administration in which all Greeks, in every corner of the world, will be participating.
G. HATZIVASILIS: Mr. Minister, I agree with all of that, and particularly your assessment of the previous SAE. If you were in Australia, the competent members of the SAE may even have threatened you with legal action, just as they threatened me because I judged the SAE correctly for 15 years: that it didn’t serve us and didn’t rise to expectations, and I’m afraid …
K. TSIARAS: […] It is of great importance that we agree that, as an institution, it did not meet expectations; that it didn’t achieve what we hoped it would when it was founded – what it might have achieved for Greeks abroad. So there is a great need for change. If we really want there to be a global organization representing Greeks abroad, we need to look at it from a new perspective that I would like to see inspire diaspora Hellenism as a whole.
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G. HATZIVASILIS: I don’t question your efforts at all, Mr. Minister, and I’m happy about what you’re doing. I’ve read the draft law as well, and I have some concerns. One is about the name. I would prefer a fresh start with a new name, because the SAE (World Council of Hellenes Abroad) doesn’t have the best reputation. But let’s leave that aside. If it has to stay the same, it has to stay the same.
K. TSIARAS: I agree with you completely. I won’t hide the fact that from the start I looked at a name change. But when the SAE is included in the Greek Constitution, you can see that any attempt to change the name would require a change to the Constitution. That can’t happen right now, but it is an issue that we will be looking at in the immediate future.
G. HATZIVASILIS: Exactly, because I’m not a Greek abroad, Mr. Minister. I was born abroad.
K. TSIARAS: So global Hellenism is a very dynamic term that the Greek state essentially needs to invest in, along with Greeks throughout the world, wherever they may be, whether, if you will, as Greeks abroad, or as persons of Greek descent, or as people who have varied ethnic background, but have Greek blood in their veins and may think about Greece, love Greece, have Greece in their hearts and minds.
G. HATZIVASILIS: There’s no question about that. But, Mr. Minister, my other disagreement – and I know we don’t have time for this – concerns the fact that the elections for the regions will be held in Thessaloniki, and this raises concerns …
K. TSIARAS: I’ll answer you on that. I don’t know whether you looked at the whole draft law, but I’ll tell you this. First of all, when we say self-organization, we are talking about a process that will be determined to a great extent by the Board of the new SAE.
In other words, we are creating certain operational parameters for the institution right now. But any details, you can be sure, will be decided by the organization itself, since the current government, which represents the Greek state, has no intention whatsoever of getting involved in this organization.
It’s important for my to tell you that, beyond the fact that the first elections are being held in Thessaloniki, you will be able to participate by voting electronically. Simply put, Greeks will not have to travel to Thessaloniki at the end of June in order to vote.
Provided a procedure is established for certifying Greek origin, under certain conditions described in the draft law, anyone will be able to vote, electronically, from wherever they are in the world.
G. HATZIVASILIS: Mr. Minister, thank you. If you have a message for Greeks in Australia, we would be pleased to hear it.
K. TSIARAS: In view of the upcoming holidays, I would just like to wish all our compatriots living in Australia a good holiday season, a good Christmas this year and next. I would like to stress that thinking about our homeland, Greece – particularly at this difficult time – is something that will help us in our struggle to get our country back on its feet at this difficult time. However, I hope to be in Australia soon, in the new year, to communicate personally and look at issues that concern global Hellenism as a whole so that we can confront those issues together. Best wishes to everyone.
G. HATZIVASILIS: Mr. Minister, we wish you happy holidays, and we thank you for being on our programme.
K. TSIARAS: Take care, and thank you.
December 14, 2012